Thalia had not been doing well since Alexander kicked her and the others out of the Xenos residence. Not only that, but Alexander had also terminated the card Kristen had always used, so the three had to live off the money Zachary had left for them.
Ordinary people would not know how to spend a few hundred million, but to Thalia and Kristen, who were nothing if not frivolous spenders, the money only lasted so long.
On top of that, the three had lost all respect in Jadeborough after being forced out of the Xenos residence.
Some time ago, Kristen had bought a piece of emerald worth more than eight million in a fit of anger simply because she got ridiculed by her friends. She regretted her action afterward but knew she could not return the precious stone unless she wanted to be turned into a laughingstock.
In addition, Leonard had gotten Kristen to buy him a limited-edition sports car two months ago, totaling their expenses to more than ten million with just two transactions.
Kristen did not find anything wrong with her spending habits before, but when she checked the balance on her account then, she finally realized how dire her situation was.
Remembering how she had suffered without money after running off with her lover last time, Kristen immediately set a spending limit on Thalia’s and Leonard’s cards.
Thalia used to spend around five million on clothes and handbags every month. With her card limited to only three million, she dared not go shopping overseas with her friends for fear of exceeding the limit and getting laughed at.
However, just when Thalia thought she had reached rock bottom, something even worse happened.
Thalia was excited when she saw Felix’s assistant, Steve Burton, because she thought Alexander had decided to forgive his siblings.
Unfortunately, she was stunned after listening to what Steve had to say. “You’re kidding, right, Mr. Burton?” It’s true that I took the card and used the money on it, but why would Alex ask me to return all the money I’ve used in three days? Doesn’t he consider me his sister?
“Those were Mr. Xenos’ words, Ms. Xenos. I’m simply a messenger. His business trip will be three days long, so remember to return the card to the office before the twenty-seventh.”
After saying what he went there to say, Steve made himself scarce, leaving Thalia standing there with a pale face.
“What’s wrong, Tally?” inquired Kristen, holding her bag when she saw her daughter frozen like a statue.
When Thalia heard Kristen’s voice, she turned to look at her mother. “Mom, Alex… Alex has lost his mind!”
Kristen had never liked Alexander, so the fact that he had kicked her, Thalia, and Leonard out of the Xenos residence only made her resent him more. “I know. It must be because of Sophia! She got him completely under her spell.”
Still, Thalia could not care less about that since she knew Alexander had no love for them and would show her no mercy if she failed to return the money. “Mom, Mr. Lane’s assistant just told me to return the money on the card to Alex in three days.”
“Were those Alexander’s words?”
“Mom, Alex gave Sophia that card, and I used it.”
“So what? I don’t see anything wrong with that. You’re his sister!” Kristen did not believe her daughter was in the wrong and was unafraid of Alexander since she was, after all, his mother. “Don’t worry. If he dares do anything to you because of the money, I’ll make him regret it!”
However, Thalia remained somewhat insecure. “Mom, he forced us out of our home, so how hard can it be for him to deal with me?”
Kristen’s face hardened when she was reminded of the matter. “What are you so afraid of? Do you think he’ll hit you?”
Even though Thalia had no idea if Alexander would get physical with her, she did know the man was more than capable of making her life in Jadeborough difficult. “Can you lend me ten million, Mom? I’ll repay you as soon as possible!”
“I don’t have that kind of money! As I said, you don’t have to worry because I’ve got your back. That’s it now. I have to go meet up with my friends!” With that, Kristen hurried away.
In order to save face after moving out of the Xenos residence, the woman had spent several million to buy a car and hire a driver to take her to her social gatherings.
Kristen would not have been taken aback by how little money she had in her bank account if she had not tried so hard to keep up appearances to avoid becoming a laughingstock.
Just when Thalia opened her mouth and was about to say something, Kristen got into her car and left.
Thalia was truly afraid of Alexander because if the past six months had taught them anything, it was that they were nothing without the man.
Since Alexander had already had somebody warn her, she was sure he was serious about wanting the money back.
I don’t have it, so what do I do? After some thought, Thalia realized the only way was to go to Sophia because the money belonged to the woman, after all.
She spent half a day wondering if she should suffer Alexander’s wrath or go to Sophia.
After receiving a call from Perrin, Sophia had Yvonne clear her schedule for the next two days so she could spend some time with her grandfather.
Sophia could only book the flight for after two o’clock that afternoon since she had a piece of document to sign in the morning.
After ten o’clock, Yvonne delivered the paper to the mansion so Sophia could sign it.
Thalia did not look like she wanted to be there, but she had no choice because she was terrified of Alexander.
With Sophia staring at her puzzledly, Thalia wanted nothing more than to turn around and leave, but she gritted her teeth and forced herself to stay anyway. “I’m here to return what’s yours, Sophia.”
With that, Thalia took the card out of her handbag and handed it to Sophia. “You left this after the divorce.”
Sophia could not help but chuckle when she saw the card in Thalia’s hand. “That’s not mine.” Alexander gave it to me, but I’ve never once touched it, and I’m even more certain I don’t want it now that we’re divorced.
Still, she was curious why Thalia would suddenly let her have the card.
Thalia got anxious as soon as she heard Sophia’s response. “I know my brother wants you to have it. I should never have taken it. I’m returning it to you now. If you give it back to Alex personally, maybe that’ll explain some of the misunderstandings.”
“Misunderstandings?” Sophia found Thalia’s choice of words interesting.
“Alex used to think you were a gold digger, right? There’s quite a significant amount on this card, so he probably thinks…” Looking at how amused Sophia was, Thalia found it impossible to finish her sentence.
She pursed her lips and left the card on the floor. “The point is, I’ve returned the card to you. You do whatever you want with it!”
With that, Thalia immediately got back into her car and drove away.
When Thalia was finally out of sight, Sophia scoffed before lowering herself to pick up the card on the floor.
She did not believe that Thalia would return the card to her out of good intentions, so she checked the balance on it when she reached the airport in the afternoon. That’s funny. I’ve never even touched this card, yet it has a zero balance.
