Want My Womb? I'll Make You Childless novel Chapter 118

Chapter 118

Ethan Carter’s eyes darted to the file presented by the National Security Agency officers, a flicker of surprise crossing his fare

He had indeed collaborated with Apex on a project, but it had been terminated after only six months.

Later, to secure the Blade system co–development project with Nova Al, he had kept this under wraps and specifically instructed Natalie not to disclose it.

He had initially dismissed it as a minor issue, never anticipating Natalie would reveal it now.

Ethan took the file, his knuckles turning white as he saw Natalie’s signature on the statement.

“My collaboration with Apex headquarters ended long before the Blade project even began, and it didn’t involve any classified information,”

Ethan said, his voice tight with suppressed anger.“I only concealed it to avoid complications.”

The National Security Agency officers were unmoved.“Mr. Carter, please cooperate and come with us for questioning.”

Ethan’s eyebrows furrowed deeply, his eyes filled with disbelief.

“I want to see Natalie Parker.”

The NSA agents didn’t refuse, simply gesturing for him to proceed.

Ethan Carter smoothed his impeccable suit jacket, straightened his spine, and followed the agents out of the office.

Outside the office, employees who had been curiously peering in his direction saw Ethan emerge. Recalling his vouching for Natalie Parker, their faces reflected shock mixed with apprehension.

As the head of the Carter Group, Ethan Carter being taken away by the National Security Agency again could send shockwaves through Carter Group if word got out.

Ethan did his best to maintain a calm facade, but only he knew how much he regretted trusting Natalie Parker so easily, which had led

him to this point.

Arriving at the National Security Agency, Ethan was led back into the interrogation room, his gaze sharpening as he saw a somewhat disheveled Natalie.

“Why did

you

do this?”

Just a few days apart, and Natalie had been worn down by the relentless interrogations, her face gaunt and dark circles under her eyes.

Sensing Ethan’s frigid stare, she instinctively flinched, forcing a weak smile.

“Eth, I’m telling the truth.”

Natalie Parker felt cornered. She hadn’t anticipated that Clara Bennett would feign her resignation from Nova Al, setting such an elaborate trap for her. Now, with the evidence stacked against her, there was no way to clear her name. However, even if she were sentenced, she couldn’t serve her time in a domestic prison. She had to find a way to have them transfer her

abroad.

Thinking back to the training she received at headquarters before returning home, she remembered what they told her: if she were ever caught, she should implicate as many people as possible and blow the whole thing up. Only then would she have a chance to have headquarters intervene, contact the authorities, and arrange for her extradition.

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Hearing this, Ethan Carter felt a knot tighten in his chest, choking him.

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“You were the one who suggested the collaboration with Apex in the first place, saying you wanted to establish a foothold and needed my help. That’s why I agreed.”

“After you came back, you claimed it was for performance reasons, that you wanted to collaborate with Nova AI, and I vouched for you then, too.”

“I even vouched for you before when you were suspected of leaking information, because I trusted you. I withstood the pressure and helped you suppress the rumors. Is this how

you repay me?”

“Wasn’t I good enough to you?”

Natalie lowered her gaze, her long lashes concealing the emotions in her eyes, her voice laced with a hint of hoarseness.“How were you good to me?”

“We were together for so many years, and then you turned around and married Clara, didn’t you just forget about me?”

“But what about me?”

“I lost

my

ability to have children trying to save you. All I wanted was a child, and

you

couldn’t even give me that.”

Natalie’s voice was soft, but each word was like a sharp knife, piercing Ethan.

Shock filled his eyes; he clearly hadn’t expected her to say such things.

He had even gone behind Clara’s back to have her be a surrogate, to give Natalie a child, which led to their current situation.

Even later, after realizing his feelings for Clara, he still had people looking for a suitable surrogate abroad.

He thought he had done right by Natalie, but apparently, she felt differently.

“In that case, I have nothing more to say.”

Ethan took a deep breath, looked intently at Natalie, and forced himself to regain his composure.

