Chapter 1022: Compromise

Chapter 1022: Compromise

Ayan stared at Brody, showing no fear or hesitation in response to his

words. There was no hint of emotion in Ayan's eyes; he seemed to

have complete control over the situation. Facing this Ayan, Brody's

expression grew even colder, and he realized that he had little chance

of winning against him.

Brody remained silent, and Ayan raised an eyebrow, smiling faintly. “Mr.

Armstrong, have you considered my proposal? Would you like to do as

I suggested?"

Page looked worriedly at Brody and whispered, "What should we do?"

Brody continued to be silent, his expression becoming increasingly

grim. After nearly half a minute of this standoff, he finally looked at Ayan

and said, "What do you want me to do? Hand Camille over to you? But

Camille is not here. How can I give her to you? I admit that we did have

some communication today. She reached out to me herself, wanting

me to help her issue a statement about your divorce. Initially, I only

knew that you two were divorcing, but I didn't intend to meddle in your

affairs. However, now that she's spoken up, as her parents, we can't

simply stand by."

Brody began to adopt the image of a doting father who deeply cared for

his daughter. He pleaded with Ayan, saying, "If Camille has brought you

any harm, then I apologize. But marriage and relationships cannot be

forced, Ayan. You still have a child together. We can't make this

situation too ugly, can we? If you genuinely want to be with Camille,

then you should respect her choice. You can continue pursuing her

afterward. Why make things difficult for us? After all, we genuinely don't

know where she is right now."

Brody's words, if you didn't know what kind of person he was or how he

treated Camille, might have been quite touching.

After Brody spoke, Page quickly chimed in, and the couple's words

painted a false picture, as if they were treating Ayan as a three-year-old

child playing tricks.

Ayan remained composed, his handsome face devoid of emotion as he

stared at Brody. The cold, intense gaze and the chill in his voice made

it uncomfortable to meet his eyes for too long. He spoke, "So Camille

isn't here with you? She's deliberately hiding from me? You have no

idea when she'll come out, right?"

Brody replied, "Yes, although you may not believe it, that's the truth.”

Ayan chuckled softly, his tone filled with coldness. "Very well. Since she

is also a part of the Armstrong family, if I can't find her, I'll hold the

Armstrong Corp responsible. If you don't bring Camille to me within ten

minutes, Armstrong Corp can prepare to change its name and

ownership!"

In those last words, Brody and Page understood the implications. Ayan

was genuinely angry. He had initially intended to show some basic

respect, but at this moment, his patience had reached its limit.

Ayan instructed his bodyguard to keep time. If Camille didn't appear

within the allotted time, then Brody would bear the consequences.

Brody immediately responded, "Ayan, are you trying to force me to the

limit? I've told you, I don't know where Camille is.”

"If you don't know, then you'll bear the consequences, as Camille's

parents. Whatever debt she owes will fall on you as her parents."

Ayan refused to say another word and allowed his bodyguard to handle

the situation. Brody and Page couldn't do anything to him.

Furious, Brody grabbed a glass of water from the coffee table and

threw it forcefully to the side, shattering the glass and making a loud

crash against the floor.

Ayan merely smiled faintly at this scene, completely unaffected.

Page, on the other hand, shouted in frustration, "Aren't you afraid of

this getting out? You're bullying us! I'm calling the police. I'm calling the

police!"

"Sure, call the police. Do you want me to help you?" Ayan signaled to

his bodyguard, who dialed the police and put the call on speaker for

Brody and Page to hear. "We've already contacted the police. Feel free

to let them know what's happening.”

Brody and Page dared not speak and stared at Ayan with anger.

Time passed quickly, and soon, it was the end of the ten-minute

deadline.

As the bodyguard's timer beeped, Ayan's gaze grew even deeper. He

looked at Brody and asked, "Have you made up your mind?"

Brody looked at Ayan and said, "I've told you many times; we have no

idea where she is."

"Very well." Ayan called Kian again, his tone icy. "Within half an hour, I

want Armstrong Corp to disappear from Hance."

Brody's face tensed. "How could you? How can you do this?"

"I gave you a chance,” Ayan replied coldly.

Brody continued to plead, "Ayan, can't you be reasonable, considering

our long-standing relationship between our two families? What you're

doing is pushing us into a corner. Camille's matters with you should not

jeopardize us!"

Ayan, however, remained unmoved, knowing that Armstrong Corp was

what Brody cared about the most.

Having given him ample time, and with Brody refusing to change his

stance, Ayan proceeded with his plan.

Kian acted swiftly. Many businesses terminated their cooperation with

Armstrong Corp, but for those in long-term partnerships, Ayan used

financial incentives to make them end the relationships. Within minutes,

Brody received numerous contract termination notices.

Faced with this overwhelming pressure, Brody could only grip his

phone tightly and look at Ayan, saying, "She's on her way to Chesen

with the Wesley family. They should already be on the highway."

After Brody's revelation, Ayan's face turned even colder, his eyes sharp

as blades. He stared at Brody and said, "If anything happens to her, the

Armstrong family will be held responsible.”

Ayan then left to meet Camille, instructing Kian to block all highways

leading to Chesen and coordinate with the police to check all vehicles.

As they hadn't yet left the Hance City area, it didn't take long-less than

twenty minutes-before they located and blocked the vehicle. The car

was stopped, and Ayan personally went to the scene.

Camille was in the back seat, her hands bound, and her mouth

covered. Mrs. Wesley watched her closely. With no chance to resist,

Camille sat silently.

Seeing Ayan, Camille felt a wave of relief and fear. Mrs. Wesley quickly

protested, "She can't leave. We've already made arrangements with the

Armstrong family. They've taken our money, so you can't take her now."

Upon hearing the words "taken our money,” Camille's gaze turned cold.

She asked Mrs. Wesley, "The Armstrong family took your money?"

"Well, why do you think your parents cooperated and handed you over

to us to take back to Chesen? This cooperation was initiated by them.

They need money to buy shares of Armstrong Corp,” Mrs. Wesley

explained, her tone indifferent, and a hint of dissatisfaction in her eyes.

In truth, they could have easily picked any girl from Chesen for Derrick

to have an heir. However, they didn't want the Wesley family's actions

to be seen as buying a bride, so they chose a girl with a certain

background to avoid any criticism. Even if Derrick recovered later on,

they didn't want him to feel that the match wasn't suitable.

Upon hearing Mrs. Wesley's explanation, Camille let out a bitter smile.

She said, "Since it was the Armstrong family that took the money, you

should deal with them, not me. I've severed all ties with the Armstrong

family, so what you're doing now is illegal.”

Ayan gently put his arm around Camille's shoulders and spoke softly,

"No need to argue with them. Let's get in the car. We'll go back for

dinner, and leave the rest to Kian."

Camille fell silent and nodded gently as she got into the car with Ayan.

The journey back to Franklin Bay from there wasn't too far. Both of

them sat in the back seat, with Camille leaning against Ayan's chest.

Her voice was soft and hoarse as she whispered, "I haven't done

anything wrong, so why are they treating me so heartlessly?"