Was It All Caleb Lawford’s Idea?
12: Chapter 12: Fiona Halloway Falls, Vince Takes Her Place?
Was It All Caleb Lawford’s Idea?
“Tell me, who is he?” Ruby Grant asked, desperate for the answer.
But Fiona Halloway clamped her mouth shut at the critical moment.
Her face turned pale, as if she had just let slip a secret that should never have been spoken.
Seeing this, Ruby knew further questions would be useless.
She took a deep breath and corrected her.
“Supervisor Halloway, did you say you were ‘just’ docking me three thousand yuan?
Do you have any idea what you’re talking about?
That isn’t ‘just’ three thousand yuan.
That’s the money my daughter and I need to survive!
It’s money I earned with my own blood, sweat, and tears, one inch of the street at a time!
You’d even go after a street sweeper’s hard-earned money.
Is there anything you wouldn’t do?
The situation you’re in today isn’t because of me.
It’s because of your own greed.”
Fiona Halloway was stunned by her words, unable to utter a single reply.
She was led into a police car, which soon sped away with its siren wailing.
“Miss Grant, there’s no need to call her Supervisor Halloway anymore,” Mrs.
Monroe said, walking over to pat Ruby’s shoulder reassuringly as she looked at her pale face.
“Fiona Halloway is finished.
She made a mistake and no longer has the right to that position.”
“Way to go, Ruby Grant!” A group of the older women gave Ruby a thumbs-up.
Ruby didn’t look triumphant.
She just shook her head, her heart still pounding with fear.
She knew that without this elderly woman’s help, she never could have succeeded.
And she had only done all this so she and Ceci could have a decent life in Kincaid.
Before leaving, Mrs.
Monroe expressed her gratitude.
“Dear child, you’ve done me a great service.
How can I repay you?”
But Ruby shook her head.
“I’ve already gotten what I wanted.” Seeing Fiona Halloway punished and getting her three thousand yuan back was enough.
In fact, she felt she should be the one thanking the kind old woman, whose appearance had enabled her to bring a wicked person to justice.
“But, young lady, are you really going to spend the rest of your life sweeping the streets here with a child?”
“My grandson has some connections in Kincaid.
How about I have him arrange a job for you?
You don’t have to worry about causing him any trouble.
He runs a company and has been doing quite well for himself lately.
This would be a small favor for him.”
“Yes, young lady, you should accept,” the old woman’s maid chimed in.
“A promise from our madam is something most people could only dream of.”
But Ruby politely declined.
“That’s not necessary, ma’am.
I quite like my current job.” She enjoyed cleaning the city as the sun rose and witnessing its prosperity at dusk.
The work of a street sweeper was arduous, but right now, Ruby felt there was nothing more suitable for her.
Only when she was sweeping, watching the endless trash being cleared away and the streets gradually becoming spotless again, could she briefly forget her past.
Mrs.
Monroe could only express her regret.
“Well then, I hope we meet again, Miss Grant.”
Before she left, Mrs.
Monroe couldn’t help but glance again at the little baby in Ruby’s arms.
‘That little face, so well-behaved and pretty…
she looks just like Caleb did as a child!’
She couldn’t resist asking, “Miss Grant, what about your child’s biological father?”
Ruby lowered her gaze to Ceci, a sharp pain stabbing at her heart.
“He passed away.” ‘In my heart, that man is already dead.’
Mrs.
Monroe was taken aback for a moment, then sighed.
“My condolences.”
The old woman left, and Ruby, holding her daughter, picked up her broom again and silently resumed sweeping the street.
“Ruby Grant, President Lawford gave us orders to give you ‘special treatment’!”
“You think he’ll take pity on you just because he knows you’re pregnant?
Dream on!
The tycoon of Kincaid, Caleb Lawford, would never acknowledge a bastard born from an ex-convict.”
Those words thundered in her ears, and Ruby dared not forget a single one.
She bit down hard on her lip, not letting go until she tasted blood.
The high-spirited, brilliant lawyer she once was, surrounded by flowers and applause, was drifting further and further away.
「The next afternoon.」
Ruby carried Ceci to the sanitation department at the subdistrict office to see the director.
As soon as she pushed open the office door, the director, an older woman, waved her over.
“Ruby Grant, you’re just in time.
The higher-ups have been briefed on Fiona Halloway’s unauthorized decision to dock your pay.
This is the official reversal of the penalty.
Take a look, and if there are no problems, sign here.”
“Now that the penalty has been revoked, your docked wages will be paid out as they should have been.
Don’t worry.”
“Also, regarding your reputation, which you defended with the police, we’ve already sent out a notice.
It was Fiona Halloway who slandered you; you are innocent.
Just work hard from now on.
You’re still young, you have a bright future ahead of you…”
As she spoke, a mocking smile played on the director’s lips.
She glanced at Ruby.
‘A bright future?’
‘A single mother, working as a cleaner for the rest of her life?
She thinks she can actually climb the social ladder and turn her life around?
If she can do that, then I can become the wife of Kincaid’s richest tycoon!’
They were all official staff with tenure, while Ruby was just a temporary contract worker.
They could crush her whenever they pleased.
“Alright, you can go once you’ve signed.
Remember to close the door on your way out.
Don’t let the heat escape.
This damn weather is freezing.”
With that, she stood up, went to the side to fill a thermos with hot water, brewed some tea, and took a sip, her expression a picture of lazy satisfaction.
Ruby looked down.
Her hands were red and chapped from sweeping day and night in the cold, and a dull, tingling pain throbbed through them.
