Broken Memories, Intertwined Hearts

Chapter 252

Seeing Shirley's anxious demeanor, the lawyer gave an awkward chuckle. "Easy there. Let's first clear the air about the properties. We can't mess this up."

Ines shot Shirley a disgusted glance, finding her behavior quite unbearable.

Shirley, however, didn't see anything wrong. She gave a small cough and continued to look at the lawyer with anticipation.

The lawyer continued, "Mr. Galeana's five shops: one will go to Shirley, two to Emma, and two to Ines. All cash, stocks and futures will be inherited by Emma."

Shirley felt a bit bitter, but upon seeing her daughter Emma as the main beneficiary, she swallowed her dissatisfaction and kept listening.

Ines was very calm, she neither needed nor desired to squabble over these assets. She wasn't here for the inheritance.

Emma, however, could hardly conceal her surprise. She thought she would only get the properties, but now she also had shops and cash. It seemed that her father truly loved her.

Aiden and Mrs. Ramos couldn't hide their grins, but they were more interested in the Galeana Group's shares.

"As for Mr. Galeana's 52% stake, it will be divided as follows: 5% will go to Ms. Emma, and the remaining 47% to Ms. Ines."

On hearing this, Shirley sprang up from the sofa. In her haste, she knocked over a teacup on the table, creating a loud noise. Pointing angrily at Ines, she said to the lawyer, "All 47% to Ines, and only 5% to Emma? Are you out of your mind? Shouldn't it be 15%?" Only after she spoke did Shirley realize she had made a mistake. She was filled with regret. The will she had destroyed

hadn't left her anything, but the distribution of the other assets was almost the same, except Emma and Jasmine were given 15% share. She might not understand these things, but she knew the difference between 5% and 15% was massive. The most valuable thing Hunter had was his shares, and now almost all of them where given to Ines.

Ines was also taken aback. She already held 20%, and she thought Hunter would give her about 30%, just enough to maintain her controlling stake. She didn't expect him to give her 47% and leave only 5% to Emma.

To her surprise, she suddenly understood Shirley's words. Her face darkened, and she demanded, "You've seen the second will, haven't you? Did you hide it?"

Shirley looked flustered, "I don't know what you're talking about. I just overheard your father mention that he left 15% to Emma."

Her words might fool others, but not Ines. Ines was filled with rage. She sternly warned, "Shirley, you'd better pray I don't find out that you were involved with my father's affairs. Otherwise, I won't let you off easy."

Seeing Ines's rage, Ethan couldn't help but comfort her, "Izzy, don't get too riled up. If she's involved, she won't get away with it."

Silas also gave Shirley a stern look, "You'll have to answer for your actions, I won't let you off the hook easily."

Emma, somewhat confused by the distribution, quickly realized after hearing Shirley's words that her father initially wanted to leave her 15%, not 5%, but her mother had messed it up.

Whom could she blame? She found herself too drained to argue.

Aiden and Mrs. Ramos's initially relaxed mood became tense. They hadn't expected Emma's shares to be so few. Upon seeing Emma's downcast face, Aiden felt a pang of sympathy. He comforted her, "It's okay, Emma. Even 5% is still quite a bit."

Emma just looked up at Aiden without saying a word.

Mrs. Ramos gave Emma a harsh glare and left in a huff. The lawyer, watching this scene, was unsure of what to say. He turned to Shirley and explained, "I'm just managing Mr. Galeana's assets according to his instructions. As for why he chose to distribute them this way, I really couldn't say. If you have any doubts about the authenticity of the will, you can have it verified by experts or pursue your rights through legal means."

Shirley had already checked. She was never Hunter's legal wife. Hunter's household registration only ever listed one wife, Lilian. If she pursued legal means, she wouldn't stand a chance. With this in mind, Shirley's face twisted in anger. She burst out laughing, "Nice one, Hunter. I thought you might've left me something. But you've been playing me this whole time. After all these years, not a shred of affection in your heart, just leaving me with one shop, just one shop. You're heartless, what am I supposed to do with one shop?"

Silas interjected, "Shirley, your behavior deserves this outcome. The Galeana family has been more than generous to you over these years. If you don't want the shop, you can simply refuse the gift. The lawyer can handle that for you."

"Yes, if the beneficiary chooses to refuse the inheritance, I can handle all the necessary procedures," the lawyer said, looking at Shirley seriously. But Shirley just laughed and cursed, "Hunter, you're heartless. You deserved that disease. You died at fifty and now you're stuck with Lilian as your ghost wife. I regret even going to your funeral, I should've just bought you some fireworks instead. I gave birth to Emma, I've given so much, and this is how you repay me. You deserve to be dead..."

Ines really couldn't take it anymore, she jolted up, but Silas beat her to it. He slapped Shirley across the face, his hand shaking uncontrollably, clearly pissed off. He didn't hit women, but this woman was pushing him to his limits. "You ungrateful, crazy bitch, have you ever stopped to think about how much you've taken from the Galeana family over the years? Without the Galeana family taking care of you, you'd still be in that godforsaken holler, living a life of misery."