### Chapter 62 Avery felt the weight of impending dread as the reeling implications of money gone missing crept into her mind. Was it really possible that they had squandered all the embezzled funds? How could that colossal sum just vanish so swiftly? With her heart racing, she inhaled deeply and accepted the incoming call. Before she could gather her thoughts to speak, Cassandra’s voice blared through the receiver, frantic and tear-soaked. “Avery! Is the Super Brain program my dad developed with you? You have to give it to me now!” The raw panic in her tone sent chills down Avery’s spine. Something inside her snapped. “How dare you contact me, Cassandra? Your uncle has embezzled Dad’s money! Did you even realize the severity of that crime? The police are on it as we speak!” “This has nothing to do with me! I didn’t take the money! I just need the Super Brain program! Bring it to me tonight!” Cassandra’s desperation escalated, her voice climbing to a frantic crescendo. Avery’s brows knitted together as background noise crackled through the call, heightening her unease. “Where are you right now, Cassandra?” Through muffled sobs, Cassandra cried, “Help me, Avery! I’m at the casino with Cole... They’ve got him trapped! If you don’t bring Dad’s new program here, they’ll cut off his finger!” The revelation hit Avery like a punch to the gut. “Casino? You’re gambling?!” Her complexion drained of color. She had always viewed Cole as a man of integrity, unaware he was ensnared by such vices. “Bring the program and save him! Do you want him to lose a finger? Don’t you care about him anymore?!” Cassandra’s voice erupted, laced with anguish. Avery was already on her feet, heading for the door, but paused mid-stride at Cassandra’s outburst. “Don’t humiliate yourself! Even if there were no other men on this planet, I wouldn’t spare a second thought for Cole Foster! He got himself into this mess by losing money, didn’t he? Why not pay off his debts yourself? Your uncle has robbed millions from Dad; I highly doubt Cole lost that much!” Avery retorted, her own resolve hardening as she stalked toward the bathroom. Her world spun, uncertainty gnawing at her, and she needed to splash some cold water on her face to regain her composure. “It’s not like my uncle gave me any of that money!” Cassandra wailed, her voice trembling. “And besides, they want the program! Didn’t you tell people you gave it to Cole? You did it to mess with him, didn’t you?!” Avery gasped inwardly. She hadn’t anticipated Shaun’s relentless maneuvering—how ruthless he had become! Cole may have been a disappointment in many ways, but his blood carried the weight of the Foster name. “They’re holding him because he gambled, aren’t they? I can see it now... Someone must have approached him about the program. He bragged that he had it, used it as collateral, and now he’s trapped in their snares,” she pieced together, envisioning the downward spiral Cole must have taken. If Cole had truly claimed to possess the program, then why would anyone have supported his gambling? And if he hadn’t gambled, how could he have become ensnared in such a predicament? “Whose fault is this?” Avery mulled bitterly. “It’s his own!” Cassandra’s voice, now tinged with fury, broke through her thoughts. “So you are heartless! You did this on purpose! He treated you well when you were together! Are you really going to let his love go to waste?” “Yes, he was good to me,” Avery replied coldly as she entered the bathroom, her jaw clenched. “Yet, while he was dating me, he was cavorting with you. They’re only threatening to chop off a finger, not feed him to the sharks! Spare your tears for him, Cassandra—this isn’t the moment for such weakness!” With that, she hung up the phone, heart pounding. Less than a minute later, her phone buzzed to life again, the screen lighting up with Cole’s name. Avery tightened her grip on the phone, battling a storm of conflicting emotions before answering. “Avery! Please, save me! If you don’t, I’ll end up crippled! You never gave me the program... Why would you do this to me?” His voice was panicked and strained, emblazoned with desperation. “Why claim you had it if I never provided it to you? You brought this upon yourself, Cole Foster! I can’t rescue you!” she snapped, ready to end the call. “Avery! It’s my uncle! Uncle Elliot is behind this!” he shouted with sudden intensity. “Nobody else would have the guts to do it! Please, beg him for me! I’m begging you!” Avery stood frozen, her heart racing with the shock of his revelation. Was this whole ordeal not orchestrated by Shaun, but rather Elliot himself? Her mind raced back to the incident weeks prior when Elliot had dispatched his bodyguard to scour the edges of town, seeking answers about her abduction. Dread filled her as the pieces of a complex puzzle began to fall into place.