Chapter 4 The Planned Demolition

At the Chanvale International Airport three years later.

There was a large screen televising a broadcast in the arrivals hall.

"Now on to the business news. It has been discovered that Collins Group recently acquired that land along Blue Road with the intention of building a large entertainment hub there. As you may well know, Blue Road is home to many rich individuals. It will be difficult to just tear down all the buildings. Joining us today is the CEO of the Collins Group, Matthew Collins. It's a great honor to hear how he intends to solve this huge problem."

Melanie had just gotten off the plane and was dragging her suitcase when the huge screen caught her attention.

The man who was shown next on the screen had on a gray suit with a tie and white shirt to match. His jawline was taut and clean-shaven. His eyebrows were bushy and his skin smooth. He looked so indifferent, yet so dashing like an actor.

The man's fingers were clasped on his knees as he sat on the sofa with his legs crossed. He looked so relaxed on camera. With a faint smile on his thin lips, he said, "Everyone has a price. Even the rich want to get richer, so I know that those who reside on Blue Road wouldn't be any different. Anyone who fails to solve their problems just doesn't have enough money. As for me, I have more than enough."

The host looked both shocked and impressed. She smiled politely and said, "Mr. Collins, our audience would like to know how long it will take you to get the demolition done."

Staring right at the camera, Matthew was quite straightforward with his answer. "In less than a week, we'll settle the affected parties and get the demolition over and done with."

A video of Blue Road came on after Matthew's response. It was nothing like it was some time ago. Now, it was a huge mess. Several residents had already moved out. Many of the tall houses were now a pile of rubbish. Excavators were in all corners, waiting for the next house to fall to their claws.

Melanie's eyes which were behind the sunglasses trembled incredibly.

She stared right at the villa of her family. The home which she grew up in would soon be demolished!

The camera panned to a reporter who was standing in front of the villa with a middle-aged woman. She asked, "You are the owner of this villa. News reaching us is that you have agreed on the compensation that Collins Group offered. Isn't that right?"

The woman was none other than Melanie's stepmother, Ximena.

With a bright smile, Ximena faced the camera and replied, "Oh, yes! Collins Group offered us a compensation that we couldn't refuse. My family and I have already packed up. We'll leave today. Collins Group is free to do whatever they like with the house."

At this moment, the face of Melanie-who was holding a black silk scarf that contained the urn of her father's ashes-turned grim. Her knuckles also became pale.

The ice in her eyes almost cracked through her sunglasses. She had been too weak to fight for that villa three years ago. But now that she was back, no one could stop her from taking back what was rightfully hers!

She didn't want the villa because it was in a highbrow area. It was because that was where her father was supposed to rest.

Clenching her fists, Melanie stormed out of the airport with the urn and suitcase.

It was June, so the weather in Chanvale was bright and sunny, unlike the night when she left here.

Her hand tightened around the urn as she looked up at the scorching sun and blue sky while pondering.

"I'm back for good, Dad. I'll take you home now," she thought to herself.

Suddenly, a honk jarred Melanie out of her thoughts. The driver of the Volkswagen Polo stuck her head out and waved at her excitedly. "Melanie! Over here!"

A smile quickly replaced the gloom on Melanie's face. She picked up her suitcase and rushed over. As soon as she got in the car, buckled up, and took off her sunglasses, Isabel got right to complaining.

"You are so heartless! Do you still take me as your friend? I have been so lonely since you flew to Paris without saying goodbye to me. I could have died!"

At the mention of her abrupt departure, Melanie's mind traveled back to what happened three years ago. Her distant eyes gleamed with guilt and loneliness. She squeezed Isabel's shoulder and said, "I'm back now, aren't I? I didn't want to hurt you, but I was just too sad and disheveled."

Isabel's annoyance flew out the window. She glanced at her friend sympathetically. "Life abroad must have been very tough for you. I still can't believe that you went from being a pampered daughter to someone who was forced into homelessness by that witch of a stepmother and her stupid daughter. You've lost a lot of weight."

Melanie shook her head and smiled. "I'm doing good. My dad left one million dollars in my account for fear that something bad might happen and I would need an emergency fund. I only found out about it later on. The money wasn't much, but it was just enough for me to start a new life in Paris and also study arts. I worked part-time jobs there and sold some of my paintings to companies just to make ends meet. Life abroad wasn't that hard."

Isabel kept her eyes on the road as something occurred to her. "By the way, since you just got back, you don't have a place to stay, right? I currently live alone in a two-bedroom apartment. You can move in with me and we will split the rent. What do you say?"

Isabel intentionally mentioned splitting the rent so that Melanie would agree without feeling embarrassed. She knew her friend didn't like handouts.

"Okay. But why am I just hearing about this? When did you move out of your parents' house? Tell me the truth. Did you guys have a fight?"

Taking a look at the long line of cars in front of her, Isabel pouted and said, "Oh, don't even go there. Can you believe that my mother tried setting me up on blind dates with guys? I couldn't take the constant pestering anymore, so I moved out. To spite me, she cut off my allowance. I'm not going to beg her. She's gonna wait forever. By the way, you don't have a job yet, right?"

"Sadly, I don't." Melanie frowned. "I'm not sure whether I can adapt to the art industry here in Chanvale."

Isabel raised an eyebrow complacently. "Hey, do you want me to give you a good job?"

"That would be great if it matches my major."

"Of course! But you have to accompany me to a dinner party tonight."

Isabel handed her an invitation. When Melanie saw a name on the guest list, her eyes zeroed in on it. It clearly said, Matthew Collins!

Oh, God! Was the straightforward man who acquired the land of Blue Road going to be at the dinner party tonight?

Frowning, Melanie pointed at the name and asked, "Isabel, do you know Matthew Collins?"

"Whaaat!" Isabel exclaimed and looked at her in surprise. "Don't tell me you like Matthew too! Friendly advice, forget about him. Matthew is not the kind of man you want in your life. If you stand ten meters away from him, his cold aura can freeze you to death. Many women have tried to go after him. And they all ended up either traumatized, tired, or even both. If you need a boyfriend, I can introduce you to my brother! My brother is a sweetheart. He's nothing like Matthew."

Isabel shuddered at the thought of Matthew's cold face. He was her relative, but he still gave her the creeps every single time.

But it would be interesting to see what Matthew would be like if he was in love with Melanie. Would he become all mushy? Or would he remain an ice king?

The frown between Melanie's eyebrows deepened. When she saw Matthew on TV just now, her first impression of him was that he wasn't a man to be trifled with.

It seemed that her guess was right.

However, that villa was the only thing she had now. Nothing could deter her from getting it back. Matthew might be mean, but he couldn't bite, could he?