First Love Only? I Left Him First, Now the CEO Can't Let Go novel Chapter 257

Chapter 257: Chapter 257: Engagement Ring

Serena Jennings sat in her office, subscribing to the newly issued shares under her capacity as a shareholder of The Lockwood Group, while continuing to acquire stocks sold by retail investors through Star of Tomorrow, a company registered in Country C.

When her shareholding reached 45%, she became the largest shareholder of The Lockwood Group.

"Claire Shaw..."

Serena let out a cold laugh at the computer screen.

"You’ve really done me a big favor."

Back then, having Patrick Rhodes post that tweet, hiring internet trolls to build Caleb Lockwood’s image as a deeply affectionate person, setting the narrative that Caleb and Claire were inseparable, and having Chance Bell hack into the system to continuously broadcast Claire’s adult films online...

It was all Serena.

Initially, Serena just wanted to prove her innocence.

She had Chance retrieve the surveillance video and discovered that the night Claire was gang-raped, only one van drove to the abandoned warehouse.

That van was rented, and the rental agency’s owner noted the renter was a foreigner. The face was unclear in the video, but the man’s tattoo was visible.

Upon Chance’s investigation, that tattoo was the totem worn by cadres of The Wyrmfang Gang of Meridia.

Meridia...

This place lingered in Serena’s mind for a long time.

If she remembered correctly, Claire had gone to Meridia for further studies.

She was kidnapped by Dylan Quinn and nearly trafficked there in Meridia.

And the suspect for Claire’s gang-rape was possibly a member of a Meridian gang.

Serena absolutely didn’t believe it was just a coincidence.

Just as Ian Blackwood was on a business trip to Meridia and offered to help, Serena went with the flow and asked Ian to investigate what Claire had done in Meridia back then.

She didn’t really expect Ian to uncover much, but just one clue would allow Chance to follow the trail.

Unexpectedly, Ian was so capable that he directly sent her Claire’s videos.

In those videos, Claire looked younger, with long straight black hair, wearing white lingerie, clearly presenting a pure image. At the beginning of the AV, there was even a self-introduction:

"My name is Ash, I come from Country A, and I’m a college student..."

Though Serena speculated that Claire might have met people from The Wyrmfang Gang during her studies in Meridia, she never guessed that Claire would film AVs there.

Whether Claire was willing or forced to participate in the AVs that circulated in the Meridian market, the result on camera didn’t look forced at all.

Since it was Claire herself who lacked self-respect, Serena felt no sympathy for her.

More than the gang-rape, people online were more interested in the love triangle between her, Claire, and Caleb Lockwood.

So, Serena thought to use Claire’s undeniable scandal to completely ruin her, while also taking The Lockwood Group in one fell swoop.

Star of Tomorrow was a company Serena registered to take on projects from Aaron Linton, unexpectedly coming in handy at this time.

Caleb Lockwood was so focused on guarding against the Nash Group and another company registered in Meridia that he didn’t notice Star of Tomorrow was constantly absorbing shares from retail investors, taking in however much they sold.

Adding that she already held 10% of The Lockwood Group’s shares, she suddenly became The Lockwood Group’s largest shareholder.

Serena closed the computer, leaned back in her chair, and closed her eyes to rest.

She was truly a bit tired these days.

Initially, she never wanted to accept the 10% shares of The Lockwood Group Caleb Lockwood gave her, but now she willingly set a trap to change The Lockwood Group’s largest shareholder.

Serena didn’t want to admit she had changed.

But she had indeed changed.

At first, she wanted to stay out of worldly affairs, but was forced to engage with them.

This time, even The Lockwood Group fell into her hands. No one could stab her in the back anymore.

Outside the window, dark clouds gathered, and fierce winds howled.

Serena stood by the window. As a streak of lightning flashed before her eyes, the thunder roared like a giant beast hidden in the clouds.

Torrential rain poured down, and Serena’s vision blurred instantly.

Fortunately, she had the foresight to let all employees leave work in advance.

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify