Before, Stella thought she didn’t have any clues about this matter. Nor did she know why Freya came
to her.
But now, the word “Riverside” was enough to tense her nerve.
Many matters about Riverside remained unsolved, and they hadn’t find out the chief culprit.
At this sensitive point, Freya suddenly came to her. Moreover, she was once Modesty’s customer and
she seemed to have some relationship with Riverside.
Stella pondered which person was manipulating this behind the scene.
Riverside and City N seemed to have countless ties, but because of Joanna’s death, they didn’t know
where they should begin the investigation.
When Joanna committed suicide, Clarence covered Stella’s eyes, but she still could imagine the scene.
Joanna’s expression must be distorted and ferocious at that moment, and there must be a trace of
hatred in her expression.
After Joanna’s death, everything was progressing in the direction that she expected.
There seemed to be an intangible estrangement between Justin and Clarence. They couldn’t touch it,
nor could they remove it. Maybe with the passage of time, the estrangement would gradually become
suspicious about each other. In the end, only the accumulated hatred would be left.
The baby was sick, there were many conspiracies in Riverside, and the James family had many
domestic conflicts. Everything seemed to be unrelated, but they were linked in the end.
It seemed like…long-planned revenge.
Sitting in the car and looking at the distance, Stella was lost in her thoughts.
After a long while, she pulled herself back to reality, took out her phone and dialled a number.
The call was answered in a minute and a female’s voice sounded, “Hello?”
“Hello, Freya, this is Starry Sky Studio.”
Freya said with a smile, “Oh, you’re Ms. Radomil. What’s the matter?”
Stella replied, “I’m sorry that I can’t accept your order of customization.”
“Why?”
“For some personal reasons. The deposit will be refunded to your account before 6 p.m. today.”
After finishing the words, Stella directly ended the call.
…
When Stella came back to her studio, it was already noon.
In the studio, Elaine looked like a real employee in a labour suit. She was serving the customers
carefully like a real cashier. Comparing to her stiff and unnatural behaviour yesterday, her performance
today was much better.
Stella curled her lips into a smile when she saw this scene.
Right at this moment, Sherry came back to the studio from the next-door studio, “Stella, didn’t you
come to the Steward Group?”
Stella replied, “I went there to have a look and came back since I didn’t have anything to deal with in
the company.”
“Will you stay in our studio later?”
Stella nodded, “There’s little time left, and I will focus on the preparation for the fashion week later.”
“Who’s taking charge of the Steward Group now?”
“Francis,” Noticing the confusion on Sherry’s face, Stella added, “He was the person in charge of the
Young Designers' Contest that I took part in several years ago. He’s the manager of a subsidiary of the
Conrad Group.”
Sherry finally figured it out, “Oh, it’s him.”
Stella nodded her head, “Sherry, I will go into the office.”
“Okay. I will call you out when it’s mealtime.”
Stella suddenly recalled something after taking two steps. She turned around and said, “By the way,
Sherry, please find the order of customization we accepted yesterday and refund the deposit.”
Sherry thought that the reason why Stella refused this order was that she thought it would hinder her
preparation for the fashion week, so she didn’t think too much of it and replied, “Okay. I will deal with it
right away.”
After entering her office, Stella opened her drawing book and copied the designs she drew in Riverside
onto the papers.
She spent almost the whole afternoon on this.
After a long while, there came some knocking sounds from the door.
Stella looked up and turned her neck left and then right to ease her tiredness.
At the next moment, the door of the office was pushed open. An employee stepped into the office,
“Stella, the customer who ordered a pair of customized rings comes to find you. She said she has
something to talk to you.”
Stella replied after two seconds of silence, “Take her to the lounge and I will be there soon.”
“Okay.”
When the door was closed, Stella stood up, put the drawings on the table into the locker and then
walked out of the office.
In the lounge…
There was a cup of coffee in front of Freya, while Freya was looking around casually with her long legs
crossed.
After a short while, Stella showed up in her vision.
Freya broke the silence, “You didn’t clarify the reason why you refused my order in the call, so I have to
come here personally.”
Stella sat opposite her, “I’m sorry. Then I will repeat my words – I can’t accept your order for some
private reasons.”
Freya wrapped her arms in front of her chest and said with a smile, “Didn’t we reach an agreement
yesterday? Why do you suddenly regret it? Is it because of Modesty? Are you afraid that the design
you give to me is inferior to Modesty’s, while you’ve boasted yourself in front of me yesterday?”
Stella looked into her eyes and chuckled, “Nope.”
“Except for this, I can’t think of any other reasons.”
“If you think this reason is acceptable for you, I won’t refute it.”
Freya clicked her tongue, “From our talk yesterday, you’re not a person who would give up in front of a
problem. Why not tell me your scruples? Maybe we have had some misunderstandings before and it’s
good to us if we dismiss the misunderstandings.”
Stella slightly pressed her lips together, her gaze gradually turning indifferent, and she didn’t say
anything else.
Freya changed her posture and picked up the cup of coffee in front of her, “I come to you for your
reputation. It’s a bit unreasonable if you simply refused me like this without giving me a reason
acceptable for me. If this spreads out, what would others think of you? Moreover, you will have a
fashion week later. This won’t have any advantages to you.”
“Then I will come straight to the point.” Stella said blandly, “I don’t know how much you’ve investigated
me before coming here, nor do I know what your intention is. Moreover, I don’t know how much you
know about me. But I’m clear that I don’t want to involve in any matters related to Riverside.”
Freya raised her brows and chuckled, “You’ve investigated me?”
Stella replied with a smile, “You also investigated me, didn’t you?”
“That’s true. Now that we want to facilitate cooperation, we should have a detailed understanding of
each other. My parents are indeed the people of Riverside. I also heard that you stayed in Riverside for
a month not long ago. Although I don’t know what your relationship with Riverside is, even though
someone in Riverside has offended you, you cannot vent your anger on me.”
Stella maintained her smile, “I’m sorry. Maybe you don’t know me well. I’m a vicious person who would
seek revenge for the smallest grievance and also, I like to implicate the innocents.”
Freya was lost for words.
Stella stood up, “I guess the deposit you paid before have been refunded to your account. Although our
cooperation fails, it’s still a pleasant experience. I’m sorry that your journey here doesn’t achieve the
wanted effect. It’s scorching outside and you can stay here for a more while.”
Sitting on the sofa and looking at Stella’s back, the smile on Freya’s face gradually disappeared.
She wasn’t trapped.
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