“My cooperation with Apex never involved any technical issues, and I never leaked any state secrets. All of that can be verified.”

It was just a matter of time.

Ethan walked over to the interrogation chair, sat down, and looked up at the interrogator.

“Ask whatever you need to. I’ll cooperate fully.”

All he wanted now was to get out of this hellhole as soon as possible and minimize the damage to the Carter Group.

–

Evening fell, and the city lights began to twinkle.

Clara Bennett stood at the entrance of The Summit, pulling her coat tighter around herself.

“Ms. Bennett.”

Attorney Brown pulled up beside her, got out of the car, and placed his keys on the valet stand.“Have you been waiting long?”

“Not at all, I just got here myself.”

Clara shook her head.“I’m sorry, it was really urgent, and I’m bothering you after work.”

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Clara hadn’t expected that after signing the equity transfer agreement in the afternoon, Richard Bennett would ask to meet her that evening, requesting her to bring a lawyer to complete the subsequent procedures.

It seemed they were really getting anxious.

Clara smirked, walking into The Summit with Attorney Brown, and heading to the private room Richard Bennett had booked.

Seeing them arrive late, Richard Bennett harrumphed with displeasure.“So now you’re playing hard to get? Coming so late, do you even want the shares anymore?”

Clara glanced at her watch, smiled, and a hint of mockery flickered in her eyes. “It’s only been an hour since you notified me.”

“If that’s considered late, should I leave?”

Richard Bennett was choked by her words, wanting to say a few more things, but the corner of his jacket was gently tugged by Victor Bennett.

Knowing that now was not the time to fall out with Clara, he glared at her and looked at Brian Sun beside him.

“This is Brian Sun, the Bennett Group’s chief legal counsel. He came all the way from Boston today to handle the stock transfer.”

“Good evening, Ms. Bennett.”

Brian’s address caught Clara off guard. She looked up at him, seeing a handsome man around forty years old with an intellectual air

about him.

Noticing Clara’s

gaze, Brian adjusted his glasses, smiled, and pushed the documents across the table toward her.

Clara saw the words “Shareholding Change Application Form” at the top and noticed that Richard had already signed in the legal representative’s signature box. She glanced at Attorney Brown.

He nodded, and Clara signed her name in the transferee section.

Seeing Clara sign, Brian smiled again, divided the set of documents into two, and handed one copy to Clara.

“I’ll head back to Boston right away and try to submit the application form to the registration authority for change filing tomorrow.”

“At the same time, I need to file a tax declaration for the equity change with the tax authorities. After the public announcement is completed within three business days, the shares will be officially under your name.”

“Ms. Bennett, this is your copy for retention. You’ll need to provide identification documents for verification later.”

Clara took the documents and looked at Brian.“Once the public announcement is complete, these shares will be in my name?”

“Yes, they will.”

Hearing his affirmative tone, Clara smiled, a hint of relief in her eyes.

“Well, the paperwork is just about done.”

Richard watched her expression and said patiently, “Clara, you’re about to get the shares. When will you find time to go to Grand Horizon and sort out the platform compatibility issue?”

Clara’s smile vanished as she put the documents into her bag. She looked up, her tone casual, “Whenever I feel like it.”

“What do

you

mean?”

Richard’s face darkened.“Clara, don’t push your luck!”

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“These shares were my mother’s, and they should have been mine all along,”

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Clara’s smile disappeared, her eyes turning cold.“I’m not obligated to hand over the Blade partnership to Grand Horizon just because I’m getting back what’s rightfully mine.”

“Besides, the shares aren’t even in my name yet, are they?”

She pointed to the other application form on the desk. “Who knows if you’ll pull the rug out from under me again, like last time, after] fix the problem.”

“Clara!”

Richard’s forehead veins throbbed with anger. He slammed his hands on the table and stood up, roaring, “Don’t forget, Anderson Industries is only afloat right now because of a few core projects.”

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell Ethan Carter about you and Ryan Walker? What if Ethan decides to take action against Anderson Industries

when he finds out?”

