The Million-Dollar Heart (Percival and Vivienne)
Chapter 421

Richard always played the impartial patriarch role with the Ellington clan's younger generation.

Right from wrong was clear in his heart.

Today, Fiona's transgression was not just a simple offense against Vivienne. As the head of the company's jewelry design department, she represented the company's image, and being caught in a lie in front o so many people could have a catastrophic impact on the company if she had not been fired.

Especially with key business partners in attendance.

Had Fiona been humble and sought advice, she might have avoided such a fate.

Seeing Richard's demeanor, Fiona knew the outcome was inevitable. Her place at the company was lost.

Fiona pressed her lips. "Grandpa, keep the money for yourself."

With that, she grabbed her purse and left without looking back.

After her departure, Percival remained seated in the living room, silent.

Richard eyed him several times before finally tapping his cane on his grandson's leg. "What in the world happened tonight, kid?"

"It's settled, Grandpa. No need to worry," Percival replied, rubbing his leg where the cane had hit. The old man still had some strength in him.

Richard huffed, stroking his beard. "We had left the hall when we heard a faint explosion, so I called Fiona to handle it. She told me there had been a car accident."

Percival's lips curled into a slight smirk. "There was an accident, but it's been taken care of."

Hearing this, Richard did not press further. He got up with the help of his cane and headed to his bedroom to sleep.

Percival was also about to retire for the night when he caught sight of Kenneth skulking near the stairway.

"Haven't jumped enough?" Percival said with a cold glance.

Kenneth shook his head vigorously. "Bro, erm... Is Vivienne really Hawk's special coach?"

"Weren't you in the lounge earlier when you saw her?" Percival raised an eyebrow.

Kenneth felt like his brain had been struck by lightning.

His brother had confirmed it. The truth was undeniable!

Oh, the horror!

What had he done to his idol?

"I'm heading to my room." He didn't want to speak to his beloved brother right now.

So annoyed!

Why did Percival not tell him sooner?

Kenneth trudged back to his room, despondent and defeated.

Percival watched him go, for the first time, considering taking his brother to get his head examined.

At the TCL Laboratory.

Calista's latest experiment had failed once again.

In frustration, she knocked everything on her desk to the floor.

Why could she not make a breakthrough?

After all this time, she had nothing but failures to show for her efforts. How would she ever create the virus?

"Director, is everything alright?" A researcher called from outside the door after hearing the commotion.

"I'm fine. Leave me be." Calista snapped, closing her eyes in defeat.

As the lab returned to silence and the last sound of someone clocking out reached her ears, Calista was left alone with her fear.

Scott had been arrested, and here she was, still toiling away for them!

Suddenly, the door to her lab was opened.

Calista grabbed a hidden dagger from her desk and held it defensively as she eyed the doorway.

A figure in a black trench coat and a masked hat stepped inside, identical to Scott's usual attire.

Calista took a step back. "Mr. B," she uttered with caution.

Mr. B flicked his finger, effortlessly knocking the dagger from her grasp. "Don't point such dangerous things at me," he said, his voice cold and modified by a device. Calista swallowed hard, retreating further.

Mr. B ignored her, scanning the broken lab equipment and scattered research data with a furrowed brow. "Had I known you'd be this useless, I might have left you to rot in jail." Calista felt her breath catch, her legs giving out as she fell to her knees. "I...I will keep trying. I won't let you down, sir. Please, spare me."

Mr. B looked at her with contempt. "You have one more month. Fail again, and don't expect any mercy."

With that, Mr. B vanished as if he was never there, leaving Calista on the floor, drenched in cold sweat.

Her phone, which had fallen to the floor, suddenly lit up with a notification.

The headline read: [Ellington Family's Seventh Grandson's Fiancée Vivienne Hawthorn Revealed to be Master Jessica! How Many Faces Does the Future Mrs. Ellington Have?] Calista glared at the name Vivienne on the screen, her eyes burning with rage.

Vivienne!

It was all because of Vivienne that she was in this mess!

If not for Vivienne, Percival would be hers, and she would be the future Mrs. Ellington!

That wretched woman!

Calista picked up the dagger and stabbed fiercely at the phone screen, channeling her boundless hatred.

Only when the phone was in pieces did she stop.

Standing up, Calista regained her composure, changed into her regular clothes, and left the laboratory.

The next day.

Vivienne slept in, worn out from the past few days. With nothing on her schedule, she finally caught up on some much-needed rest.

As she opened her eyes, her phone was flooded with messages.

[Vivienne, are you up yet?]

[Vivienne, what do you feel like eating?]

[Vivienne, I miss you so much!!!]

[Vivienne...]

Among the barrage of messages, she finally found one that was not from Percival.

She clicked on it to replace a picture sent by Draven.

Using his newly acquired disguise skill, he transformed himself into the spitting image of a guy named Stephen.

[Hey, Vivienne, I've pretty much nailed this disguise thing. Should I keep them alive?] He asked, referring to Rowan and Ismene.

Vivienne pondered for a moment. Rowan and Ismene were exceptionally skilled, and keeping them in the Nine Mystics Society seemed beneficial.

She texted back, [Let's make it a win-win. Teach them some of our tricks. It's good to have extra hands on deck.]

[Got it. Oh, and Vivienne, Brian lost track of Brody again.]

It was a typical screw-up, losing him like that.

Vivienne simply replied, [Let him figure it out on his own.]

After sending the message, she initiated a video call to Percival.

Meanwhile, the doorbell chimed.

She opened the door to replace Percival playing with LEGO bricks alongside Thaddeus.

A flicker of joy crossed Vivienne's eyes. "Mr. Wolf?"

"I brought Thaddeus, Dorian, and Cordelia to see a therapist. Felt a bit uneasy about it," Percival had not finished speaking when he noticed Vivienne had already started devouring the strawberry cheesecake on the table.

Percival sighed silently. Clearly, she was not excited because of him.

"We'll head over soon. You just stay put and behave," he said.

Vivienne nodded vigorously. "Sure, go ahead."

Right. As if she had any intention of paying him more attention.

No sooner had Percival left with Dorian's family than Astrid emerged from the bedroom.