Filed to story: The Regretful Billionaire: An Unpredicted Reunion
Pete sat on the couch and said casually, “What else can I do? I just want to make her suffer.”
“And you find that interesting?” Eric never bothered to explain the reason behind the divorce to Pete. He was too lazy to lay it out, even though everyone was clear about the reason. Instead, he sat back and watched as Pete released his anger on Lynette.
Pete chuckled again. “Of course. She’s very interesting.”
“Hah. Whatever.’ Eric couldn’t care less about what Pete had in store for Danika. In his eyes, she was no different than a dead woman. However, he cautioned, “I need to warn you about Danika Zellweger. She’s no average woman. You’d better be careful not to play into her hands.”
Pete scrunched up his eyes, thinking, “Well, who knows? You might be the one playing into her hands.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t lose my sanity over a woman, unlike you. He tore apart Eric’s hypocrisy without mercy and left the mansion. He made the visit to get the confirmation he needed, and he appeared to have arrived at an answer.
Soon, Danika received a call from Pete. He agreed to work with her, and she was glad to hear that. Her plan was simple-the first step was to get Lynette out of the Dafoe Mansion, and to do so, she needed Pete’s help.
“Danika Zellweger, you’re using me to save that woman, am I right? Will you really help me get rid of Eric if I get her out?” Pete was no fool. He learned Lynette was a bargaining chip, and she’d be equally effective under Eric’s captivity. However, if Danika succeeded in leaving with Lynette, she could walk back on all her rosy promises, leaving him deep in regret.
She understood his concern and explained, ‘They are legally married. Even if I bring Lynette with me, their marriage is still valid, and Eric can take her back anytime. You should know that is not my endgame.”
“Oh? Does that mean you have a plan to make Eric agree to a divorce?” Pete laughed, thinking that it was impossible.
“I don’t have a choice. But you know, we don’t always need his approval to divorce,” she suggested.
Pete was momentarily surprised, but he soon understood the meaning behind her words. Indeed, the death of one’s spouse would make it easier to get a divorce. If Lynette wanted a peaceful life, Eric would have to be removed from the equation forever, and his fate seemed to be sealed.
“You’re pretty ruthless,” he concluded.
She smiled and denied it, “Don’t read too much into it. I won’t use any illegal means. I plan to lure Eric to Bardoff City and throw him behind bars there.” She didn’t mind sharing her plan because Pete was in the same boat as her-he had no other choice.
Since Bayside City was the Dafoes’ territory, getting Eric jailed here would be impossible. But things would be different in Bardoff City, where the Zellwegers had the upper hand and wouldn’t be affected by the actions of the Dafoes. Once she found incriminating evidence on Eric, she would send him to prison
What Are You Afraid Of?
After hearing Danika’s plan, Pete sank into a long and thoughtful silence. Feeling unsure, he asked her, “Are you confident he’d follow you to Bardoff City? He’s not dumb. He sure knows the huge risk in going there.”
“He will come after me. A man as possessive and arrogant as him will do so.” She was sure about it. Although she didn’t interact much with Eric, she had met countless men just like him. Wasn’t Paul Wagner one of them? Eric was even worse than Paul. Therefore, she was sure he’d come after them once they brought Lynette to Bardoff City. He would not stop until he captured her and brought her back to Bayside City.
Surprisingly, Pete didn’t refute it, for he knew Eric well, and his father was exactly like how Danika described him.
“Even if he follows you to Bardoff City, are you confident in sending him to jail? Are you sure you have evidence against him?” As a Dafoe, he knew that his family was not the most law-abiding, but he didn’t have any proof of the shady dealings. Plus, he’d never act in a way that hurt his family.
Reading his mind, she assured him, ‘Don’t worry. I have planned for all of that. Even if I don’t look into the Dafoes, I’m sure Eric himself has plenty of blood on his hands. What you need to do is to help me with that.”
“Is that all?” Pete was baffled—he thought Danika would ask him to expose the Dafoes’ illegal activities.
