Perhaps Stacey was right – the police officers were no match for the backings that were behind Felix.
With that being said, it would be close to impossible for a certain party to exert influence to such an extent in J City because it would take more than a fortune to get one’s way around the law with ease.
“Mrs. Fuller, what a coincidence! I can’t believe we get to meet again so soon!” Felix greeted me with a bright grin, concealing the despicable side of his which he had shown in the restaurant back then.
He seemed like a completely different person altogether. In fact, he appeared to be a well-educated gentleman who could carry himself politely in front of others.
I returned the favor and responded with a nod and a smile.
Since everyone had arrived, Thomas got himself engaged in a conversation with Ashton after he instructed the waiter to serve us our meal.
Most of their topics were regarding their work, including the operations of Fuller Corporation in J City. Thomas expressed AC Credit’s intention to be Fuller Corporation’s external audit for the upcoming quarter.
Ashton looked elsewhere and replied nonchalantly, “Mr. Lowe, my wife is the one in charge of most of the operation of Fuller Corporation in J City. Feel free to get in touch with her instead of me.”
I couldn’t comprehend the meaning behind Ashton’s words because I wasn’t given the task to oversee the operation of Fuller Corporation in J City.
Although the headquarter of Fuller Corporation had been relocated to K City, J City was one of the corporation’s bases of operations. In short, I would never be given such an important role.
On one hand, Jared, who was about to finish his glass of wine, paused and looked at me when he heard Ashton’s words. After he cast a skeptical glance at me, he regained his composure.
On the other hand, Thomas smiled and denoted, “I wouldn’t have any idea of the change if you hadn’t brought it up in front of me, Mr. Fuller! It turns out Ms. Stovall is the person in charge of Fuller Corporation nowadays!”
I peered at Ashton in the eyes in an attempt to figure out his motives, but my effort was to no avail.
However, since Ashton indicated he wanted me to engage in a conversation with Thomas, I was pretty sure the topic would revolve around the audit of the corporation.
The things that should be discussed had been brought to light since the last quarter, though. I looked at Thomas and initiated the conversation, stating, “Mr. Lowe, I’m not trying to boycott your company, but the incident that has occurred during the last quarter has brought about a huge loss for Fuller Corporation. As a result, I was no longer affiliated with the company. I will never allow myself to repeat the silly mistake twice.”
“Mrs. Fuller, don’t worry! I won’t allow the same thing to happen twice either! In order to prove our sincerity, I have brought along Mr. Ludwick with me. He has always been in charge of Fuller Corporation’s audits. Fuller Corporation is in good hands with him around.” Thomas assured me everything would be fine as though he had been anticipating the occurrence of the conversation.
Judging by the tone of Thomas’ words, I couldn’t help but think Felix had a higher position in AC Credit.
When I turned around and looked at Felix, he responded with a bright grin and asserted determinedly, “Ms. Stovall, what happened was nothing but an accident. I assure you everything will be fine this time.”
After much consideration, I turned and looked at Ashton while inquiring, “Can I turn down the audit request from Fuller Corporation?”
“Why? What’s the reason behind it?” Ashton asked with his brows furrowed.
“I have no intention to get myself involved in such a nasty situation. Apart from that, I don’t want to commit the same mistake twice.” Most importantly, I was a member of White Corporation. If I were in charge of the said audit, things would end up miserably due to my ambiguous identity.
Ashton gave it a thought. A few seconds later, he told Thomas, “Mr. Lowe, I’m afraid the incident and the misunderstanding may have traumatized my wife. Allow me to make myself clear – AC Credit and Harrison Credit were given the task of auditing Fuller Corporation’s financial statement. Although Harrison Credit was a relatively small firm, they did a great job while I was on the verge of bankruptcy due to AC Credit. Thankfully, things ended up well at the end of the day. Nevertheless, AC Credit was the reason my wife had to leave Fuller Corporation. Considering the factors that were mentioned above, I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I won’t allow AC Credit to be in charge of Fuller Corporation’s audit anymore.”
Thomas and Felix were dumbfounded by Ashton’s decision. “Mr. Fuller, I believe you’re aware of the actual reason behind the incident that has occurred during the last quarter – our company might be one of the reasons the incident spiraled out of control, but we shouldn’t forget about the underlying issues of Fuller Corporation.”
“Mr. Lowe, does that mean you think AC Credit’s neglection during the incident has nothing to do with it?” Ashton replied with a faint smirk.
When Thomas heard Ashton’s question, his face turned pale and haggard.
I wouldn’t lie, though; it was one of the most embarrassing meals I had ever had throughout my entire life.
After we finished our meal and returned to the car, Ashton stared at me with his abysmal pair of eyes and asked, “What do you have in your mind?”
I stopped looking out the window and had my eyes on Ashton instead. “Since you have no intention to acquire AC Credit’s service, why would you invite them over?”
“Why don’t you try to figuring it out?”
“Ashton, why do you always do that!” I responded with my lips pouted. It was very immature of him to ask them out just so he could get them back for the things they had done and humiliate them in front of me.
I was completely worn out and wasn’t in the mood to carry on with the conversation we had after the feud. It wasn’t necessary to get worked up over such a trivial incident either.
Initially, I would make a trip back to K City after taking a day’s break.
I had the flight ticket ready, but I received a call from Stacey out of the blue. “Ms. Stovall, do you have some time for me?”
When I recalled the content of my conversation with Marcus on the day we signed the agreement with OrbitTech, I hesitated and asked, “What do you want from me?”
She started sniffling and murmured through the phone, “Ms. Stovall, I should have seen it coming, but I don’t wish to be confined by the man for the rest of my life! Please spare me some of your time and allow me to tell you the things I have in mind!”
Since Ashton was not around, I was quite free. After much consideration, I gave in to her request and told her to meet me at Bridge’s Court at Barbara Road.
She heaved a sigh of relief and told me she would be there on time.