“Haven’t you already told him?”

Clara gave him a cold look. She had received a call from Noah that afternoon, after leaving Grand Horizon.

Ethan had already made it known that all partners were terminating their collaborations with Anderson Industries. Furthermore, he’d frozen Anderson Industries‘ credit lines at all major banks.

“You think you can force me to give in this way?”

“Dad, calm down.”

Seeing Clara’s cold expression, Victor quickly stepped forward to smooth things over.“Clara, we’re not deliberately trying to make things difficult for you.”

“Anderson Industries has had its share of struggles. If your mother knew, she wouldn’t want to see her life’s work ruined, would she?”

“If you’re willing to resolve Grand Horizon’s issues, the Bennett Group will definitely establish a partnership with Anderson Industries, and we’ll allocate thirty percent of the profits to Anderson Industries. What do you say?”

Clara narrowed her eyes, looking down at her phone without a word.

She was tired of watching Richard and Victor play their roles, one playing the heavy, the other playing the peacemaker.

The phone screen lit up, and Clara’s long eyelashes fluttered as she tapped to open a news alert that popped up on the screen.

Seeing her silence, Richard assumed she was swayed by Victor’s words, and his tone softened a bit.

“Clara, as long as you help Grand Horizon secure the collaboration, I promise, I’ll go and explain things to Ethan.”

Clara finished reading the news and slowly looked up, a meaningful smile suddenly forming at the corner of her lips.

“Do whatever you want with the partnership. As for Anderson Industries, you don’t need to trouble yourselves over it.”

With that, she stood up and left.

“Stop right there!”

Richard, seeing her leave without looking back, was completely infuriated by her indifferent attitude. He pulled out his phone and

dialed Ethan’s number.

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“Fine! I’ll show you what happens when you refuse to cooperate nicely!”

The call went through, but a cold recorded message came through the receiver.

“The subscriber you dialed is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later.”

Richard frowned and dialed again, but the result was the same.

“What’s going on?”

“Dad…”

Victor, who had also been drawn in by the news pushed to his phone, finished reading the latest financial news. He looked pale and his eyes filled with panic.

“Something might have happened to Ethan…”

“How could it be!”

Richard didn’t believe it.“That’s Ethan Carter! Who in Chicago could do anything to him?”

“It’s true.”

Victor handed his phone to Richard with a trembling hand.

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up,

his face

When Richard saw the headline, “Carter Group CEO Ethan Carter Suspected of Leaking National Secrets, Taken into Custody by the National Security Agency,” his anger was instantly replaced by alarm.

“This… how is this possible?”

Richard looked incredulous.“How could he be suspected of leaking secrets?”

“Now’s not the time to dwell on that.”

Victor Bennett snapped back to reality.“Dad, we can’t count on Ethan to deal with Anderson Industries anymore. What are we going to do? Without the Blade collaboration, forget Grand Horizon, the entire Bennett Group is doomed!”

Richard Bennett took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm.

He glanced at the open door of the private room and said to Victor Bennett, “Hurry and catch up with Clara. Talk to her again. No matter what, you have to get her to agree to fix Grand Horizon’s platform issues!”

“Okay!”

Victor Bennett didn’t dare delay and dashed out.

Downstairs at The Summit, Clara and Attorney Brown stood by the curb, waiting for the valet to bring her car around.

Hearing hurried footsteps behind her, she instinctively stepped aside,

“Clara, I need to talk to you.”

Hearing Victor Bennett’s voice, Clara turned to face him, her expression cold.“I have nothing to say to you.”

“Don’t be like that.”

Victor Bennett caught his breath, forcing a smile.“I was out of line before. I apologize.”

“But the Bennett Group is, after all, something Mom and Dad built from the ground up. You can’t just stand by and watch it fall apart,

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can you?”

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“The ‘Blade‘ partnership is crucial for both Grand Horizon and the Bennett Group. Just consider it a favor, and once it’s done, I’ll give you the shares Mom left me. How about that?”

