On the yacht, Valerie and Frankie talked about a few things while Max, who was acting as the skipper, drove the yacht farther into the sea.
"I think this should be far enough," Max said as he entered the cabin and approached the ladies.
Frankie squinted her eyes, suspicious of him but she kept her thoughts to herself and looked away.
"Please be careful, Miss." She said, and Valerie nodded, though not knowing if she was saying that because the operation was dangerous or because of Maximus' presence.
"I understand." Valerie said. "Were the reporters in place?"
"Yes, Miss."
Max let them talk and went to sit behind Valerie, observing them. His eyes on them were a bit uncomfortable but Valerie ignored it and kept talking.
"You'll be returning to the country on your own so be careful." She said to Frankie.
"Don't worry. I can handle it." Frankie boasted and Valerie nodded.
"Oh so capable," Max suddenly exclaimed, and they turned to him. "How is someone who doesn't even know when an intruder enters her master's room, able to handle any assassination directed at her?"
"I don't know how you were able to get past me but it's not going to repeat itself." Frankie claimed but Max grinned, mocking her.
"Of course, it won't. Do you know why?" He leaned forward and said, "Your master and I are going to be living together from now on."
Frankie's eyes widened and she sharply turned to Valerie who sighed.
"Miss, is this true?" She asked and Valerie's eyes glowed in annoyance, causing Frankie to flinch. "Pardon my manners." She immediately apologized, bowing her head and gritting her teeth.
"Frankie, there is always a price to pay for revenge." Valerie said and whispered, "You still want to get revenge for Madam Nazar, don't you?"
Frankie's eyes widened and she clenched her fists. She wanted revenge. She wanted it so bad that she could do anything, but that did not include throwing her mistress into the lion's den.
"Yes, but..." She shut her eyes.
Madam Nazar was Frankie's adoptive mother. She worked in the Ross Mansion since Valerie was still a baby. She was among the few who held compassion for the little girl who was being mistreated by her uncle's family.
But since she was simply a gardener, she did not have much power to help the little girl, much less disclose the happenings of the mansion, as they were bound by a contract to keep whatever they saw in the mansion a secret.
She prayed for Valerie to be liberated and was glad when Valerie finally stood up for herself and went to the police.
They were not particularly close but Valerie could tell she held sincerity in her heart and did not shut her out the way she shut out the rest of the world.
Then, when she was 11, Madam Nazar brought back a 10-year-old girl whose parents died in a plane crash, along with many others.
Frankie was a very easygoing person, that is before her parents died, and thus she inclined herself and refused to interact with the rest of the world.
In a way, Frankie and Valerie held similar characters but unlike Valerie who had never received proper warmth, Frankie had a lot of it in her heart and had even been taken in by another who had a lot of warmth.
Frankie approached Valerie but Valerie shut her out, knowing with her appearance, the little bit of warmth she got occasionally from Madam Nazar would completely vanish and be given to this girl. But to her surprise, it didn't disappear.
And just when Valerie was opening up to Madam Nazar and Frankie, Madam Nazar was killed. And it was done by Lucas, Lucy's brother who was now dead.
He wanted to play with the gun in his father's study and ended up taking a life with it. Bernard did not reprimand his son, Victoria blamed Madam Nazar for being in the scene when her son was playing and the little bastard said she deserved it for being so old and disgusting.
This lit a flame of revenge in Valerie's heart but she did not cry over Madam Nazar's death. Instead, she told Frankie, who was deep in despair and tears, to take caution, train herself into a strong person and in the future, when they were stronger, they would take revenge for madam Nazar.
This family had to go down.
From that moment, Frankie started following Valerie, believing that with her, she would be able to put an end to the secret tyranny of the people who currently ruled the Ross family.
Lucas was now out of the picture but the others were still alive, those who so heartlessly blamed the poor old lady who had been a victim of their son's careless and dangerous play.
Frankie looked up at Valerie and said,
"I understand that you used to know him but he's no longer the same person, Miss." Frankie said and glanced over her shoulder, only to meet the death glare Max was giving her and she immediately looked away, scared. "He holds a lot of resentment from that time. He might hurt you."
"I don't mind." Valerie said, stunning Frankie. "Even if it was just a misunderstanding, it was because of me that he got hurt. In this quest for revenge, I can sacrifice anything. So this little..." She glanced over Frankie's shoulder to look at Max and whispered, "...I can endure."
Max and Valerie locked gaze and though Max didn't know what they were talking about, he had a feeling that he finally had this little missy to himself, and from that moment on, he could do as he pleased.
He would make her scream and cry by all means, even if it meant breaking her bones and putting them back together. He grinned. This would be fun.
Max handed Valerie the contract and she scanned through it, seeing most of it as both of them cooperating. She would use his power and resources, and he would use her body, do whatever he liked but not kill her.
It sounded a bit sketchy but she didn't mind. What was a little torture that she couldn't endure?
She flipped the pages and what she saw next made her frown. She looked up at him, looking displeased, and asked,
"What is this? I don't remember talking about this." She said, dropping the contract on the table. Max picked it up, scanned it with his eyes, and said in all confidence,
"You do know that once you've succeeded in getting your revenge, your entire being will belong to me, right?" He asked with a sneaky grin and she pursed her lips. "And since that's the case, what difference would it make if you end up giving me 5% of your shares? I mean, I do deserve it, don't you think?"