The others in the office were stealing glances at her, whispering and gossiping amongst themselves.
“This Ruby Grant really made a scene this time, getting Mrs.
Monroe to personally stand up for her.”
“With the grandmother of Kincaid’s tycoon, Caleb Lawford, backing her, look how smug she is.”
“Didn’t they say Ruby proved her own innocence and got rid of Fiona Halloway?”
“Tch, what do you know?
Fiona Halloway had someone powerful behind her.
You think a lowly cleaner like Ruby had the power to get rid of her?”
“Who was behind Fiona Halloway, anyway?”
“Who knows?
I heard it was someone impressive.
Didn’t you see how she was swaggering around all month?
She clearly came into a windfall.”
“Hah, that Ruby Grant thinks she’s so clever.
Just you watch, her bad luck is coming soon.
Does she really think Fiona Halloway is the only person she’s offended here on South Street?”
Ruby walked out, holding Ceci, the hushed whispers drifting into her ears intermittently.
She didn’t listen closely.
She only knew that the kind old woman had a remarkable status, but she had no idea just how noble she was.
Even back when she was a force to be reckoned with in Kincaid, she had never met Mrs.
Monroe.
Now, all she wanted was a peaceful life with Ceci, so she had no intention of digging any deeper.
At that moment, the hand holding the penalty reversal notice was trembling slightly.
She was happy.
With a month’s wages back in her hands, her and Ceci’s livelihood was finally secure.
She had finally, through her own strength, received the fair treatment she deserved!
In Ruby’s eyes, nothing was more important than her daughter.
But just then, a menacing figure suddenly appeared in her path.
The road was wide, yet he walked straight toward her, intent on bumping into her.
She quickly dodged, and when she looked up, she saw him flash a sinister smile.
“Ruby Grant, just you wait!”
Supervisor Shaw, the man whose neck she had fiercely stabbed to fight him off last time, stood before her, a greenish glint in his eyes as he looked at her.
Seeing him, Ruby was instantly reminded of the moment he had tried to assault her, and a cold shiver ran through her body.
‘Why is Vince here?’
Vince savored the panic and unease on her face, his smile ambiguous.
Like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.
Only then did he turn, knock on the door, and go inside.
“Director, I’m here.”
“Ah, Vince, perfect timing.
Fiona Halloway is gone, so her position is yours now.
Do a good job, and keep a tighter rein on the people under you.
These days, does just anyone dare to report their superiors?”
The director, who had just been smiling and pleasant with her, was now fawning over Vince.
Through the half-open door, Ruby could see her looking down her nose, her voice laced with a mixture of mockery and disdain.
Vince also turned to look back at her.
Outside the door, Ruby met their gazes, stunned.
A shiver wracked her entire body.
‘First Fiona Halloway, and now Vince.
How did things turn out like this?’
Ruby left the subdistrict office in a daze.
The whole way, she couldn’t stop her mind from replaying the past.
When Ceci was born, she was wrinkled and weighed barely five pounds, in desperate need of nutrition.
But Ruby wasn’t producing much milk and had to eat more to feed Ceci.
But her cellmates, who were used to bullying her, would snatch her food, leaving her with only scraps and leftovers.
Back then, not long after her birth, Ceci couldn’t adapt to the prison environment and cried constantly.
A tiny, palm-sized infant, yet they plotted to give her sleeping pills to shut her up.
One stormy night, Ruby woke up to find they had stolen her daughter from her side.
They had wrapped sticky tape over Ceci’s mouth.
If Ruby hadn’t lunged at them like a madwoman, the tape wrapped around Ceci’s mouth and nose would have made her lose her daughter forever on that stormy night.
And the reason?
They were simply worried that Ceci’s crying would attract the guards for a cell check and interrupt their card game!
‘What on earth did I do wrong?!’
‘Why does everyone have it out for me?
Why do they want to make life miserable for me and Ceci?’
‘I’ve already learned to keep my head down.’
‘Is it just because I’m helpless and alone, a single mother with no background, that they can abuse and humiliate me without a second thought?’
“Did you guys hear?
Vince has taken over Fiona Halloway’s position.”
When Ruby returned to the dormitory, her roommates were already discussing it.
“Fiona Halloway’s position was a real cushy job.
Gifts for holidays and festivals poured in endlessly, but she never shared any of them.
And no one dared to say anything, since she arranged everyone’s work schedules.
You couldn’t afford to get on her bad side.
So many people had their eyes on that spot.
How did Vince get so lucky?”
“We just got rid of Fiona Halloway, and now we have Vince.
And last time, Vince…
to Ruby…
Ugh, just thinking about it, Ruby’s life is so hard!”
“I happen to know who helped Vince get that position.” The woman speaking’s husband was a security guard at the subdistrict office and often heard a lot of secrets.
“Who was it?” This immediately piqued everyone’s curiosity.
“I heard it was our Kincaid tycoon, Caleb Lawford.”
“What?
Vince is related to the tycoon of Kincaid?
I don’t believe it.
With that kind of connection, why would he stick around at the subdistrict office?”
“Of course not.
The story is that Vince somehow managed to curry favor with The Tycoon Lawford, and the man got him promoted with just a single word…”
Across the room, Ms.
Pound sat there, looking at her with concern.
But Ruby didn’t notice.
She couldn’t hear what else they were saying.
Her ears were ringing, and she felt as if a pair of hands were dragging her down into an abyss.
The group of women had already moved on to a different topic.
“Ruby?”