No longer a pushover (Noelle and Cedric) novel Chapter 675

Noelle went to the cafe downstairs, where Ruth was already waiting for her. Ruth slid a check across the table when Noelle sat down. Noelle glanced at it.

"What's this?"

Ruth sneered. "Name your price."

Noelle studied Ruth. "I don't remember this being part of our deal. You said that Cedric was lying to me. What exactly did you mean by that?"

"I lied." Ruth looked uncomfortable. "I was just trying to test you. But I didn't expect Cedric to overhear me. What I meant was he had been keeping your identity a secret. I was merely trying to drive a wedge between you two."

Noelle had a feeling Ruth wasn't telling the whole truth.

Ruth insisted. "Just write down a number. The money will be in your account by the end of the day."

Noelle laughed before writing on the check. Ruth smirked. How greedy; it was just as she expected.

Noelle handed the check back to Ruth, whose eyes widened in shock when she saw the amount. "What?"

Noelle filled the check with the highest possible amount. She remained indifferent. "Didn't you say to name my price? What's wrong? Is that too much for you?"

Ruth downed her coffee. She hadn't expected Noelle to request ten billion dollars. Where was she supposed to get that kind of cash?

The Merlock family was nearly bankrupt. There was no way they could afford this.

Noelle stood up. "You can't afford it? I guess that means Samantha isn't worth that much to you after all. Maybe prison is the better option for her."

After leaving the cafe, Noelle immediately called Tilly. "Ruth just met with me. It didn't go well. Keep an eye on her."

Then, she returned to Maple Enterprise to continue testing. Thankfully, everything was running smoothly.

Back at school, she received a call from Tilly. "Ruth went to that shop. According to our informant, she met with the same repairman. We don't know what they talked about."

Noelle's mood lifted. This meant Ruth might know something about the car accident. She was getting closer to the truth.

Just after she hung up, Mia walked over. "I looked into the Merlock family. As far as I can tell, none of them were in a car accident in Aldoria back then. The Merlocks were at a renewable energy summit."

She handed Noelle an old photograph. "Here's proof. The event lasted from the afternoon until the evening. They wouldn't have had time to go to Aldoria."