Chapter 4

Tina's POV

Tina was lounging on the hospital bed, grinning from ear to ear as she mentally counted up all the money and assets that would soon be hers.

But just then, the door burst open. The moment Tina saw who it was, her smile froze on her face.

Pete, burly and rough-looking, eyed Tina, his niece, with greedy intent. "What, Tina? Aren't you happy to see your uncle?"

Tina forced a smile. "I'm just surprised, Uncle Pete. What are you doing here?"

Pete saw right through her and snorted in disdain. "Drop the act. I know everything you've done in secret. Don't forget, I was the one who helped you cover it up.

"So, what do you think will happen if the Lane family and Alex find out what you did?"

Tina's eyes widened in terror. Her fear was obvious as she forced herself to speak through clenched teeth. "What do you want?"

Pete took his time, lazily smoking his cigarette, his eyes sharp and calculating as he spoke. "You're my niece, after all, so I'm not asking for too much. I just want half of the money Mia gave you."

Tina instinctively shut him down. "No way!"

Pete's voice suddenly rose. "Alright, then. I'll spill everything to the Lane family about your dirty deeds.

"Tell me, do you really think your fiancé would still want someone like you if he found out you've been messing around with all sorts of guys since you were a teenager?

"And there's more..."

"Stop it!" Tina interrupted him, fear written all over her face.

She hadn't gotten everything she wanted yet, so she couldn't afford any slip-ups right now.

Left with no choice, Tina gritted her teeth and gave in. "Fine, I agree."

Now that Pete had gotten what he wanted, he switched gears and put on a cheerful grin. "Now that's my girl. Relax. I'm always on your side."

After Tina saw the greedy Pete out, her face turned really sullen.

She felt a strange sense of panic, like her heart was floating in the air, never really settling.

After a moment's thought, she changed clothes and made her way to the bank.

She needed to transfer the money from that card into her own account. Only then could she finally breathe easy.

But the teller apologized to her. "Ma'am, this card is frozen. You won't be able to use it."

Tina felt like she'd been hit by a bolt out of the blue. She jumped up, her emotions exploding as panic took over.

"No way! I watched the money get transferred into this account myself! How could it be frozen? Did you guys screw something up?" she yelled, totally losing it in front of everyone.

Eventually, the manager came over and double-checked everything. Turned out, the card was a dead card now.

Tina stumbled out of the bank, shell-shocked, her eyes rimmed with red.

Suddenly, she remembered the company shares and those shops. She wondered if they were frozen as well.

She'd seen those agreements signed with her own eyes. There was no way they could be bogus.

She immediately called her bestie, asking her to pull some strings and check on those assets for her.

Her bestie called her back not long after. "Tina, my friend looked into it. Turns out all those assets are registered under a woman named Mia Lane."

Tina finally felt her heart settle.

But her bestie's next words made her blood run cold. "She's already given away every asset she had to a welfare organization for free."

Tina's mind was wiped clean, panic flooding in. Her hands were shaking so badly that she almost dropped her phone.

After she finally pulled herself together, her face contorted with rage as she punched in Mia's number.

But the call kept ringing and no one answered.

Tina's hatred burned even hotter.

She cursed, "That bitch! She put on a big act in front of the Lane family and Alex, pretending to hand everything over to me generously, but it was all just for show. I ended up with nothing!

"But without those assets, Pete will definitely make a scene, and my debts are piling up. I can't afford to wait any longer.

"At least the Lane family and Alex are still on my side. When I get back, I'll make sure they see how scheming Mia really is.

"Since Mia cares so much about those people, she'll have to do whatever I want in the end.

"Even if that didn't work out, Mom and Dad still own several properties, and Alex is worth a fortune. I can pull a few tricks, milk them for all they are worth, and then head overseas for a fresh start."

Tina had it all mapped out. As soon as her parents showed up, she switched to her helpless, innocent act.

But before Tina could even open her mouth, her parents rushed to speak first, barely able to contain their anxiety. "Has Mia been here? Did you see her?"

Tina was caught off guard, but she quickly put on her sweetest, most innocent smile, not wanting them to suspect a thing.

She said, "Mia hasn't been here. Maybe she finally got rid of all the stress and went off somewhere to relax."

Mia's mom, Mavis, frowned, looking displeased. "Didn't we already tell her? There's still so much stuff to deal with at home. Seriously, all she cares about is enjoying herself."

Mia's dad, Frank, cut in, his voice full of criticism. "We just said she was so sensible, and now she's showing her true colors again.

"Good thing Tina's running the company now. Otherwise, Mia would've messed everything up sooner or later."

Alex stood nearby, his expression stern and clearly unhappy with Mia's actions.

Tina felt a wave of smug satisfaction hearing their complaints.

She murmured to herself, "Mia, so what if you're capable?

"Your family and your man will always be on my side. Everything you busted your ass for is going to end up in my hands."