Shattered Illusions Love Lies and Redemption (Lizetta and Remington) novel Chapter 1144

"Mrs. Madden, you're here."

She hurried over to greet them. Conrad West, who had been sitting quietly but was among the first to raise his hand during the vote, frowned. He quickly grabbed Eartha Porter Madden's arm and stood up to welcome her.

"Mom, what are you doing here? You're unwell. You shouldn't be in such a chaotic place."

Conrad stepped forward, reaching out to support the elderly woman's other arm.

Eartha followed closely behind, her tone laced with disapproval. "Jerome, I know you're ambitious and hate playing second fiddle, but you shouldn't have tricked her into coming. She's ill. Even when Dad was running things, she never had to worry about corporate matters. Now that he's sick, dragging her into this mess is highly inappropriate."

She reached out as if to take over. "Godmother, let me take you back to rest. Or maybe you're missing Godfather? How about I take you to the hospital to see him?"

Eartha knew perfectly well that Bernice was deeply dependent on Nelson.

She was deliberately using his name to trigger the elderly woman.

Her ultimate goal was to make Bernice throw a public, hysterical fit.

However, Bernice had been video-calling Nelson every day.

Eartha's malicious hopes were dashed. Instead of breaking down, Bernice stared coldly at the approaching couple and snapped.

"You two have some nerve. I don't know you. Get out of my way!"

She turned to Jerome, her voice shifting to a confused murmur. "Jerome, who are these people? Why are they pointing fingers? This is my family's company. Am I not allowed here?"

Conrad and Eartha froze in humiliation.

Chairman Porter quickly stood up and walked over to intervene.

"Sister-in-law, no one is saying you can't be here. It's just that we have a crucial meeting today. Why don't I have someone take you to Nelson's office for some tea? There are plenty of lovely photos of the two of you in there."

At the mention of the photos, Bernice's eyes lit up.

She was tempted to agree, but she remembered a strict warning.

Let the old hag stay. What difference did it make? Her shares, combined with Jerome's, weren't nearly enough to turn the tide.

With Nelson still comatose, any will he might have left was effectively useless.

What did he have to fear?

Once he officially took over as chairman, his first order of business would be purging all the Madden loyalists and anyone who refused to bow to him.

Then, he would use dirt-cheap tactics to strip the remaining Madden shares. It was only a matter of time before the company was rebranded as the Porter Group.

"Go get a chair for your godmother," he ordered Eartha, striking a magnanimous pose.

Catching his drift, Eartha arranged for a seat to be brought over.

Jerome helped his grandmother settle in. With a subtle nod from Jerome, the lawyer trailing behind them stepped forward, presenting a legally binding document confirming that Bernice had granted Jerome full proxy to manage her shares.

With that, Jerome held fifteen percent. Lynn Shen, who was fiercely loyal to the Maddens, brought their total to eighteen percent. The three Porter men held twenty-two percent, and they had been relentlessly lobbying.