Chapter 214: Alice Cole Changes Her Mind

“How many times did I tell you? You wouldn’t believe me and insisted on seeing it for yourself. Now that you have, you can’t accept it?”

Alice Cole remained silent, clearly still struggling to process the reality. If their family company now completely relied on Chloe York to survive, what was the difference between this company and one that actually belonged to Chloe? In fact, without Chloe, the shares Alice currently held were virtually worthless.

“Mom!” Brooke York called out to Alice. She didn’t actually have anything to say, nor did she know what to say, but she just felt the need to call out to ease the sudden anxiety in her heart.

But Alice was in no mood to pay attention to her at this moment. Instead, she looked at Miles York.

“Honey, what should we do now? Chloe has already moved her household registration! She is no longer one of the Yorks. If those partners find out, will they cancel the contracts? If they do, won’t our company just…” Alice trailed off, but her meaning was clear—their company would go bankrupt and cease to exist.

“Of course. Why else do you think I was against Chloe moving her registration out? We rely on her to keep us afloat right now,” Miles said.

“We’re doomed. She’s already not part of the Yorks anymore!”

Seeing Alice in such a frantic state, Miles didn’t immediately tell her that the extra ten percent of the shares he had given Chloe was a compromise—he had agreed to let her move her registration on the condition that she keep it a secret.

Meanwhile, Brooke hadn’t expected Alice to ignore her. Ever since she returned to the York Family, this was the very first time Alice had ever brushed her off.

Brooke thought indignantly, “Sure enough, she just pays lip service. Even if we’re relying on Chloe right now, if the family didn’t already have this company established, how would any partnerships have come knocking? Besides, didn’t Chloe enjoy the luxurious life of a wealthy heiress provided by our family all those years? Isn’t it time for her to repay us? Why are they acting like we should be grateful to her?”

“So from now on, whenever I make a decision, you should know that agreeing and supporting me is the right thing to do, understand?” Miles’s tone turned smug.

He had always felt that Alice was living too comfortably at home, completely oblivious to how the outside world worked. Other mothers might be tired from raising children at home, but she wasn’t tired at all. The nanny handled everything; all she had to do was supervise the nanny. Now that she had seen the data, she wouldn’t spout so much nonsense in the future. If he had known it would be this effective, he would have shown her sooner.

“You’re right. I was wrong before.” Alice had genuinely realized her mistake now, mainly because she had never expected Chloe to be so capable.

“As long as you know. Both of you can go back now; I need to work.” Miles asked them to leave.

Feeling too embarrassed to stick around, Alice stood up to leave. As if only just realizing that Brooke was still beside her, Alice belatedly remembered that she had completely ignored her a moment ago.

Looking slightly awkward, she grabbed Brooke’s hand. “Brooke, let Mom take you out for some good food.” Without waiting for Brooke’s response, she pulled her out of the office.

“Did anything happen when the two of you were sorting documents together?” Miles asked Keith Morgan as soon as they were gone.

“Ms. Brooke added my contact information, saying she could ask me if she had any questions in the future,” Keith answered truthfully. She still knew perfectly well who had hired her and who signed her paychecks. Besides, she had a feeling that if the company were handed over to Brooke’s management, it probably wouldn’t last long and might even go bankrupt one day. Therefore, her priority was naturally to please her current boss.

Miles wasn’t surprised by Brooke’s actions. He merely scoffed coldly. This daughter of his was far too unruly. He hadn’t even stepped down yet, and she was already scheming to take over. She was certainly reaching far and fast—only a freshman in college, yet already making moves on his secretary.

“If she asks you anything, I shouldn’t have to teach you how to reply, right?”

“Rest assured, Mr. York. I know what to do.”

“Mhm. You may leave.”

Keith nodded and left the office.

Meanwhile, just as Alice and Brooke reached the company entrance, Brooke shook off Alice’s grip. “Let go.”

“Brooke, are you angry?” No matter how oblivious she was, Alice could sense Brooke’s displeasure and hurried to explain, “Back in the office, Mom didn’t mean to ignore you. It’s just that I never expected the company to truly be relying on Chloe now. I was just too shocked.”

“What’s there to be shocked about? Fine, our family’s company might be relying on Chloe right now, but isn’t that only because Dad is managing it? If Dad wasn’t capable and hadn’t started this company, how would these people have found him to discuss partnerships in the first place?

“Also, Chloe took my place and enjoyed the good life our family provided. She lived like a wealthy heiress for over a decade. You gave all of that to her! What’s wrong with her repaying us a little now?”

Brooke’s words suddenly made everything click into place for Alice. She realized that their family had given Chloe such a good life and allowed her to grow up in such an excellent environment. The fact that she could now bring value to the company was simply her way of repaying them!

“Brooke, you’re right.”

“I’m right, and then what?” Brooke tilted her head, her brows furrowed tightly in exasperation.

“What do you mean, ‘then what’?” Alice failed to catch her drift.

“Are you still grateful to her?”

“Not anymore!”

“If you’re not grateful, you should go back in there and make Dad force Chloe to spit out those shares.” Brooke was beginning to doubt whether she was truly Miles and Alice’s biological daughter. How could two people as dense as a brick wall give birth to such a brilliant daughter? They could have easily spun it as Chloe repaying the York Family for raising her. Instead, one of them handed over shares as a thank-you, while the other actually felt genuine gratitude toward her.

Although Alice was easily swayed by Brooke, she had, after all, been a strong career woman who co-founded the business with Miles. When it came to corporate matters, she was still somewhat sharp.

“Brooke, getting Chloe to spit out those shares probably won’t work.”

“Why won’t it work? Chloe enjoyed our family’s luxurious lifestyle for so long; this is the least she should do! How can she have the nerve to accept those shares?”

“Your dad gave her shares the first time because of you. If Chloe had leaked what you did back then, it would have ruined you. So, your dad offered the shares to get her to forgive you, hoping an apology would settle the matter.

“He gave her shares the second time because he wanted to keep her from telling everyone that she’s no longer a part of the Yorks. If we demand the shares back and she exposes the truth, there’s no guarantee the company will even be able to keep operating.”

Alice explained clearly why they couldn’t force Chloe to return the shares, thinking that framing it this way would finally help Brooke understand.

“So, she, an outsider, can get shares, but I can’t? I, your biological daughter, can’t? Do you think that’s fair?”