Chapter 122

Isabella told Dwayne she had scored over 30 phones in a raffle at some tech expo.

Dwayne's jaw practically hit the floor. He couldn't believe her luck.

'Hold up, even if there was a raffle, no way one person wins 30 phones. Something's fishy,' Dwayne thought, remembering that Michael had also been at that tech expo abroad.

If Michael had hooked Isabella up with those phones because of their relationship, it would all add up.

Even though Dwayne figured it out, he decided to keep quiet. John had just had a run-in with Isabella, and bringing up Michael might just make things worse.

"Thanks, Isabella. I really appreciate the gift, and I'm sure everyone in your department will be stoked too." Dwayne smiled, then grabbed his phone and headed back to his office.

First thing Dwayne did when he got back to his office was call Michael to fill him in on what went down.

Michael was in a meeting when Dwayne's call came through. As he listened, his face turned icy.

"Is Isabella okay?" Michael asked, his voice low and serious.

Just hearing Michael's tone made Dwayne shiver. He could feel the anger.

"She's physically fine, but there's a handprint on her neck," Dwayne quickly replied, forgetting Michael couldn't see him nodding.

"I get it. I'll take care of it. You did good today," Michael said before hanging up.

After hanging up, Michael called Jerry. "Jerry, find out where John is and give him a good beating! Then pin it on the Brown family."

Jerry was stunned for a moment before cautiously asking, "Mr. Williams, are you sure about this? John's your nephew."

"Owen didn't raise him right. As his elder, it's my job to step in," Michael replied coldly.

Jerry shivered and quickly nodded at his phone. "Got it, Mr. Williams. I'll take care of it."

After Michael hung up, Jerry frowned deeply. 'What did John do to piss Michael off so much?'

It wasn't hard for Jerry to get the scoop, since the incident between Isabella and John happened in a busy area with lots of witnesses.

When Jerry found out John had grabbed Isabella by the neck and nearly choked her, he knew John was in for a world of hurt.

"Mr. John Williams, you can't blame me. This is all on Mr. Michael Williams' orders," Jerry muttered, shaking his head as he pulled a solid wooden baseball bat from his cabinet.

Meanwhile, just as Dwayne was about to dive into work after his call, someone rushed in to report a dispute in the design department.

"Design department again? What now?" Dwayne asked, rubbing his forehead in frustration.

The employee who brought the news gave a wry smile. "Apparently, Isabella handed out new phones to her colleagues, but Ms. Eve thinks they're all fakes."

"So Isabella and Madeline are at it?" Dwayne frowned. From what he knew, Isabella wasn't one to start random fights.

The employee shook his head. "No, it's Isabella's assistant Juliet going at it with Ms. Eve and her crew."

Dwayne raised an eyebrow. Juliet was the assistant he had assigned to Isabella. He didn't expect Juliet to stand up for Isabella on her first day. Isabella must have some serious charm.

"Alright, I'll go check it out," Dwayne sighed, shaking his head as he left his office.

In the design department, Juliet was boiling mad. Isabella had tasked her with giving out the 30 phones to everyone, Madeline included, even though Madeline was trying to ice her out. But Madeline was totally unappreciative, calling all those phones fake.

Sometimes, being nice to your haters, who then act like total jerks, can actually make others feel sorry for you. It's a smart move, whether you're at work or in school.

"Ms. Taylor was nice enough to give you those phones. If you don't want them, that's fine, but why be such a jerk and put her down?" Juliet was indignant for Isabella.

Madeline crossed her arms and sneered. "If Isabella had given us anything else, maybe we'd have taken it. But fake phones? She might as well have given us apples; at least we could eat those."

An employee behind Madeline also sneered. "Ms. Eve is right. Isabella claims she won these phones in a raffle. What kind of raffle gives 30 latest-model phones to one person? Couldn't she come up with a better lie?"

Hearing this, some design department employees hesitated as they looked at the new phones in their hands. Madeline's words did make some sense.

Juliet's anger simmered, barely contained, as Isabella finally emerged from the restroom. She had tried to use cold water to remove the handprint on her neck but had failed.

Seeing Juliet and Madeline in the middle of a heated argument, Isabella quickly understood what was happening.

"Juliet, why bother arguing with them? If they don't want my goodwill, just take back the phones and sell them." Isabella waved dismissively, then looked at her colleagues.

Isabella shrugged. "I meant well, I swear. I wouldn't give you all fake phones. If they turn out to be real, blame Madeline for misleading you."