Chapter 454
Megan happened to be eating out with friends that day. As she was leaving the restaurant, she realized
she left her purse behind and made a U-turn to retrieve it.
She retrieved her purse without incident and headed for the elevator. On her way there, she noticed
some people chatting in a small lounge.
Megan recognized them as people who ran in her social circles. She would not exactly call them
friends, but she was well acquainted enough with them to remember their names.
She had been married to Casper for almost a year by then, and he had proved to be a kind husband.
Marriage had changed Megan for the better, removing her from Jessica''s round-the-clock
mollycoddling at the Queen residence.
The Coopers were a prestigious lot and had high expectations for their daughter-inw. Megan often
found herself at odds with her inws at the beginning of her marriage, though Casper threw his
support behind her in every disagreement. He would educate her on the proper etiquette when
interacting with elders and eptable social manners in public.
Over the course of a year, Megan had certainly be more socially adept and mature.
She knew it was prudent to greet her acquaintances in the lounge politely, even if they were not close
friends.
Before she could approach them, however, Megan heard them discussing a familiar name—Sophia
Yarrow.
Jadeborough''s upper society had been horrified upon learning of Alexander''s car ident half a year
ago. There were the usual bbermouths, the sympathizers, and those who attempted to capitalize on
his misfortune. Some people had even tried to woo Sophia.
Sophia took over the reins at Odyssey, keeping the corporation running as it did when Alexander was
still around, quashing their delusions of whisking Sophia away.
Megan knew her acquaintances were discussing Sophia because of a particrly incriminating photo
circting WhatsApp that morning.
She had once been notorious for her conflicts with Sophia, which embarrassed the Queen family to no
end. Thankfully, the two women ended up burying the hatchet. Sophia and Alexander even attended
her wedding with a lovely and expensive gift.
Her newfound maturity allowed Megan to realize how she had always instigated their past conflicts.
Naturally, she now viewed Sophia through a wholly different lens.
In her husband Casper''s words, Sophia was more impressive than most people they knew, given how
she had singlehandedly founded Sunshine Group and invested in many sessful, listedpanies.
Sophia''s pretty looks were only icing on the cake. She was intelligent, talented, and a natural-born
leader.
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Megan had been jealous when Casper was praising Sophia, but half a year''s observation convinced
her that Casper was merely stating the truth.
A woman''s animosity toward another came easily, but so did a favorable impression.
After her marriage, Megan found herself admiring independent, capable women much more than
wealthy heiresses who only knew how to swipe a credit card.
She truly admired and respected Sophia''s abilities.
That was why she immediately wrote off what Sophia''s photo had alluded to earlier that morning.
Of course, Megan could not im to know Sophia like the back of her hand, but she was certain that
Sophia would never be such a disloyal partner.
If Sophia was going to give up on Alexander so easily, she would not have married into the Xenos
family while subjecting herself to all the gold-digger usations.
Everyone bore witness to Sophia''s well-being during her married years. Even when she divorced him
three yearster, she acted with equal resolve.
Their reunion afterward was also built on the foundation of stronger feelings and the two being on equal
footing. Megan herself believed their remarriage was only a matter of time.
It was inconceivable that Sophia would seek a new lover while Alexander''s fate remained unknown.
Megan frowned, though she did not interrupt her acquaintances'' conversation. A nasty, ungrounded
remark by one of the women ticked Megan off. She burst into the lounge and berated them, "Did you
know all this baseless gossip is basically nder against Ms. Yarrow? If she knows about this, I''m sure
Sunshine Group and Odyssey''s legal departments will be on your doorstep. I''d strongly advise against
meeting them in court."
Jadeborough''s social circle was only so big. Anyone who had attended a ck tie dinner would know
who Megan was.
The three women gossiping about Sophia appeared somewhat sheepish. The one who used
Sophia of killing Alexander pouted and retorted, "That''s funny, Ms. Queen. We''re just doing some
harmless gossip here; it''s not as if the public will hear about this. We won''t go to the press with our
discussion, either. Why are you suddenly using us of nder?"
Megan scoffed and shot back, "You''d do better to say kinder words in the future! You may not think
much of me overhearing your gossip, but what if Mr. Schild and Mr. Quail were here? Your family
businesses would be on theirst legs!"
Her threat finally frightened the women into silence.
Back when Alexander disappeared after his ident, the Dawson family of Doveston thought it was
the perfect opportunity for them to teach Sophia a lesson. They assumed she had lost her only pir of
support in Jadeborough. After all, no amount of talent could make up for power and connections in the
city.
s, they never expected Samuel and Justin to step up and support her. The two even attended
Sunshine Group''s annual dinner.
Convincing just one of them to attend a business event was already a Herculean task, yet Sunshine
Group had sessfully gotten both men to show up. The feat warned others against belittling Sophia''s
influence.
The gossiping women ultimately proved to be more bark than bite. After surreptitiously exchanging
nces among themselves, they no longer argued against Megan''s words. They were smart enough to
know the repercussions of offending ady affiliated with both the Cooper and Schild families.
The woman who challenged Megan earlier lowered her head meekly. Her friend, however, offered an
apology. "Again, it''s just harmless gossip, Ms. Queen. We won''t talk about it again. Please don''t take
this to heart."
Megan let the women''s snarkyments earlier slide. She was not Sophia anyway. In fact, she would
onlye across as unreasonable if she insisted on nitpicking at their apologies as well.
She remembered Casper''s reminder that one''s status often dictated the extent to which one could
involve themselves in another person''s matters.
At the end of the day, she was not the party concerned. It was rather inappropriate for her to defend or
attempt to exin Sophia''s stance.
Megan cleared her throat and appeared less frosty than before. "Of course, everyone enjoys a little
gossip now and then. Ms. Yarrow is a lovely woman, though. It never hurts to watch your words."
"You''re absolutely right, Ms. Queen. We were speaking too recklessly."
Before Megan could say her farewells, someone emerged from the corner of the corridor.
It was none other than the topic of their conversation, Sophia.
She smirked at the group and drawled, "I fully agree with Ms. Queen. Some things are just better left
unsaid, especially in such a public space. You''d never know if you''d run into the subject of your gossip
herself."
The women paled immediately upon recognizing her.
Running into Sophia right after dragging her character through the mud was beyond their wildest
imaginations.
Megan was also surprised by Sophia''s arrival, and she became embarrassed as she recalled her
words earlier.
Her rtionship with Sophia was not so close that she was obliged to stand up for Sophia.
Meanwhile, Sophia shot the cowering women another chilling smile before turning her attention to
Megan. "Hello, Ms. Queen. It has been a while."
Megan smiled back and replied, "Nice to see you too, Ms. Yarrow."
Sophia''s smirk returned as she stared at the gossiping women and asked, "Oh right, the three of you
seem to have plenty of interesting insights about Alexander''s disappearance. Should I get in touch with
the police on your behalf so you can share new evidence with them?"