SWNOVELS Chapter 34
Chapter 34
The slight pain at the back of her head snapped Athena back to reality. “Me, be loyal to you? Bullshit!”
With a sneer, she retorted, “More like waiting in widow’s weeds for you!”
Newman’s face darkened, his jawline tensing up, “Clearly you’re smitten with me, Ms. Dempsey. I’d advise you not to pine for a position that’ll forever be out of your reach.”
Athena was speechless. Was Newman even speaking human language?
She pushed out with her hands, shoving Newman away with all her might.
“Get lost, will ya!”
In the afternoon, seeing that Kevin’s cold was nearly better, Athena personally took him to kindergarten.
“Ms. Dempsey, can you stop by my office for a bit when you’re free?”
As Athena was about to leave, the principal called out to her.
She followed the principal into the office, where the jack–of–all–trades assistant poured them some hot tea.
President Lee handed Athena a notebook. “These are the complaints from other parents about
Kevin.”
Athena took the complaint log with a complex look on her face, smiling she asked, “Which page are the complaints about Kevin on?”
President Lee informed her, “The whole book is full of them.”
Athena was shocked.
President Lee sighed heavily, her expression grave, “This book contains this semester’s complaints about Kevin from the parents. I’ve also got records from the last semester, and the one before that.”
She flipped through the complaint logs then pulled out a small booklet. “This is Kevin’s weekly quiz scores. Ms. Dempsey, our kindergarten is the cream of the crop in Stardale City, and your attended our kindergarten as a child. You should know that we practice elite education. Kids who leave our kindergarten stand out from the crowd the moment they enter other prestigious schools. Not only is Kevin at the bottom of his class, but he’s also been fighting with the older kids.”
Athena couldn’t help but interject. “Kevin told me he hasn’t been fighting at kindergarten this term.
“That’s because all the kids in the kindergarten now look up to him as the boss.”
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Athena muttered under her breath, “Isn’t that a good thing?”
President Lee frowned deeply. “Other parents are furious once they found out! They think Kevin’s a bad influence on their kids. Now it’s not just the parents from Kevin’s class, but from other grades as well, they’ve all come together hoping we can persuade Kevin to leave.”
“President Lee?” Athena’s expression turned icy.
“At first, I approved Kevin’s admission, considering the reputation of the entire Dempsey family. We normally wouldn’t accept a child with an unclear paternal background like Kevin’s. We’ve never had a precedent for pushing out a child, and the Department of Education doesn’t allow schools to expel students. I’m thinking of issuing a certificate for Kevin as a child with
intellectual disabilities.”
Athena’s eyes flashed with cold anger.
“My son is perfectly intelligent, you can’t twist the truth!”
President Lee pursed her lips, avoiding Athena’s gaze, “Ms. Dempsey, since you refuse to admit. that your son can’t learn anything and is intellectually disabled, how about this, let Kevin take an exam in language, math, and foreign language in a week. If he scores 60 points, I’ll let him. stay in school. If his score is below 60, it proves he’s definitely intellectually disabled! Then, please, Ms. Dempsey, take the initiative to transfer him out.”
Athena flipped through Kevin’s past report cards, all zeroes. Kevin’s disinterest in studies was indeed a headache for Athena.
But he was still young, and with the fierce competition among the parents at this elite kindergarten, Athena didn’t want Kevin to be like the other kids, with a weekend crammed full
of classes.
As long as her baby was happy at kindergarten, that was all that mattered.
She agreed with the principal’s suggestion, “Fine, I’ll tutor Kevin well. If he scores 60, I’ll expect an apology from you. If he fails, I’ll take him out of school.”
President Lee stood to see Athena out, watching her back with a complex expression.
The Dempsey family wielded considerable influence in Stardale City, but even they couldn’t stop the gossip. Taking in Kevin, a child with an unknown background, had put President Lee under a lot of pressure.
After leaving the kindergarten, Athena headed to Sunrise Building.
She’d just stepped out of the elevator when she saw Anna charging toward her from a distance. Still several meters apart, Anna hurled her ID badge at Athena with all her might.
Athena didn’t dodge; the badge thrown by Anna fell to the ground a meter away from her.
“Athena, you’ve gone too far!”
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Anna’s shouting drew the attention of nearby staff. Athena’s face remained untroubled as she calmly instructed an employee. “Call security.”
Anna had been thrown into the police station by Newman, and it took Simon and David a lot of
effort to bail her out.
Anna’s facial muscles contorted as if she wanted to tear Athena to shreds!
*The position Grandpa arranged for me was as a marketing manager, and now you tell HR to give me a badge for a second–level janitor in the janitorial department!”
Athena coolly responded, “Anna, you lack both work experience and the right qualifications. The only suitable positions for you in the company are as a janitor or a receptionist.”
Anna clenched her fists, her fingernails digging into her palms.
“I’m the Dempsey family’s daughter, how can you make me do janitorial work?”
Athena pouted her lips, her stunning beauty shining with a radiant glow, “If you’re really keen on giving the Dempsey family a helping hand, start by busting your chops as a janitor. Work hard, and the company will hook you up with a promotion.”
“President Dempsey.”
Athena’s secretary, Zora, came over and whispered in her ear, “There’s a bit of a snag with Mr. West.”
Zora showed her phone to Athena. After a quick glance, Athena turned and headed towards the elevator.
“Our deal with Nossen Energy might be on ice. The Bishop Group has been breathing down their necks.”
As the elevator doors slid open, Zora accompanied Athena inside.
Anna, seeing them leave, snorted in disdain. She was fuming with nowhere to vent her anger, her mood hitting rock bottom.
She whipped out her phone and saw a message from Nancy.
She had already vented to Nancy about Athena messing with her job, landing her a gig in the janitorial department.
Nancy’s message was full of soothing words.
[Anna, don’t blow a gasket. Athena’s been rubbing elbows with my big bro a lot lately, and she’s ticked off Grandma. Grandma warned Mr. West at Nossen Energy not to partner up with the Dempsey Group. Athena’s gonna be running around like a chicken with its head cut off, and if she slips up at work, that’s your chance.]
Anna tapped out a reply on her phone. (I saw her and her secretary head out again, probably to have a face–off with Mr. West.]
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At that, Anna remembered something else, [Hasn’t Mrs. West been on the hunt for a PI recently, sniffing around for dirt on Mr. West’s affairs?]
[Yep, three months back, Mr. West got caught cheating on his wife, and now Mrs. West is all over him with suspicions.]
Reading Nancy’s take, Anna smirked and her lips curled into a cold smile.
In a private room at the Silver Club, Mr. West from Nossen Energy was apologizing to Athena.
“President Dempsey, we’ve been in bed with the Bishop Group for over two decades. We can’t tick off our old clients, please try to understand.”
Athena’s brows furrowed, “Can’t Nossen Energy supply just a bit to the Dempsey Group? Mr. West, we could give Nossen Energy an extra 0.25% in profits.”
Before Athena could finish, Mr. West was already shaking his head, “President Dempsey, I really don’t want to cross the Bishop Group.”
“Jason West! You’re cheating on me again! You sleazebag! Go to hell!”
Someone barged into the room, hurling spoiled veggies and rotten eggs all over Athena.