The Unlucky Turn by Mark Twain 45

During the conversation, Lennox handed over another file. “Mr. Langley, this is a partnership proposal from Josiah at the Sloan Group.”

The Sloan Group? Callahan took it, flipping through the contents with a casual flick of his finger. A trace of mockery barely visible at the corner of his mouth.

Leilani’s brother, Josiah? After connecting the person in his mind, Callahan made his decision. “Reject it.”

He didn’t want to work with people who couldn’t think clearly.

Lennox was stunned. “But the profit margins on this project are significant, and the Sloan family’s pharmaceutical sector…”

“The Sloan family?” Callahan looked up, his eyes cold, his brows arched in disdain. He scoffed, “A family that can’t even tolerate their own daughter, what kind of vision could they possibly have? I don’t trust working with them.”

Lennox instantly understood. His boss was holding a grudge on behalf of Ms. Sloan.

“Then… the reason for rejection?”

Callahan mused. Giving them a warning via Lennox wouldn’t be a bad idea. It might stop them from putting on acts in front of him. Leilani might not be bothered to look at them, but he was annoyed.

“Tell them Langley Group doesn’t collaborate with people who lack clarity.”

He paused, then added, “And remind them: exactly how many daughters does the Sloan family actually have?”

…

The next morning, as soon as Josiah turned on his office computer, he received the rejection from Langley Group. He stared at the email on the screen, brows locked tight.

[After evaluation, your project does not meet our partnership standards. We will not be proceeding at this time.]

His face darkened as he gripped the mouse. “Why would Langley Group reject it?” he muttered. “Everything was going so well before…”

Josiah messaged Lennox to ask. He had gotten Lennox’s contact info by chance at a previous networking event.

Lennox replied quickly.

The phone vibrated, and Josiah opened the message. Lennox’s words were stark on the

18:14

screen.

[Mr. Sloan, my boss asked me to pass on a message. How many daughters does the Sloan family actually have? Which one is real?]

Josiah’s pupils constricted. Not many people knew the Sloans had two daughters. As someone who usually ignored gossip, why would Callahan ask such a thing? Thinking of Leilani, who had practically been invisible since her release from prison…

Josiah stood up abruptly and dialed Leilani’s number, only to hear the mechanical prompt: “The number you have dialed is currently unavailable…”

He frowned and tried again. Same result.

“Did Leilani block me?”

His expression was ugly as he switched to calling Zeus. “Zeus, try contacting Leilani.”

Zeus tried calling Leilani and found he was blocked too. He was shocked. “She actually dared to block us?”

Realizing Leilani might have blocked the entire family, Josiah’s face grew darker. After hanging up, he drove straight back to the Sloan villa.

In the living room, Tamara was chatting and laughing with Clive on the sofa. Seeing Josiah walk in with a stormy face, Tamara immediately put on a worried expression. “Josiah, what’s wrong? You look terrible.”

Josiah said coldly, “Langley Group rejected our partnership and specifically sent a warning. I suspect it might have something to do with Leilani.”

admin