The Bound Between Us

Chapter 371

Penny’s arm was bleeding profusely. Some bold spectators gathered to watch the spectacle, but none dared to approach too closely. Penny had stopped running. The disappearance of her son had hit her hard. Compared to her son, the pain in her arm was insignificant.

Penny sat on the ground, sobbing. “My son… where are you? Please, answer me! It’s all because of that damn Anastasia. We were a happy family, until you came along. Would my son go missing if you didn’t take Pattie away?”

Leo was staring intently at Penny, brandishing a knife menacingly. “Penny, you’re as stubborn as a mule. I told you to take care of our son. If you were not so engrossed in your poker games, would he go missing? If our son doesn’t return, I won’t let go of you.”

After his rant, Leo went back inside, with the knife in hand. This dramatic episode had finally come to an end.

The entire neighborhood knew about the Wests’ missing child, including Anastasia.

This news came as a shock to Anastasia. She told her mother, Salma, “Mom, don’t let Pattie play downstairs as much in the coming days. I’m afraid running into the Wests could be harmful to her.”

Penny had previously hurt Pattie. Now with her son missing, she might take her anger out on Pattie. It was better to be safe than sorry.

Salma nodded in agreement. “I know, dear. I’ll keep Pattie away from them. Did you see Leo running around the neighborhood with a knife? It was terrifying.”

Salma was still shaken up. She would definitely keep Pattie away from the Wests.

Tavon seized the opportunity to interject. “Ana, I got you some vitamins. Remember to take them. They’re good for you and the baby.”

Tavon had the audacity to follow Salma into the house, making himself comfortable on the couch.

Anastasia was at a loss. After all, Tavon was her biological father. She couldn’t treat him as an enemy, but she could treat him as a stranger.

Salma said in a dismissive tone, “Tavon, take your stuff and go. We don’t need it.”

“But Ana, it’s just a small token of my love…” Tavon pleaded with Salma to speak up for him.

Salma, however, wasn’t falling for it. She got up and said, “I’m going to start making dinner.”

As she made an excuse to leave, Tavon turned to Anastasia to start a conversation. But Anastasia got up too, calling out to Pattie, “Pattie, let’s go take a nap in the bedroom.”

Tavon quickly said, “Ana, I will agree to all your demands. Not just a third of the Morton family fortune, I can even give all of it to you. I’m willing to publicly apologize to your mother and make amends for my past wrongs.”

Anastasia paused. She glanced at Tavon indifferently. If it had not been for Herman, Tavon wouldn’t have given them a second thought.

Tavon put on a smiling face, but his attempts at being charming only made Anastasia despise him more.

“I don’t care about what you do, Tavon. It has nothing to do with me,” Anastasia said calmly. “When you first came to us, you had a chance to make amends. But you ruined it yourself. As for what you think or do in the future, that’s your business. I accepted your alimony, so when you’re old, I’ll fulfill my obligation to provide for you. That’s all.”

After saying that, Anastasia led Pattie back to the bedroom.

A chagrined and embarrassed Tavon sat on the living room couch, ignored by everyone as if he was invisible. Tavon had had a chance to be forgiven. If he had shown even a shred of regret or compassion the first time he came to them, things wouldn’t end up like this.

Tavon was not one to give up easily. He not only stayed but cheerfully went into the kitchen to help. “Salma, let me give you a hand.”

Salma just sighed.

Meanwhile, at Elysian Technologies…

Herman was looking at a bidding document and frowned.

That morning, the company had lost a bid for a project.

Nelson, his assistant, said, “Mr. Salstrom, I suspect there’s a mole. Someone must have stolen our bidding price. How else could the other company’s quote be exactly the same as ours?”

Nelson was baffled. How could the other company’s quote be the same unless there was a mole? The loss of the project meant that all the preliminary work and networking were in vain, resulting in a loss of nearly ten million dollars.

Herman put down the document and ordered coldly, “Get Flynn here. And the person in charge of the bid. I want them in my office.”

“Yes, Mr. Salstrom,” Nelson responded and left immediately.

Soon, Flynn and the head of the bidding team, Timothy, arrived.

Timothy was a young and promising manager. At just thirty, he had already risen to the position of Deputy Manager of the project department.

Knowing why Herman summoned him, Timothy was a bit nervous upon entering the office. Even as Herman said nothing, his powerful image was enough to make Timothy feel uneasy.

Flynn, unaware of what had happened, asked cheerfully, “What’s up? Why did you suddenly come to the office instead of staying at home with your wife?” Ignoring Flynn, Herman looked at Timothy and asked, “Tell me about the bidding process.”

The moment Timothy’s name was called, his heart skipped a beat. Unable to meet Herman’s gaze, he stammered, “Mr. Salstrom, I personally handled the

bidding this time. I did the analysis. I swear I didn’t show anyone, nor did I plagiarize. I genuinely have no idea about what happened. I am truly ashamed about today.”

Flynn was utterly perplexed.

Herman casually tapped his index finger on the desk. “I trust your abilities, Timothy, or else you wouldn’t be the deputy manager of the project department. But the question is, why would the other company quote the exact same price as you did? Even their data analysis and planning are strikingly similar.”

“… …” Timothy was at a loss for words. He was desperate. It was a serious matter that resulted in a massive loss for the company. Suddenly, he remembered something. “Mr. Salstrom, I showed the data analysis to Mr. Feiman. Before the bidding, he was the only one who saw it.”

As soon as he said this, Timothy regretted it. What was he saying? Mr. Feiman was Herman’s father. Wouldn’t it seem like he was passing the buck?

Herman’s expression cooled. “Are you sure?”

Timothy’s face contorted. He was certain, but he couldn’t say that. If he did, he might lose his job.

Herman abruptly raised his voice. “Timothy, I’m giving you three seconds. I want the truth. Who else saw the bid?”

Timothy braced himself and said, “No one else.”

After saying this, Timothy was already expecting to be fired, but to his surprise, after a few seconds of silence, Herman merely waved his hand dismissively. “You may leave now.”

Confused, Timothy could only comply and leave.

Flynn finally understood what was going on. He asked, “Herman, Timothy must be lying, or maybe someone stole the data without him knowing. There’s no way our dad leaked the bid, right?”

Herman didn’t answer Flynn. Instead, he started browsing the details of the rival company that had nabbed the project. The legal person of this company is Mr. Salstrom.” Herman turned the computer screen so Flynn could see.

Flynn leaned in to get a better look. His expression was serious. “Joseph Salstrom? Who’s that? A company that’s been registered less than a year is competing with us for projects?”