A Replacement Bride

"Are you so eager to go home and see your daddy? When are you so dependent on him?"
Noah smiled shyly at that question, and her eyes were squinted into little crescents. "I miss Daddy a lot and depend on you too,
Mom. I love you and Daddy the most. I want our family to be together."
Katherine's heart was warmed by the little girl's words. Back at the Cornells, she had never experienced the warmth and love of
being part of a complete family. After what she had been through, she didn't want her daughter to go through the same thing.
Immediately, she hooked her lips into a gentle smile. "Okay. We'll wait until Mr. Blatt comes back. Once he returns and
everything turns out well, we can go home."
"That's great." The little girl beamed and nodded.
After some time, David returned, but he did not appear happy and emanated a gloomy aura.
"How was it?" When Katherine saw him, she had a bad premonition.
He poured himself a cup of water and drank it in one go as if he were trying to put out the fire inside him. However, when David
started speaking, he couldn't suppress his anger and frowned. "I thought of this matter too simply! Emmanuel Gray isn't an
ordinary person. He's truly ruthless! He even put Corey under house arrest!"
Katherine was shocked to hear that and asked, "House arrest? What happened?"
"When I got there, I didn't see anyone besides Emmanuel. So, I told him I wanted to check on Corey, but Emmanuel refused,
claiming that Corey had recovered and was resting. Ultimately, I had a hunch that something wasn't right, so I had someone look
into it. Then, I discovered Emmanuel had placed Corey under house arrest after bringing him home. Moreover, he had also
placed Corey's mother under house arrest. It's like he's afraid she would let Corey escape or something. How could someone
like that call himself a father? That is completely insane!"
At that point, her face had turned gloomy, and her clear eyes suddenly had a glimmer of coldness. "Someone who could poison
his own son couldn't be an ordinary person, so it's reasonable that he would do something like putting them under house arrest.
Moreover, now that he and Corey had gotten into a dispute, keeping Corey locked up at home is the best way to keep him under
control."
"Can he keep Corey locked up forever? He wouldn't let Corey spend the rest of his life in that room, would he?" David gritted his
teeth as his expression became ghastlier.

On the other hand, Katherine seemed calmer. After that, she narrowed her eyes and thought about it. Soon, she understood why
this was happening. "Don't fret. I don't think Emmanuel would keep him locked up forever. This might be temporary, and Corey
would be released after this matter ends."
David was puzzled upon hearing that. "What do you mean?"
Sitting opposite him, she poured herself a cup of water and took two sips. "Someone must be assisting Gray Corporation's
turnaround, and that someone might not be whom you'd expect. That person supporting the company might want to make
Emmanuel a henchman, so Corey might have considered this possibility and gone home to confront Emmanuel. Perhaps, Corey
found out something, or he might not have discovered the whole truth, but no matter which it is, Emmanuel wouldn't take such a
risk. Therefore, he would want to hide the truth from Corey, and if he wanted Corey to not know anything, the only way is to shut
Corey up. Now that Corey is locked up and can't contact the outside world, he can't tell anyone what he knows. This is why
Emmanuel did what he did."
After listening to Katherine's explanation, David frowned even more. "Then, who is the person behind Emmanuel? Why would he
go through so much just to save a company that is about to go bankrupt? Even the other three noble families were unwilling to
help the Grays, so why did that guy decide to help them?"
After hearing that, she quickly replied, "To deal with me."
After Katherine said that, David was taken aback, but he responded quickly and understood what she meant. "Are you saying
someone wants to use the Grays to get to you?"
"That might be it." She nodded. "Until this point, the Grays and I have a grudge, and I am why Gray Corporation has fallen to the
point of almost getting bankrupt. I suppose the one behind all this wants to use Emmanuel's hatred and hostility against me,
making him a pawn to deal with me."
Nonetheless, there was also the possibility that she was overthinking this matter. After all, Emmanuel had made lots of enemies
all these years. That was why the other three noble and prominent families didn't help the Grays when they faced the crisis. It
might also be because the person in the back wanted to use Emmanuel to deal with the other three noble families. No one was
sure, but Katherine's intuition told her it might be the first possibility.
After a moment's silence, David was worried. "What are we going to do now? Do you have any clue about who is the person
behind Emmanuel?"
She shook her head in response. "I have no idea."

If she had to pick a possible suspect, that would be Jayden. However, she had injured him so seriously that it was unlikely for
him to make a move after such a short period. As for the others... Since revealing her identity as W Co.'s president, she had
unwittingly amassed many enemies, making it challenging to identify the culprit. Still, no matter what, it wouldn't be a good idea
to stay in Kyoland.
"Since the enemy is in the dark and we're out in the open, the situation isn't looking too good for me, so I have to return to
Hovington."
"You're leaving?" David pursed his lips. "What about Corey?"
"You don't need to worry about him." Katherine gave him a reassuring glance. "Emmanuel must be guarding against me, so once
I leave, he wouldn't do anything to Corey and would release him after a while."
After listening to her insight, he decided not to ask her to stay. "When are you going to leave? I'll send you off."
She shook her head in response and replied, "No thanks. You should go home. You've been staying here all this while and
should take a rest. Since I'm going to leave, I need to start packing. I'm planning on leaving tonight."
"Is it safe for you and Noah to go out alone?" David was worried.
"We're going to be fine, and I have Carmine's men with me."
When he heard that, he grunted before nodding. "Fine. I won't send you off, then. Be careful on the way, and remember to call
me once you reach Hovington."
Katherine nodded. "Sure."
...
On the other hand, she had oversimplified the situation in her head. She had underestimated Jayden's resolve to exact revenge
and his ruthlessness. Also, he had expected that Katherine wouldn't go over the bottom line and kill him because of their past
relationship. Therefore, he decided to make a move before she did.
That evening, after buying their tickets, she and Noah began to pack their bags. The little girl was so excited that she was going
home that she quickly packed her stuff. Meanwhile, Katherine watched her and found her behavior amusing. Suddenly, she
heard the roar of several car engines outside the window!