The Heart Left Behind (Cole and Yvonne) novel Chapter 80

Back at Havendor Manor, Jonas was on the phone, whispering as if he were planning something covert.

"You said you wanted to help Daddy. Do you have a plan yet?" he asked Xavier.

On the other end, Xavier, despite his usual reluctance, was eager to prove himself. He didn't like showing it, but deep down, he desperately craved my approval.

"I can handle it myself," Xavier replied, his tone sharp.

Jonas frowned, his little face scrunched up in concern. "What are you planning? Don't go to Mr. Lawson, okay? He's not trustworthy."

Xavier huffed, irritated. "Don't talk about him like that. He's nice."

"No, he's not," Jonas muttered under his breath, though it was loud enough to carry through the phone.

"What did you say about Jared?" Xavier's voice was suddenly sharp and challenging.

"I didn't say anything!" Jonas quickly denied it, his voice trembling. He was afraid that admitting the truth might mean Xavier would stop helping me.

…

Meanwhile, Xavier's room was dimly lit by the glow of his laptop. His fingers moved rapidly across the keyboard, his small face illuminated with determination.

He had overheard snippets about Joplin Group's share prices dropping. He didn't understand everything, but he knew enough. If the numbers were falling, someone needed to fix them—and he decided that someone was him.

He had been secretly saving the allowance money Grandma had given him, and it was enough for his plan. Not even Yvonne knew about it.

He decided to invest it all in Joplin Group's shares, leveraging every trick he had picked up from overhearing the conversations between adults and online forums.

He muttered under his breath, "Just a little manipulation, and the prices will bounce back once the bad news dies down."

With a final click of the keyboard, he leaned back triumphantly. "Done!" he announced to the phone. "He's gonna win now."

Jonas, still on the other end, scolded him softly, "Is he not 'Daddy' to you, huh?"