A Replacement Bride

Chapter 437

Hansel was trembling hard. His heart was in his throat, and it felt like it would leap out at any moment.

He glanced at Shaun. The sight of Shaun meekly hanging his head infuriated him, yet he had no choice but to step forward to calm Jayden down.

"Mr. Hall, please calm down. Don't stress your body because of this. Let's slowly discuss…"

Before he could finish speaking, Jayden interrupted him with an angry roar.

"Discuss? No way! The entire plan has been ruined! Why would I be in the mood to slowly discuss it? Did a horse kick you in the head or have you turned into an idiot?"

The insults hurled at Hansel rendered him too scared to even speak now.

Upon realizing no one could help him, Shaun forced himself to bear the brunt of his boss' anger and explained himself.

"We had the upper hand at the beginning, boss. We had complete control over Miss Cornell, b-but Mr. Benedict's drug was late. It was the cause of the delay. By the time I had the drug and was about to inject Miss Cornell with it, Joaquin suddenly appeared out of nowhere. I… None of us expected that…"

Bam!

Jayden slammed a fist against the desk as his entire being radiated with so much anger that he looked like he was on the verge of exploding.

"Joaquin Levisay." That name was the most infuriating part of the story for him.

"Didn't I tell the Levisays to stop him? Why was he in Kyoland?"

"I…" Hansel flinched and trembled in fear when Jayden turned to glare at him.

Ever since Jayden's face was scarred, he had turned into a rather unpredictable man who was terrifying whenever he flew into a fit of rage.

Nevertheless, all Hansel could do now was tentatively answer in a quivering voice, "I-It's likely because John couldn't stop him in time…"

Could not stop Joaquin in time?

Ha! Other people might be clueless, but Jayden could tell that it was not because John did not make it in time. John simply did not want to stop Joaquin!

At that thought, he pulled out his phone and called John.

The phone rang for a while before John finally answered the call. His impatience was audible in his voice, but so was his guilt.

"What is it? Didn't I tell you not to call me on a whim?" John asked.

A cold smirk flashed across Jayden's face. "Yes, I would not be calling you for nothing in the future. Still, John, you sure are great at backstabbing others."

John's face twisted as he heard that. However, he obstinately refused to confess to anything.

"What nonsense is this? Backstabbing? I did nothing of the sort!"

"Ah, of course. You did nothing. You did not even do what I told you to do. Tell me. What can you even do?"

Jayden's voice was vicious. It was as if he wished he could reach across the phone to tear John into pieces.

"How dare you disobey me, John Levisay. Did you know you've ruined my plans by letting Joaquin leave Hovington?"

Despite being in a different city with only a phone connecting Jayden to him, John still felt a strange oppressive feeling that made it hard for him to even breathe.

He was filled with both frustration and terror.

He had assumed he was superior to Jayden since he was older, so why was he stuck under Jayden's thumb?

Upon thinking that, he clenched his jaw and decided to stop acting. He was going to fight back.

"Don't think you're all that, Jayden! Do you really think you are powerful enough to order me around right now? Dream on! I have fallen this far from grace because I obeyed you and worked with you. Now, I don't even have control over the Levisay Group! Why should I listen to you? Do you think I'm a fool? I am done with this partnership. From now on, we are going our separate ways. You mind your own business and I'll mind mine. Do not contact me ever again!"

John hung up before Jayden could respond.

Meanwhile, Jayden's face had twisted into an ugly look when he heard the abrupt dial tone.

A few seconds later, his eyes narrowed into slits as a dangerous glint flashed in his eyes.

Go separate ways and mind his own business?

Ha! What a wishful thought.

Did John think he could get split off from Jayden whenever he pleased?

Jayden was eager to see if John could regain the Levisay Group without his help.

He turned to look at Hansel with eyes as sharp as ice and barked out an order.

"The Levisays are useless now. Since John will not listen to me, it is time to teach him a lesson. Release everything you have. I want to see just how a disreputable chairman could survive in the Levisay Group and seize back control of the company!"

Hansel hurriedly nodded in affirmative and left to do as ordered.

Now, the only people left in the office were Jayden and Shaun.

Shaun was still staring at the floor, trembling in fear due to messing up. He was too afraid to even breathe.

Upon seeing that, Jayden realized there was no outlet for his anger now. He continued to seethe as his bulging veins throbbed on his forehead.

After a few moments, he stood up and walked to stand by the floor-to-ceiling window. When he was finally calm, he coldly asked, "You said that you injected some of the drugs in her?"

Shaun let out the breath he had been holding when he realized there was a lack of murderous intent in Jayden's voice. Then, he hurriedly spoke up in response, "Yes. We nearly succeeded, but Miss Cornell had struggled so hard that we had to stop when Joaquin charged into the room. Still, about a third of the drug was injected into her by then. I don't know if it'll have any effect…"

"Oh, right," he blurted as though a thought suddenly struck him. "Boss, I hid in a corner and watched before I left. That woman fainted before she could say a word."

"She fainted? Are you sure?"

Jayden abruptly whirled around to stare at Shaun when he heard that.

Shaun was so terrified by Jayden's oppressive aura that he fervently and stiffly nodded. His voice trembled from anxiety as he spoke up.

"That's right! I confirmed it before I left. It was very chaotic back then as Joaquin had charged in with his men without knowing how many of us there were. I hid the moment he barged into the room, and I made sure he did not know about the drug. I was afraid Miss Cornell might say something, so I took the risk to stay. However, she was so concerned about her daughter that she only told the men to look for the child. She fainted right after that. I think… the drug might have taken effect then."

Jayden fell silent in thought.

A moment later, he called for Mr. Benedict.

"Could the drug still be effective at a reduced dosage?" Jayden asked.

Wale frowned in confusion.

"What do you mean by that? I gave you just enough of the drug to be used on one adult. I cannot guarantee its effects at a reduced dosage, but I can tell you for sure that there will be side effects."