Pampered by my three brothers: the return of the neglected heiress novel Chapter 1764

Chapter 1764: It’s better this way

"Ask me if I’d cross the line for my people. I’d even cross Satan if he messed with me—or my people. You are one of them... aren’t you? Or are you not?"

Between Penny and Shawn, who was the real idiot?

Or rather, who was the bigger idiot?

The one who had already gotten away but was now walking back into trouble? Or the one who had finally achieved what he’d been working toward for the past decade... only to falter at the last second?

Another tear rolled down Shawn’s cheek as he looked at the woman calling him an idiot. He hadn’t even realized he was crying until his vision started to blur.

Thud!

Shawn slammed his hands against the floor, bowing his head low as it struck the ground.

"I’m sorry," he pleaded, voice trembling with suppressed tears. "Miss Penny, I... please... forgive me. I’m sorry!"

Penny’s shoulders slumped as she stared down at the towering man now kowtowing before her. She dragged her fingers through her hair, ruffling it as her head throbbed faintly.

This situation had just revealed two things:

First, whoever sent Shawn was already making their move.

Second, Penny and her team weren’t ahead of the enemy—they were neck and neck in a marathon, sprinting the final leg.

"I’m sorry!" Shawn cried. "I— I didn’t want to betray you, but I... I’m sorry."

He didn’t make excuses. He didn’t say, "I had no choice." He simply asked for forgiveness—and that was enough to tell Penny that he knew his share of the blame.

She exhaled hard and ran a hand down her face.

"Get up," she muttered.

He didn’t move.

With an irritated sigh, she marched to him and grabbed his shoulder. When he straightened up, her palm smacked across his cheek before another apology could escape his lips.

Shawn froze. His head turned from the blow, eyes wide and tearful. Slowly, he looked back at her.

"I said get up," she repeated through gritted teeth. "And get yourself together. This is just the beginning of our nightmare if you don’t realize that yet."

She released his shoulder and looked around her office. "Is there anything else in here?" she asked, already suspecting the answer.

Shawn didn’t respond right away, still touching the cheek she’d just slapped. But when Penny shot him a sharp glare, he flinched.

"Uh, no," he replied. "Just the wiretap."

"Where?"

Shawn gulped and pointed at the vase on the stand.

Without hesitation, Penny walked over, pulled out the flowers, and shoved her hand into the water. She withdrew a small device, partially wrapped in a rock to keep it submerged.

The light blinked red.

"Where is this connected now?" she asked, turning back to him.

Shawn stared at her in a daze, prompting her to grit her teeth.

"Shawn! I said keep it together! Do I need to keep repeating myself?"

Snapping back to his senses, Shawn nodded quickly. "I—I broke it."

During her earlier conversation with Mint, Zoren, and Hugo, Shawn had been dealing with the article mess, but in one ear, he wore a hidden earpiece. A habit he’d shown everyone, so they assumed he was just listening to music while working.

"I broke it once I was sure the code was in your possession," he clarified, voice still cracking slightly.

"And there’s nothing else in this office?"

He shook his head. "Adding more would’ve raised alarms. But I think other parts of the company have surveillance devices. I saw someone I recognized the other day, posing as a part-time janitor."

"I see." Penny nodded, her mind racing. After a second, she jerked her chin toward him.

"Pick up the gun and the code."