The Ex-Wife They Begged To Keep - Chapter 50: Chapter 50

In the Powell Manor, a hand clutched the maid's phone tightly. Hiding in the corner, Leon nervously and stealthily dialed Serena's number.
"Hello? Who's this?" said Serena.
"Mommy, where are you?" Leon said.
Serena froze, her hand trembling slightly as she gripped the phone. It was Leon's voice.
"Leon?" she blurted out, but in an instant, her brow furrowed. "Why are you calling?"
"Mommy, please come home. I miss you." Leon's voice grew more and more choked, his words coming in broken bursts. "Eliza and Oliver keep picking on me."
"Leon, didn't you call me a wicked mom? Wasn't Eliza the one you preferred over me?" said Serena.
"I-I was wrong. Mommy, please come home," Leon sobbed uncontrollably, desperately clutching the phone in his hands.
Hearing Leon's tearful voice, Serena felt her heart soften for a moment. But all the pain and hurt from the past quickly drowned out that bit of softness.
She forced herself to stay calm. "Leon, I've already relinquished custody of you. Whatever happens to you now is none of my concern, got it?"
"No. You are. You're my mommy." Leon completely broke down, tears streaming down his face as he sobbed and screamed into the phone. "You're lying. I already said I was sorry. Why won't you come back?"
"Leon, an apology doesn't mean everything can go back to how things were. It's like a broken vase. Even if you glue it back together, the cracks will always be there," Serena said coldly.
Leon screamed, tears streaming down his face, "I don't get it. Come home. You have to come home. You're a mean mommy—the worst. I hate you. If you don't come back, I'll never ever talk to you again."
Serena listened to Leon's gut-wrenching cries, her heart twisting in agony. Still, clenching her resolve, she forced herself to end the call.
As the relentless dial tone echoed in his ear, Leon's sobs grew even more desperate. He curled up tightly, his small body trembling, tiny shoulders shaking uncontrollably.
Meanwhile, back at the office, the project proposal Serena had painstakingly prepared despite Stacey's harassment now lay on the manager's desk.
Max pored over the proposal, his brow furrowing at times, then relaxing again.
He set the document down, looked up at Stacey standing before him, and asked, "Who put this proposal together?"
"Serena did it," said Stacey.
"Serena?" Max raised an eyebrow in surprise. "She did this all by herself?"
"Well, yes," Stacey forced out through gritted teeth.
"Impressive—insightful and innovative," Max said with an approving nod. "Let's entrust this project entirely to Serena. Form a new project team and have her lead its implementation."
"Understood, Max. But Serena is still relatively new here, and I have some concerns—" Stacey hesitated.
"And what exactly are you worried about?" Max asked.
"I'm concerned she may not have enough experience to lead the team. What if something goes wrong with the project?" Stacey carefully measured her words, trying to voice her reservations as tactfully as possible.
"You make a fair point," Max mused for a moment.
"Max, while Serena is certainly capable, she's still relatively inexperienced and was parachuted into our company. Having her lead such an important project right away might raise eyebrows among the team," said Stacey.
Hearing Stacey's concerns, Max fell into deep thought. 'Mr. Powell personally arranged for Serena to join us. I know better than anyone what kind of man Mr. Powell is.
'He would never bring someone in without a good reason. Besides, this proposal is truly impressive and highly feasible.'
"Stacey, I understand your concerns. But since Serena created this proposal, she should be the one to lead the project. Young people need opportunities to prove themselves. We should give them that chance to grow," said Max.
"But—" Stacey attempted to protest further.
Max waved his hand decisively, cutting her off. "That's settled. Make the arrangements."
Stacey's expression darkened; she hadn't expected Max to hold Serena in such high regard.
Ironically, Stacey had planned to use this project to make things difficult for and embarrass Serena in front of the whole company, but her scheme had completely backfired. Instead, it handed Serena a golden opportunity.
After leaving the manager's office, Stacey rushed to find Erika and relayed Max's decision.
"What? Serena gets to lead the project?" Erika flew into a rage. "Why her? What makes her so special?"
"Max loves her proposal. What can I say?" said Stacey.
"No way. Absolutely not," Erika snapped.
Stacey watched Erika's furious tantrum with satisfaction. This was exactly the reaction she wanted. 'Let's see how you handle this, Serena,' she thought smugly.
With that, Stacey turned, pasted on a fake smile, and headed toward Serena's workstation.
"Serena, congratulations," Stacey said with feigned enthusiasm. "Max was very impressed with your proposal—he's decided to put you in full charge of this project."
Serena replied calmly, "Thank you. I'll do my best."
"Don't get too excited just yet. Max wants you to assemble your own team and take charge of this project. Serena, don't mess it up." With that, Stacey turned on her heel and walked away.
Serena clutched the proposal, feeling at a loss. Assembling a team was no easy feat.
Serena hurried through the cubicles and stopped at a guy's desk, where he was completely absorbed in his sketching. "Here's my project proposal. Would you be interested in joining my team?"
"Not interested," the guy said.
Serena felt awkward but persisted, approaching a colleague who seemed friendly. She said, "Hi, I'm Serena. This is my project proposal."
The colleague hesitated briefly, accepted the document, skimmed through it, and then offered an apologetic smile. "Ms. Gray, your proposal is quite impressive, but my schedule is completely booked at the moment."
Serena managed a strained smile. "No problem, thanks for your time."
Serena approached colleague after colleague, only to receive the same response—some rejected her outright, while others made polite excuses.
All around the office, people were whispering and casting suspicious glances at Serena.
It turned out Erika had been spreading rumors from the start, claiming Serena's proposal was plagiarized and untrustworthy.
To make matters worse, Stacey was secretly threatening the more talented designers, warning them not to work with Serena.
Serena walked over to a girl buried in her work in the corner. "Hi, I'm Serena," she said, handing over her project proposal. "Would you be interested?"
The girl looked up and pointed at herself. "You mean me?"
Serena gazed at her with hopeful eyes, nodding gently, her anticipation clear.
Upon meeting Serena's earnest stare, the girl's face flushed crimson and she quickly looked away.
She accepted the proposal, fingers unconsciously twirling a strand of hair by her temple as she skimmed through it.
In truth, she barely glanced at the contents. Serena's fervent gaze simply made it impossible to refuse outright.
She was acutely aware of the tense atmosphere in the office; offending anyone wasn't an option.
"Um, Ms. Gray, I—" Daisy Lincoln bit her lip, visibly conflicted.
Seeing her hesitate, Serena felt the spark of hope that had just ignited in her heart slowly fade.
Daisy mustered her courage and said, "Count me in."
Serena froze for a split second, then her face lit up with joy. "Really? That's wonderful. Thank you."
"It's okay. I'm Daisy Lincoln," she said.
Serena smiled warmly and extended her hand. "I'm Serena Gray. Pleasure to meet you."
"Me too." Daisy shook her hand.
Daisy's yes gave Serena a much-needed confidence boost.