Clara stared at Victor for a long moment, seeing sincerity in his expression. She smiled wryly.“You’re so desperate to save the Bennett Group from bankruptcy. Is it for Mom’s sake, or because you can’t bear to lose everything you have now?”

Victor blinked, his smile faltering.“What are you implying?”

“Nothing.”

Clara’s smile vanished, her eyes hardening.“I just want you to know that Mom’s car accident wasn’t an accident at all. There was foul play involved.”

“You still think Aunt Bennett had something to do with it?”

Victor frowned, his voice laced with impatience.“Clara, why are you still harping on this?”

“I’ve told you, Aunt Bennett isn’t like that. The car accident was just that—an accident. The police investigated it…”

“Investigated?”

Clara cut him off, her voice icy.“Who investigated it? Was there even an investigation?”

“I… no, what are you getting at with these questions?”

Victor was confused. They had been talking about the partnership between Grand Horizon and ‘Blade.’ How had they gotten onto this

topic?

Seeing his expression, Clara knew she couldn’t explain it to him right away. She waved her hand dismissively and said coldly, “It’s nothing. I’m already looking into it.”

“If I actually get the evidence, I hope that you and Richard won’t stop me from bringing the person who harmed Mom to justice.”

“If you can do that, I might consider giving Grand Horizon part of Blade’s civilian partnership rights.”

With that, she stopped looking at Victor, walked to her car parked by the roadside, opened the door, and

got

1. in.

Richard rushed over, seeing Clara get into the car and disappear down the road.“Well? Did she agree?” he asked anxiously.

Victor snapped out of his daze, his face a mask of conflicted emotions. He recounted the conversation to Richard.“Dad,” he

murmured, “do you think… Mom’s car accident back then really had something more to it?”

Richard’s expression instantly turned grave. He stared in the direction Clara had gone, his brow furrowed in thought, his mind in

turmoil.

He’d always believed the car accident was just that–an accident. But Clara spoke with such conviction, even claiming to have leads… Could it really be as she said, that someone was pulling strings behind the scenes?

Meanwhile, in a dilapidated old house in the suburbs…

Anthony Parker was sitting on a creaky wooden chair, mindlessly scrolling through news on his phone.

When a news item about Ethan Carter popped up on the screen, his pupils dilated.

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He clicked on it, and after seeing the content and the photo of Ethan and Natalie Parker, his hand suddenly trembled, and his phone smacked onto the floor.

“How… how could this be?”

Anthony’s face turned ashen, his whole body shaking, and he kept muttering.

“Sophie… how could she be Snowy?”

“How could she be suspected of leaking state secrets?”

No, he had to find someone to get to the bottom of this!

Remembering when Clara Bennett had come to him, promising to help find his daughter, he abruptly stood up and ran towards the

door.

He had to find Clara and get her to help him figure out what was going on!

But as soon as he opened the door, two tall men blocked his way, their faces grim.“Anthony Parker, where do you think you’re going?”

“The higher–ups have said that things are tight right now, and you’re not allowed to go anywhere except stay here. Otherwise, if someone finds out about what happened back then, no one will be in a good place.”

Anthony knew these two were sent by Diane Bennett to keep an eye on him, and that Diane was afraid he would blab and wouldn’t let him go anywhere.

But now, all he cared about was his daughter’s situation. His heart sank, and with a sudden move, he ducked and slipped between the

two men.

He barely managed two steps before one of them grabbed his arm.

“Let me go! You have no right to restrict my freedom!”

Anthony struggled desperately, but after so many years in prison and his age catching up to him, he was no match for them.

As they wrestled, two more men rushed up the stairs and immediately started fighting Diane’s men.

These two were skilled fighters, quickly subduing the others on the ground.

“Mr. Parker, please come with us.”

One of them helped Anthony up, his voice low as he spoke into his ear, “We’re with Attorney Brown. You’re safe with us.”

Anthony paused, then realized Attorney Brown was the lawyer who had come with Clara Bennett last time.

He nodded. “Okay, please take me to Ms. Bennett. I need to speak with her!”