Chapter 14

But when Margaret Blake reached the front gate, Charles Knight bluntly informed her that Summer had already left. She stared at him, shocked.“What? That little brat left without even saying a proper goodbye to me?” She seemed a little disappointed, maybe even a bit sentimental. But as soon as she remembered that her and Isabella’s plan was nearing success, her face instantly brightened. “You’ve never liked Summer anyway. Now that she’s gone, why keep pretending?”Charles gave her a strange look before turning and heading back inside. Margaret didn’t care about his obvious disgust at all. ‘Whatever. Once the plan works, I’m planning to kick Charles out too!’ — In the car, thinking about what had just happened, Summer couldn’t help but smile. Her bright eyes sparkled with amusement. She was so pleased she even started humming to herself. Grace had probably already handled the tasks she’d assigned.Tomorrow is going to be wildly entertaining. As they stopped at a red light, Ethan Hart glanced at Summer’s reflection in the rearview mirror and couldn’t resist asking,“You seem to be in very good spirits today, ma’am.” Just imagining Margaret’s face when she realized she’d auctioned off her own daughter? That gut-punch expression?Oh yes, Summer was definitely in a good mood. Grinning widely, she joked,“It’s such a chilly day. Of course I’m happy!” The colder the weather, the closer the fall of the Knight Group. She had vowed—after dealing with Isabella and Margaret, Charles was next. The Knight Group was her mother’s legacy. She was taking it back. Ethan shot a glance outside. The sky was clear, the moonlight gentle, stars scattered across the night. The breeze was barely noticeable. Cold? Where? Also, how did cold weather connect to being cheerful? But then he remembered Alexander’s message—essentially giving Summer free rein. That was explanation enough. Both of them were… not exactly easy to deal with. Soon, the light turned green. As their car moved forward, a gray van brushed past from the opposite direction. Inside that van was Isabella Knight. But each vehicle sped off in a completely different direction—toward completely different fates. — An hour and a half later, Ethan pulled up at Alexander Barron’s private island villa. This island had once belonged to Alexander’s grandfather. After the Barrons found him and brought him back into the family, he’d holed up here without ever stepping foot out. To keep him from inheriting anything, the second and third branches of the family spread rumors all over City Q about him being hideous and temperamental. Alexander, playing along, never bothered to deny it. In the end, that “invisible” man pulled off something no one saw coming—he took control of the entire Barron Empire. Everyone wanted to know how he did it—including Summer herself. “Ma’am, we’ve arrived.” Ethan stepped out, opened the door for Summer, took her suitcase, and led her toward the villa. At the entrance, Mrs. Thompson stood in a neat line with the rest of the staff, waiting. The moment Summer appeared, a flicker of condescension passed through Mrs. Thompson’s eyes. The housekeepers greeted in unison,“Good evening, ma’am!” But Mrs. Thompson gave only the faintest nod, her attitude clearly half-hearted.What’s so special about some dumb young madam that she deserves my respect? Summer Knight hadn’t forgotten Mrs. Thompson—not one bit. Back in the day, Mrs. Thompson had served at the old Barron residence, taking care of Mr. Barron Sr. He trusted her deeply and gave her significant authority, so she essentially ran the house like a queen. The place was crawling with staff trying to suck up to her—gifts, favors, flattery—you name it. Naturally, it made her arrogant and full of herself. When Alexander was brought back to the family, the old man, feeling sorry for him, sent Mrs. Thompson to the island to take care of him. Let’s be real—there was nothing on this island. She became the boss almost instantly, and with no one to challenge her, her attitude only got worse. One wrong move from any staff member? She’d kick them out on the spot. To be honest, if Alexander hadn’t been so intimidating, she might’ve even tried to push him around too. In her last life, after Summer married into the Barrons, Mrs. Thompson bullied her relentlessly. It was brutal. But things were different now. Alexander hadn’t fired her yet, so of course Summer was going to settle that old score properly. She wasn’t that clueless pushover anymore—now she had the intelligence and the guts to put this arrogant servant in her place. After Ethan dropped her off, he drove away immediately. Mr. Barron had given him another task—no time to linger. The moment Ethan was gone, Mrs. Thompson’s attitude dropped another notch. She shot Summer a lazy glance and turned to go back to her room. A dumb girl like that? Not worth missing a second of my beauty sleep. What a joke. But just as she turned around, Summer called out to her. “Mrs. Thompson, where’s big brother?” She puffed out her cheeks, the picture of dumb innocence. Mrs. Thompson paused for a second before realizing that “big brother” meant Mr. Barron. At first, she had zero interest in talking to this fool, but then it hit her—why not use this chance to put the new madam in her place? Remind her who really calls the shots around here. Suddenly all smiles, she replied sweetly,“Young Madam, Master Barron is waiting for you upstairs.” “Okay! Thanks, Mrs. Thompson!” Summer beamed with silly gratitude and skipped toward the stairs. But as she passed by, she “accidentally” stomped hard on Mrs. Thompson’s foot. “You—!”Mrs. Thompson’s face twisted with rage, her hand twitching as if she were about to slap her. But Summer was quicker. “Big brother, I’m coming to see you!”she yelled with exaggerated cheer. Mrs. Thompson froze. She couldn’t lay a finger on her now. Not with Alexander upstairs. Alexander Barron wasn’t just anybody—he now ran the whole Barron Empire and wasn’t someone Mrs. Thompson could mess with. Thing was, Alexander was upstairs taking a shower. And everyone knew how angry he could get—plus, he was a total clean freak. The other branches of the Barron family had tried sending girls over before, hoping they’d seduce him while he was bathing or sleeping. Every single one ended up being dragged off to the back hill… where his giant Tibetan mastiff waited. Even now, just remembering those women’s screams sent a chill down Mrs. Thompson’s spine. So if this silly girl really walked in on Alexander mid-shower? With his temper? Even if he didn’t have her fed to the dog, she’d probably be tossed out so hard she’d become the laughingstock of the whole city. Thinking about it, Mrs. Thompson couldn’t help but grin wickedly. That girl was doomed to be her little punching bag. Or at least… that’s what she thought. The next second, reality slapped her right in the face.