Family on Their Knees Heart Turned to Ice novel Chapter 86

After the initial surprise, Bella had secretly been delighted.

She guessed that the only reason Lillian had started a tech company was because Nathan had been forced to fire her. Nathan probably had a genuine fondness for Lillian, so he set up a company for her to play with.

Bella figured that Nathan was also providing the technical support for Lillian's new venture. But at the end of the day, given Lillian’s status, even if she divorced Sebastian, could she really marry Nathan? It was likely just a passing fancy. Nathan was probably entertaining her with this company for now, but it would all end in a complete mess.

However, there was one silver lining to her starting a company: it brought her onto Bella's home turf. In that case, Bella would be more than happy to teach Lillian a lesson and show her who the real queen of the industry was.

Sabrina looked at her daughter, sensing she had a plan. She changed her tone and began to placate Martin. “Martin, we were terribly unfair to Lillian these past two years. Now that she’s out, if she wants to do something she enjoys, why are you so angry with her? Our family and the Blake family have resources, don’t we? If we help her out a little, she might come around, and the matter of having another child will naturally resolve itself.”

Martin retorted, “Sabrina, I know you mean well, but do you think she’s Bella? If she were as talented and capable as Bella, I wouldn’t say a word. But she has nothing. She’ll only make a fool of herself and embarrass us. They say a daughter is a father's treasure, but I seem to have ended up with a curse.”

He glanced at Bella and sighed. “Thank goodness I still have Bella to bring me some joy.”

Sabrina beamed and decided not to press the matter further for now.

Later that night, she brought a glass of milk to Bella’s room. After closing the door, the two of them had a private chat.

“Bella, are you really going to let her run wild like this? What if she messes something up? It could cause trouble for you and Sebastian.”

Bella took a sip of milk, her expression disdainful. “Her? What kind of trouble could she possibly cause?”

Sabrina was still displeased. “No matter what kind of trouble, if it inconveniences you and Sebastian, I won’t be happy.”

Bella put down the glass and took her mother’s hand with a smile. “I know you’re worried about me, Mom, but this time, I doubt it will be me or Sebastian cleaning up her mess.”

Sebastian’s team had been trying to find the legendary Li, but the person was a complete ghost. They couldn’t find any trace of them, no contact information whatsoever.

With the industry conference approaching, Sebastian planned to attend and see if he could find any leads. Nathan had adopted a completely unhelpful attitude, acting as if he couldn't care less if the project was delayed. It was almost as if he was perfectly fine with the project failing.

But Sebastian couldn't afford for it to fail. Old Mr. Blake had pulled strings to get him this project, and he absolutely could not mess it up. If he did, the shareholders in the Blake family waiting for their dividends would find a way to oust him. He had worked too hard to get to where he was today; he wouldn’t let Nathan ruin it.

Ultimately, however, Sebastian placed the final blame for the situation squarely on Lillian’s shoulders.

His secretary walked in with a folder. “Mr. Blake, the guest list for the conference has been confirmed. It’s mostly familiar faces, though there are a couple of new companies...” Her voice trailed off. “Among them is Ms. Mercer’s company.”

Sebastian’s brow furrowed sharply. “What right does she have to be there? Find out who got her a spot.”