He Does Not Deserve My Devotion-Chapter 13: The Secret from Five Years Ago

Since being discharged from the hospital, Nina Walsh had been recuperating at Declan Grant’s home.

"Second Brother Grant, thank you for taking care of me. Since you brought me back today, they won’t dare do anything to me."

Declan Grant knew he couldn’t talk her out of it, so he could only remind her repeatedly, "Take your medicine on time, look after yourself, and call me if anything happens. Also, remember to come to the hospital for a check-up next week."

Nina Walsh agreed to everything, and only then did Declan Grant leave the Sheridan residence, reassured.

The moment Declan Grant left, Brian Sherman and his family immediately showed their true colors.

Brian Sherman demanded angrily, "What did you come back for?"

Nina Walsh said, "I came back to take what’s mine."

Brian Sherman pointed at the door and yelled, "Get out. There’s nothing left for you here."

Nina Walsh looked at Brian Sherman. "The only reason you have what you have today is because you married into the Walsh family twenty-five years ago and used them to get your start. I’m only back to reclaim what belongs to the Walshes. That’s not asking too much, is it?"

Brian Sherman’s face paled. The one thing he hated most in the world was people bringing up the fact that he had married into his wife’s family.

"Nina Walsh, how dare you talk to Dad like that! You have no manners!"

Wendy Sherman accused her angrily. Nina swung her hand and slapped her across the face, leaving Wendy stunned.

Nina shot her a cold glare. "Do you have any right to speak here?"

Wendy clutched her face, wanting to strike back, but when her eyes met Nina’s icy gaze, a jolt of fear shot through her, and a cold sweat broke out on her back.

’That look in Nina’s eyes... it’s so detached, it’s not even human. She’s like a cold-blooded animal lurking in a dark abyss.’

Hayley Vance pulled Wendy behind her and put on a placating smile. "Nina, we’re all family. We all know you’ve been wronged these past few years. It’s good that you’re back. Just tell us what you want, and we’ll be sure to give it to you."

Nina said, "I want my maternal grandfather’s apparel company, and five million."

Brian Sherman practically jumped. "Five million?"

Nina turned to Brian Sherman. "I’ll give you one day. Transfer the company to my name and give me five million. Otherwise, I won’t keep the secret from five years ago any longer."

All three members of the Sherman family looked panicked, especially Wendy.

...

That day, Nina stayed at the Sheridan residence. Although the Shermans didn’t welcome her, they didn’t dare kick her out rashly.

That night, as midnight approached, the villa was silent. The Shermans were asleep, and all the servants had gone home for the day.

The door to the guest room opened, and Nina quietly slipped into Brian Sherman’s study.

To escape Aiden Sinclair’s control, Nina had to find evidence proving that Brian Sherman obtaining the Breyven project had nothing to do with her.

Nina snuck into the study and opened Brian Sherman’s computer. It was locked. Her fingers flew across the keyboard, and in a matter of seconds, she had bypassed the password.

Nina opened the folders on the computer one by one, but after a thorough search, she couldn’t find any files related to Breyven.

Moving on from the computer, Nina set her sights on the safe to the side.

She knelt on the floor, pressing her ear against the safe door.

She recalled the scene of Brian Sherman opening the safe the other day as her fingers gently turned the dial.

The soft clicks of the lock’s tumblers falling into place were exceptionally clear in the quiet night.

In less than five minutes, the safe opened successfully. Nina couldn’t help but smile.

’It’s been two years, but it looks like I haven’t forgotten everything my master taught me.’

...

「The next day.」 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Nina deliberately slept in late. Ignoring Wendy’s resentful glares, she left and hailed a cab to the apparel company.

The taxi drove for a long time, all the way to the outskirts of the city, before stopping in front of a factory building. A large sign hung on it, reading: "Maelie Apparel Co."

The company’s name, Maelie, was a tribute to her grandmother and mother, derived from their names.

Nina’s maternal grandfather had been an old tailor with exquisite craftsmanship. Through his own hard work, he had built the company up from a small tailor shop, bit by bit.

