At seven in the morning, the dining room of Cloud Lake Villa was filled with the aroma of breakfast. When Emily entered, she found Carlos already seated there, and Mrs. Carter had finished her breakfast.
Emily's gaze swept over the empty head seat; Evan Palmer's seat was vacant.
Maria Carter was also unusually not sleeping in; she stood hesitantly at the dining table,
"Mom, Dad was on the phone in the study all night last night."
"Maria, let the driver take you to school."
Mrs. Carter put down her knife and fork, her expression unchanged. Today she wore an iron-gray suit, a pair of lustrous pearl earrings on her ears, yet she seemed like an unsheathed sword.
"Today's board meeting is very important," she smiled at Emily,
"Don't worry, I'm here."
The lady finally glanced around the dining room, her gaze pausing briefly on the empty head seat, her lips pressed into a firm line,
"Let's go."
