Chapter 3

I told Dad, "You know I don't know anything about the company, Dad."

"You don't have to," Dad said with a sigh.

Then, he feigned a kind demeanor and said, "There's a trust fund that your mother left behind for you, with some shareholding agreements in it.

"You're turning 18 years old next week. You can transfer all the shareholding rights to me then, and I'll be able to go to the bank to act as a guarantor on behalf of the company to help it through this difficult time."

He said it casually, but I knew that all 60% of Mom's shares would belong to him permanently the moment I signed any of those papers.

"But Dad, Aunt Heather said that I could only touch those shares after I received my college acceptance letter," I said, deliberately feigning a puzzled look.

Dad's expression froze on his face for just a second.

"You've already received the direct admission letter from Starward University, haven't you? What's the difference if you signed it a few days earlier? Or… Do you not trust your own father?"

He then stared into my eyes intently.

Alicia chimed in and said, "Can't you be more sensible, Cheryl? Don't you know how hard your dad worked to raise you to who you are today? And now that he's run into some financial difficulties at the office, what's the matter with you helping him out a little?

"The company is still going to belong to both you and Christina anyway!"

I lowered my head and pretended to deliberate for a long while. Finally, I said, "Alright, then. I'll sign them on my birthday next week."

Dad's eyes lit up at once.

"Yes! You're such a good daughter of mine, Cher! I'll make sure to throw you a grand party for your 18th birthday! I'll also make sure to invite all the upper-crust society to witness it!"

I sneered in my heart. Of course, it should be as grand of an affair as possible. I would love to see the entire city witness their downfall!

Over the next few days, Aunt Heather would constantly keep me updated with news on her investigation.

As it turned out, Dad hadn't just secretly transferred out the funds that Mom had left me. He'd even transferred all of the Cooper Group's core business funds to a company registered under Alicia's younger brother, Anthony Mack's, name.

But it was also precisely because of this that Aunt Heather followed the trail and found Dad's overseas accounts and an incriminating video recording of him.

It showed Dad personally going to a shady print shop that specialized in forgeries a month ago to pick up the fake direct admission letter and envelope to Starward University he later gave to me.

This time, there was concrete evidence of his misdemeanors.

…

The night before my 18th birthday party, Dad suddenly called me to the living room with a grave expression on his face.

"Cheryl Cooper! Tell me the truth! Have you ever cheated in school?" he asked with a deep frown on his face.

"Cheat? No, I never cheated," I replied, looking at him in confusion.

However, Christina chuckled coldly next to me and said, "Who said you didn't? Our headmaster, Mr. Payne, personally told the college board that you had committed horrible misconduct and even demanded the cancellation of your direct admission to Starward!

"They also held an emergency meeting and decided to give me the direct admission spot instead!"

She began to laugh, not even bothering to continue with her act anymore.

"What?"

I pretended to be shocked. My eyes turned red and teary. "But I never cheated! They're framing me for something I never did! And who gave them the right to give up my spot to you?"

Dad sighed and came up to hold me back, seeing I was about to lose control of my emotions.

"That's enough, Cher. I've already suppressed the news and didn't let information about your cheating be made public.

"But since you never take the college entrance exam, and your direct admission spot is gone, I must say that I'm very disappointed in you."

He steered the conversation back to me.

My eyes turned red with tears again as I lowered my head and said nothing.

"But don't worry. You'll still be my daughter forever."

He changed the topic once again. "Your 18th birthday bash will proceed as usual. It'll just be celebrated alongside Christina's Starward admission celebration.

"While you're there, you can sign the share transfer agreement, and then I'll be sending you to a college abroad. At least that'll be another way out for you."

It was all a series of calculated moves that he executed flawlessly.

First, he conspired with our principal, Mr. Vincent Payne, to smear my name, and then, he pretended to be a loving and benevolent father to me.

His next step now was to seize all the shares away from me.