She nodded. “Yes, that is all. Give me the list of those who died in his hands, and I will think of a way to deal with it.” i
They saw eye to eye, but he was still unsure. “Will that be fine?”
“Are you afraid?” She scoffed at him. “What are you afraid of? Are you worried that he’d hurt you if you fail?”
He didn’t argue because he was indeed scared. He might be rebellious in front of Eric, but he had always feared his father.
“Don’t worry. He won’t lay a finger on you because you’re his son. Just shift the blame to me.” Danika was fearless because she was confident in herself.
Her attitude swayed him, and finally, he bit the bullet. “Okay! I’ll go for it!”
He wouldn’t die even if he failed, so why not give it a try? If he won, he wouldn’t have to live under Eric’s thumb, a freedom he had been craving.
After the call, Danika started thinking hard about ways to smuggle Lynette from the Dafoe Mansion and out of Bayside City. She needed to give it serious consideration because Eric was a madman. If he found out about the plan, he’d rather go down in flames than watch Lynette leave.
She was too deep in her thoughts that she didn’t notice Eustace entering.
“What are you thinking about?” He went up to her and asked patiently. She confessed her worries to him, only to make him laugh. “Danika, you underestimated the Quinceys and the Zellwegers.”
“Oh? How? Tell me.” Even though she was the head of the Zellweger family, she didn’t have a full picture of their influence.
“The Dafoe family is king in Bayside City, but they’re no match for us. Do anything you want. Eric’s not a threat to us, at least from what we can see,* he explained.
I Only Ask For One Thing
Despite Eustace’s assurance, Danika wasn’t totally relieved. She’d rather be safe than sorry and didn’t want to see anyone around her hurt.
After a few days of peace, Eric had to leave Bayside City for a business trip. Danika thought his absence would be a good opportunity for them.
However, Eric was no fool. As Danika and Graham were still in Bayside City, he knew they hadn’t given up on rescuing Lynette. Therefore, he would be worried about leaving Lynette behind.
“Pack your stuff and join me on a business trip tomorrow,” he informed her.
The surprised look on her face quickly changed into confusion. “This is the first time in many years you have wanted me to join you on a business trip. Why?”
“I do what I want. Do I have to explain myself to you?” Eric had always been short-tempered with her through his words or actions. One couldn’t tell his affection for Lynette judging from his behavior. But it was wrong to conclude that he didn’t have feelings for her because he stubbornly refused to let her go.
She hung her head and pursed her lips. “I thought you refused to let me leave Bayside City because it’s your territory, and no one could stir trouble here. Now, you’re choosing to bring me with you. Aren’t you worried we’d run into trouble once we leave Bayside?”
Eric made a lot of enemies, but no one could touch a hair on his head when he was in Bayside City. However, things would look very different if they left the city. One of the reasons he refused to let her leave was for protection. On top of that, he believed that by physically restricting her to Bayside City, she’d be under his full control.
“You seem reluctant to go with me,” he remarked. It was a statement, not a question.
She was openly honest about it. “It’s too dangerous to be around you. I would like to live a few years longer.”
“Hah! You always look like you’re tired of living. I thought you didn’t want to live,* he jeered.
She pursed her lips. Indeed, she had lost the will to live before meeting Graham and Danika in person. After seeing them, she suddenly believed she had the strength to keep going for a while. If she gave up before seeing the light at dawn, that’d be a great waste.
He seemed to have read her mind because he grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. “Lynette Bell, are you still hoping for that good-for- nothing, Graham Zellweger, to save you? You better know you can’t escape from me as long as I’m still breathing.*
She didn’t utter a word of protest, but her silence irked him more. He hated it when she put on a desolate and hopeless look. Still, after some consideration, he agreed that bringing Lynette with him was not a rational decision. He was sure that Graham would grab the opportunity to attack if he brought Lynette out of Bayside City. He didn’t have resources outside of Bayside City, which might complicate things.
After a furious internal debate, he called Pete over.
