Gordon's funeral was more than two weeks in the rearview mirror, and the whole Silent Shadows ordeal was finally wrapping up. Adler slumped back in his office chair, exhaustion written all over his face. "Seriously, why do other folks' dads leave them a fortune, while

mine leaves me with nothing but chaos?"

"Who else can you blame? The Silent Shadows was your family's mess, so it's on you to clean it up," Jenna quipped, lounging on the couch with a snack in hand. "But hey, at least the Tredgold family kept their hands clean from the whole Silent Shadows disaster. Now, you've got this four-billion-dollar company in your lap, and you're officially Mr. Adler!"

"Ha! Four billion dollars on paper, maybe. If I could actually cash that out, I'd sell the company and we'd jet-set around the world."

"Yeah, right! You'd sell your family's legacy? Aren't you worried that once you're gone, your ancestors will line up to give you a good smack in the afterlife?"

Adler was stumped. Sure, he could hold his own in a fight, but financial management wasn't his thing. He'd always been just a name on the Tredgold family business papers, never actually running the show.

Aside from dealing with unavoidable tasks now and then, he really had no say in the family empire. "How about we sell the company to Sophie? She loves the business stuff. When we run low on cash, we could live off the dividends. It'd be more than enough to get by." "Adler! How could you even think that?" Jenna's tone suddenly turned serious, and Adler quickly backpedaled, "I was just thinking out loud..."

"What a genius idea! How did you come up with it?"

"Huh?" Adler blinked.

Jenna put her snacks aside, saying, "Honestly, with you at the helm, the Tredgold family business would

probably nosedive in a few years et

Handing it over to Sophie and living off the dividends sounds perfect. We'd have money rolling in without lifting a finger. It's the dream!"

"That's why we're a perfect match," Adler laughed, dropping his paperwork to scoop Jenna up, spinning her around with glee.

Just then, Tricia walked in, catching the whirlwind moment. The air got awkward for a beat before Tricia quietly backed out.

Jenna quickly untangled herself from Adler, smoothing her hair. "Come in!"

With a slight pause, Tricia stepped back in, adjusting her glasses. "Ms. Jenna, Mr. Adler."

"Sophie sent you?"

"Ms. Sophie mentioned that things are mostly squared away and wondered if you'd like to join in a grave visit today."

The mention of visiting the graves quieted the room. With the Silent Shadows business done, everything was finally settling down. Sophie Colby and Harold, among others, could finally bring some peace to their parents.

Adler paused, then said, "Jenna and I won't be going."noveldrama

Wesley had never accepted Adler as his son, not even on his deathbed. Despite a full-scale funeral, Adler had nothing to say about his father. As if expecting this, Tricia signaled for someone to bring in the documents, lining them up on the desk.

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