Chapter 75

After they left, Penelope went upstairs, changed, and headed out.

She took Theodore's jacket to Zenith Group, only to be told he was out of town on business.

"On business? Where did he go? When will he be back?" The questions tumbled out before she could stop them, and she immediately felt foolish. His assistant would never tell her that.

"Mr. Stapleton is in Kestrel Rock. We're not sure when he'll return. I believe he has some personal matters to attend to as well."

To her surprise, the assistant answered. Penelope thanked her profusely. She needed to return the jacket in person, so she took it with her.

Since she had given the car back to Zebulon, she had to take a cab. During the ride, a sense of urgency washed over her. She had a feeling that if she didn't act now, things would change. She told the driver to take her to KINY Group instead. At KINY Group, she went straight to Nathan's office. The first thing she saw were the large gift bags from Rebecca sitting on his coffee table.

"Rebecca dropped these off. A congratulatory gift for our department's new head -you," Nathan said with a wry smile.

To accept such lavish gifts delivered directly to the office, you needed some serious backing. He knew Penelope had it, so he had accepted them on her behalf.

Penelope barely glanced at them. “Distribute them among the department staff."

"You don't want any of it?"

"I don't want to be indebted to them."

Nathan raised an eyebrow. "What about our colleagues?"

"I'm the one who makes the final decision on their proposal, not them. They can take whatever they want."

Nathan laughed. "Fair enough."

Penelope was there on business. She asked Nathan to use his network to find out the latest on Zenith's Shopping Street project. She had a gut feeling they were about to break ground on the office building. Once construction started, getting them to move it would be impossible.

Nathan's expression turned serious, and he started making calls. After a few, he told her to wait; the people he had contacted needed to make their own inquiries. fo

Of course. Penelope was anxious, but she understood.

"By the way, Rebecca also left a gift certificate for afternoon tea at that cafe nearby. I think you know what she's hoping for."

Penelope took the certificate from Nathan, a small smile playing on her lips. Since she had to wait anyway, she might as well wait there and enjoy the show. When she arrived at the cafe, she saw them: Rebecca and Mrs. Sullivan, craning their necks toward the door. They were both shocked to see her walk in.

"What are you doing here?" Mrs. Sullivan demanded.

"Penelope, are you... following us?" Rebecca asked, frowning.

"Following us?" Mrs. Sullivan's eyes darted around, and then it clicked. "Oh, I see. You want to meet the new department head too!"

"Penelope, you're not on this project anymore. Are you trying to steal it back?"

"She's obviously bitter. She wants to take it from you, and once it's a success, she'll claim Stone Group can't survive without her."

"Penelope, your ambition is really showing."

"See? I told you. You treat her like a best friend, always giving in to her, but she's been looking down on you this whole time, competing with you ar every turn."

"Penelope, is that true?"

The two of them went back and forth, the synergy perfect. They had constructed an entire narrative and convinced themselves it was true without her having to say a single word.

So, Penelope said nothing. She chose a table not too far away, with a perfect view

of their little stage.

Her spot was the audience; theirs was the performance. It was perfect.

"Let's just ignore her," Mrs. Sullivan whispered. "If we don't give her an opening,

she can't cause any trouble."