“What?” Pete asked impatiently.
Eric didn’t want to fight with him, so he appeared gentler than usual.” You’re not a kid anymore. It’s time for you to help out.” His words puzzled Pete. He continued, “I need to leave Bayside City for a few days. I’ll leave everything here in your hands. You can order my men around as much as you like, but I only ask for one thing.”
Then, Eric stared keenly at him, saying icily, “Do not let Lynette Bell take one step out of the city. Even if she’s dying, she should die here in Bayside City.”
I Need to See Her
Pete was silent with a somber look on his face. Eric might think he was considering the task, but Pete was actually panicking. He wondered,” What’s wrong? Why did he suddenly involve me in the family affairs? Did he find out about something?”
“You have an army under you. Why do you want me to watch over her?” Pete put on an annoyed look, showing his displeasure about Lynette.
“You’re my son, and you will take over the family one day. It’s time to get you to work. This is a new challenge for you,” Eric explained. Truth be told, he didn’t trust Lynette with anyone other than his family. After some debate, he only had one choice-Pete.
Pete was silently smirking at his father’s excuse. He would have trusted Eric had he not known about his father’s bastard children. Too bad he was in the know. Therefore, he would not trust Eric’s promise of handing him control of the family.
Still, he didn’t call him out. “You knew that Danika Zellweger is after Lynette. If you leave, they will make a move.”
“Do you think you can’t handle them?” Eric frowned, displeased.
“Of course not!” Pete hurriedly denied. ‘I’m only worried that you might blame me if we suffered massive losses.”
“Don’t worry about that. Regardless of how many men we lost, I wont blame you as long as you keep Lynette safe.” Eric wouldn’t have left Bayside City at this critical moment had it not been for the business affair.
Pete seemed relieved after hearing that. “Okay then. I’ll try my best.”
“No, you shouldn’t be trying your best. Give it your best!” Eric reminded him.
Pete said nothing, but he was silently mocking the madman that was his father.
Once Pete left Dafoe Mansion, he immediately called Danika. “You’re in luck. Eric is leaving Bayside City tomorrow, and he wants me to keep an eye on Lynette. This must be the best chance for you.”
“What luck? He must have a reason for leaving Bayside City at this time.’ She smiled. She never believed in luck.
“Did you make him leave?” Pete guessed her plan right away. He was no fool.
She dodged the question and informed him, “The plan is scheduled for tomorrow. After confirming that Eric Dafoe has boarded the plane, we will show up and bring Lynette with us.”
“If you take her, what should I say to Eric?” Pete asked, feeling jittery.
“Don’t worry about that. You are still of use to me. I won’t give you up,” she assured him. “By the way, you can station some of Eric’s men at the mansion. If something bad happens, you can at least shift the blame onto someone else. Plus, I have set up an extra layer of protection for you.” She only shared the information to calm him down but didn’t go into details.
Pete could not stop worrying. However, he knew he had no way out ever since he decided to work with Danika. He had no choice but to bite the bullet and pray that Danika would keep her promise of not abandoning him.
After the call, Danika dialed another number. “Has she arrived? Okay. Bring her to the villa. I need to see her.”
She wasn’t joking about the extra protection for Pete. If Pete were smart, he would soon realize that Eric wouldn’t hurt him-he would only marvel at the ingenuity of their plan.
Hope He Doesn’t Disappoint Me
The next day, Eric left Bayside City in his private jet. Even after making the arrangements, he was plagued by anxiety. He had a hunch that something bad would happen.
“Sir, you look worried.” His subordinate was concerned after noticing the frown on Eric’s face.
Eric collected himself and asked coolly, “Do you think Pete is any good?”
“Mr. Pete might look unreliable, but I think he deliberately puts on that front. He’s still pretty capable,” the subordinate answered.
“Is that so?” Eric stared out of the window. “Hope he doesn’t disappoint me. ” He had a few children out of wedlock, but he had no plan to make any of them the family heir, at least for now.