She Is A CEO

Chapter 1186 Wrong Efforts

"At first..." Jacob finally spoke and looked down at the floor. His tone was low and melancholic as if he was lost in memories.

"I wasn't completely unaffected by you, it's just that Poppy had been using incentives to lure me. You know my background was bleak, and opportunities for such a turnaround might never come again in a lifetime. That's why I succumbed to her persuasion..."

"Until now, you still blame Poppy for everything?" Lucia condescendingly asked Jacob.

"It was her fault to begin with," Jacob lifted his head and looked at Lucia with a sincere expression as he anxiously explained.

"You were so innocent and beautiful, like the purest flower in the world. As a man, how could I not be moved? But Poppy had done me a favor, and I had to listen to her. Everything was under her control. I also had moments of weakness, but your strong personality left me with no chance to explain myself in the end."

Lucia's eyes flickered as she stared unblinkingly at the man in front of her who kept telling lies. Even if he were to speak the truth, she would still admire his courage. However, he continued to shirk responsibility and she suddenly realized how ridiculous her initial thoughts were. Why did she even want to ask a question that never had an answer?

Perhaps those cherry blossoms and those poetic verses had really disturbed her mind, causing Arthur to worry so much!

"Why did you kill Poppy then?" Lucia was now pleading for an answer, "She loved you, that's for sure."

"She loved me?" Jacob laughed as if he had heard something absurd, and naturally retorted,

"What she loved was never me, but the powerful financial resources of JTP Group and my ability to manipulate finance. These were the guarantees for her wealth and status. In the end, her greed led to her death. If she hadn't tampered with JTP Group's assets, I wouldn't have had to take action against her."

"So, you killed her just because she threatened your interests." Lucia felt genuinely sorry for Poppy. According to Kane, Poppy's actions were a result of Jacob's lack of trust and her hope for rekindling their relationship. She never intended to betray their feelings for each other.

"How can I be with you if she's still around?" Jacob smirked, answering as if it were obvious.

"Jacob, you're not even human!" Lucia's anger flared up and she took a quick step forward to grab Jacob by the collar.

Jacob remained calm, because his bodyguard had already rushed in and pointed a gun at her forehead. He even smirked at the advantage he held,

"Lucia, at this point, why are you still clinging to the past? Arthur can't catch up with us anymore and you are destined to be with me. Why not abandon the past and focus on my deep affection for you now? Weren't you once devoted to me? Is it so difficult to rekindle that feeling?"

"It's hard to rekindle!" Lucia gritted her teeth.

"Don't jump to conclusions so soon," Jacob said, breaking away from Lucia's grasp and smiling. "There's plenty of time ahead of us. When the day comes that you can only be by my side, I'm sure your feelings for me will resurface. I have no doubt about it."

"You are too arrogant!" Lucia stepped back and scolded angrily.

"This is not arrogance, it's confidence," Jacob straightened his collar and smiled calmly. "Otherwise... why would you be shaken by the flowers and poem I gave you? Lucia, admit it, deep down inside you still love me."

Lucia gazed silently at Jacob, her emotions completely reversed. Since Poppy was destined to be a casualty, her focus now was on self-preservation and taking down Jacob!

As Jacob was feeling uneasy under Lucia's cold gaze and contemplating how to leave without giving in, someone from the shipyard ran over and told him,

"Mr. Wood, we have arrived at our destination. Please disembark as soon as possible."

Jacob secretly let out a sigh of relief and ignored Lucia's gaze. He turned to the bodyguard and said, "Tie her up again. We're preparing to leave the ship." With those words, he took the lead and walked out. The more he felt Lucia's gaze on him, the more uneasy he became.

The bodyguard obeyed the order and re-bound Lucia's hands. However, this time Lucia was more prepared than before. Back when she was learning karate, her master had taught her a technique to escape from restraints. The bodyguard Jacob had hired at the last minute was not a professional and couldn't tell the difference in Lucia's hand movements.

Pushed out of the cabin by the bodyguard, Lucia suddenly realized that it was already daylight outside. The sand dredger had stopped at the shore at some point, just like last night. The captain had followed Jacob's instructions and anchored the ship near a deserted beach.

Jacob standing on the deck seemed to have calmed himself down, and he didn't show any fear in his eyes as he watched Lucia being pushed out by the bodyguards. After the crew set up the planks, he ordered his men to take Lucia down to the beach and had already arranged for unlicensed cars to wait on a nearby small road.

After the captain happily set sail with Jacob's large sum of money, Jacob and his group stood on the beach looking for a path back to shore. Soon after, a bodyguard found the path and Jacob said to Lucia, "Lucia, let's go. It's morning now and I won't support you anymore."

Jacob's sarcasm was evident in his words as Lucia gave him a cold glance before cooperating with the bodyguard and heading in the direction he pointed out. It wasn't time for rebellion yet.

Arthur chased after them all the way until it was bright outside. Jack had been monitoring Lucia's location in the front car when they noticed that Lucia had changed direction. Arthur immediately ordered the convoy to stop and went to check on what was happening.

"It seems we underestimated Jacob again. He is cunning enough to switch from waterways onto land," Kane couldn't help but curse.

"It seems our previous preparations were in vain. It would have been best if we could intercept them when they reached the shore, but now they are on the move in vehicles. Engaging in a high-speed chase might risk harming Lucia. Mr. Davies, we need to reevaluate our plan," Jack said, voicing his concerns.Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

"At least we know that Jacob is still headed towards the Orient Ocean. He can only choose sea routes if he wants to smuggle out of this country. Our current plan is simple: get ahead of him before he reaches his destination and stop him before he leaves!" Arthur made up his mind as he looked at where the locator indicated their direction was headed towards.