Later, Nina’s mother took over. With her design talent, she once elevated Maelie to a top-tier brand.

When she was a child, she often came here with her mother. She was more than familiar with every inch of this place.

Nina wasn’t greedy. She didn’t want Brian Sherman’s charity; she only wanted to reclaim the fruits of her grandfather’s and mother’s life’s work.

"Miss, who are you looking for?" The old security guard at the factory entrance stopped Nina.

"Mr. Mason, it’s me."

Marcus Mason rubbed his eyes. "Well, I’ll be. It’s the young miss."

Marcus Mason led Nina to the office inside. It was called an office, but in reality, it was just a breakroom partitioned off from the factory floor, containing two computers and a fax machine.

The machines rumbled loudly, and Nina was overcome with a wave of mixed emotions.

The culmination of her grandfather’s and mother’s decades of hard work, which had once stood at the top of the industry, had now been ruined by Brian Sherman and reduced to a low-end garment processing plant.

"Old Man Lloyd, come take a look! See who’s here!"

The factory manager, Leo Lloyd, brushed the cotton fibers off his clothes, looked up, and froze in astonishment. "Young Miss?"

Nina stood up. "Mr. Lloyd, it’s me, Nina."

Leo Lloyd had worked for Nina’s grandfather. He had been with him, building the company up from the very beginning.

Leo Lloyd was overjoyed to see Nina. He insisted on taking her out to eat, and after they had caught up, Nina explained the reason for her visit.

"From now on, I’ll be managing Maelie. Mr. Lloyd, I need your help. Reviving Maelie was my grandfather’s and my mother’s last wish."

Leo Lloyd’s eyes reddened, as if he had remembered something. "Young Miss, where have you been all these years? Not even a single phone call."

Nina’s eyes grew red as well. After a long moment, she finally gathered her courage and asked, "Three years ago, when my mom passed away... was it... peaceful?"

Leo Lloyd poured a glass of baijiu and downed it in one gulp.

’He had watched both the miss and the young miss grow up. The Walshes were kind to the bone; how did they ever get involved with a heartless bastard like Brian Sherman?’

Leo Lloyd sighed. "Her condition worsened one night. She passed away not long after being rushed to the emergency room. She was so sick, in so much pain every day... in a way, it was a release. But as she was leaving, she kept repeating your name..."

Nina wiped away a tear and raised her teacup. "Uncle, I can’t drink alcohol, so I’ll use tea instead. Thank you for taking care of my mother all these years."

Nina left the factory and walked along the road for a long time. After calming herself down, she hailed another cab to a private club in the city center.

Michelle Quinn saw her from a distance and rushed over to hug her.

"Lemon, where the hell have you been all these years!"

Michelle Quinn looked the same as she did in high school, with a neat, chin-length bob, a T-shirt, and jeans, radiating youthful energy.

Michelle Quinn was Nina’s close friend from high school and was now a fashion designer.

"Spill it! Where did you really go? We were supposed to go to college for design together and then take over the fashion world. How could you just vanish without a trace? If you hadn’t called me a few days ago, I would’ve thought you’d emigrated to outer space."

"I already told you, I went abroad to study."

"And you don’t contact your friends while you’re studying abroad?"

Michelle Quinn was skeptical of this answer, but since Nina wasn’t elaborating, she didn’t press the issue. They had met up this time for important business, after all.

If Nina wanted to revive Maelie, she had to find new clients and re-establish her supply chain. Today, Michelle Quinn was going to introduce her to a major client.

"Do you have everything ready?" Michelle asked.

Nina pulled a stack of design sketches from her bag. Michelle looked them over and was full of praise. "That’s my girl. Let’s go. This is a sure thing."

Holding the sketches, Michelle led Nina through the door of a card room.

"Sorry, Mr. Lawson, I’m late," Michelle called out to someone inside.

Nina followed her in. The room was full of people, but her eyes immediately landed on Aiden Sinclair, who had his arm wrapped around a woman.