Rags to Riches

Chapter 4 Why Did You Lead Me Into a Trap?

"Don't worry. As long as you get Murray Fletcher to agree to invest in the Lorimer Group, the Lorimer family will reward you handsomely!" said Nora, seemingly worried that Vivian would turn her down.

"Me?" Vivian's face was shrouded in disbelief.

They were talking about billions of dollars here—where was she going to get that sort of money from? Besides, she didn't even know Murray Fletcher!

At that thought, she couldn't help but glance at Marcus, wondering if he could do anything about this. To her dismay, he was nodding off.

Bitterness overwhelmed her as she mocked herself for having had any hope in him at all. Left with no other choice, she had to come clean.

"Grandma, to tell you the truth, I don't know Murray Fletcher at all. Marcus was the one who brought him to the gathering, so … I-I can't get him to invest in the Lorimer Group."

Almost instantly, the smile on Nora's face disappeared. Luke let out a derisive laugh and exclaimed, "I didn't expect you to be so heartless, Vivian! Are you not willing to help out your family when it's in need? Also, how much worse of a liar could you be? How can a good-for-nothing like Marcus know Murray Fletcher? In fact, why don't you say something like he's the richest man in the world and Murray his lackey?"

Today was the day Luke would stomp out Vivian's dignity and humiliate her, once and for all.

"Be honest, Vivian—are you mad at Grandma and the Lorimer family for neglecting you over the years?" Luke demanded. "Is that why you're exacting your revenge now?"

"No, that's not it!" Vivian turned pale. If Luke were to successfully frame her for this and make her lose Nora's trust, she and her parents would never be able to hold their heads high after this.

"Grandma, desperate times call for desperate measures. I believe that offering a reward would probably hurry things along. How about this—whoever manages to get at least a billion dollars in investments will be the next head of the Lorimer family. What do you think about that?" Luke suggested.

Nora took in Luke's confident expression, and then Vivian's dilemma.

She already knew what she had to do. She was going to appoint Luke as the next head sooner or later; after all, he'd invited Verdant International's scion to the family gathering today. Perhaps he had even gotten Frederick to agree to invest in Lorimer Group. If that was the case, she could very well take this opportunity to finalize things.

"That's exactly what we'll do," she said, concluding the matter at hand.

"Thanks, Grandma!" Luke was overjoyed. He struck while the iron was hot and said to Vivian, "Do you have the guts to make a bet with me, Vivian? As long as you manage to get fifty million dollars in investments, I'll give you the position of the next head of the family. If you can't, you and your parents will have to get the hell out of the Lorimer family—forever!"

"Why, you!" Vivian clenched her fists tightly and glared daggers at him.

He was deliberately trying to drive her and her parents out of the Lorimer family.

Yet, what could she do about it? She was reluctant to accept the bet, but the position of the head of the family was incredibly tempting.

If she could win this bet, she and her parents could finally walk around proudly.

However, if she were to accept the bet and lose, she and her parents would be kicked out with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

"What's wrong? Don't you even have the guts to agree to such a tiny bet?" Luke pressed.

He wanted to take this opportunity to obliterate his biggest threat.

At this moment, Marcus slowly opened his eyes. "Honey, trust me on this. Agree to the bet." He couldn't care less about this race to become the next head of the Lorimer family, but if Vivian wanted it so badly, he would make sure she got it!

Vivian's mind was a mess. She genuinely wanted to give the position of the next head a shot. Marcus' words only made her desire grow stronger.

Perhaps it was because of what had happened earlier that day with Marcus suddenly showing up with Murray in tow, she suddenly felt like she could trust him. And so, the bet was on.

After making up her mind, Vivian stood up. "Alright, then. I agree to your bet!" she declared.

"Great! Everyone here, including Grandma, can bear witness to this, so you can't go back on your word when the time comes!" Luke tried his best to suppress his excitement at the sight of Vivian taking the bait.

"Don't worry about that. I'm not as shameless as you!" Vivian refused to back down.

Since she'd decided to give this a shot, she would give it her all. "Grandma, I'm not feeling too well, so I'm going to leave now," she added.

With the current state of mind, Vivian knew she couldn't remain here any longer. She found an excuse to leave, and Marcus hurried after her dutifully.

Luke scoffed at the sight of them leaving. "A good-for-nothing and a worthless pawn. I can't wait to see them get kicked out of the Lorimer family!"

In the car, Vivian asked anxiously, "Marcus, tell me the truth. How do you know Murray Fletcher?"

If Marcus and Murray were on good terms, perhaps there was some hope for them, after all!

"Oh, uh, he's a friend's father, and I've only met him once. I happened to run into him at the entrance and asked him to accompany me to the grand ballroom." Marcus shrugged and lied through his teeth.

He didn't want to reveal his true identity just yet, afraid that it would scare Vivian away.

"What?" Vivian stared at him in disbelief, feeling dumbfounded. "In that case … Do you know anyone who works in a bank or owns a financial institution?" She didn't want to give up just yet.

"Uh, nope. Not at all," Marcus replied honestly, shaking his head.

He'd only just officially become the Drakon. He didn't have any connections in Cromford City.

Vivian slammed on the brakes, making them screech as the car came to an abrupt stop. "Why did you lead me into a trap, then, Marcus? Where did you find the confidence to tell me to agree to the bet when you don't know anyone useful? Don't you know we'll get kicked out of the Lorimer family if we lose?"