Pampered By My Three Brothers: The Return Of The Neglected Heiress - Chapter 18

This didn’t feel right
The next day, Haines woke up in horror as he realized he overslept!

“Ugh!” he felt his stiff neck, wincing as he realized he had fallen asleep on the desk again.

As Haines massaged his neck, he noticed his desk. The scattered papers last night were all piled neatly. This immediately put a deep frown on his face.

There was a silent rule in the house that anything in the study was meant to stay where they were. Only Butler Jen would touch these parts of the house because a simple piece of paper could put their company in a dire situation.

“Who touched these things…?” he trailed off, picking up the first files on the pile and noticed it was the most important above all the documents.

Haines checked the rest of the piles of documents, only to realize they were meticulously arranged and sorted by their importance in its entirety.

“Did Butler Jen arrange it last night?” he wondered, calming down as soon as he realized everything was in place. “He probably thinks a messy place also affects the brain.”

Haines was convinced Butler Jen came in last night or early this morning to clean up his mess. Just then, the big scarf draped over his shoulder fell to his arms. Gazing down at it, he tried to pick it up but accidentally moved the mouse.

The computer lit up at the same time he held the scarf.

“Isn’t this…?” He glanced up, remembering the scarf Penny was wearing last night. But before he could think anything further, his eyes averted to his computer monitor.

Deep lines appeared between his brows when he saw the end of the presentation. Haines didn’t finish his paper last night and despite nodding off, he knew where he left off. Thinking he accidentally opened another file, he was about to close it but then realized what this presentation was.

“Huh?”

Haines scrolled up to double-check the title. It had the same title as the issue he had been working on. However, its content drastically changed mid part of the paper. By the time he finished reading, his eyes were wide open.

“Who did this?!”

Haines jumped from his chair, seemingly unaffected by his stiff neck anymore. He hastily ran out of the study, calling Charles in the hallway as if the house was on fire.

Hearing Haines’ panic, the family who were up early in the dining was startled upon hearing the urgent voice. Soon, Haines arrived in the dining area with an aghast look on his face.

“Uncle Haines, are you alright?” Atlas raised his concern immediately the second he saw the look on Haines’s face.

“Did you have a nightmare, Uncle? I also had a nightmare about an ugly-looking fat frog,” Slater also spoke, seeing that Haines’s hair was all over the place. He could also see the dried drool on the side of his uncle’s mouth.

Nina, on the other hand, pursed her lips as if she already figured out what was going on.

“Haines, what’s wrong?” Allison asked worriedly. “Are you hurt anywhere?”

Charles slowly stood from his seat and approached Haines. “Haines, what’s going on? You’re making us very nervous.”

“Charles, did you… did you touch the papers last night?” Haines asked in horror, staring at Charles’s wide eyes.

“No?” Charles was confused. “I left you last night, didn’t I?”

“Are you sure?!” the urgency in Haines’s voice was clearer this time.

If there were problems that needed fixing, Haines usually does the job. However, Charles was just as equally reliable as the head of the company. Charles was the only person Haines could think of to resolve the issue.

“Yes.” Charles couldn’t help but feel uneasy now. “Why? Did something happen?”

“Yes!” Haines exclaimed, forgetting Charles’s family except Penny was already having breakfast. “Charles, did you know if there’s anyone who came into the study last night?”

Charles quietly studied Haines’s countenance and decided, “Let’s discuss it somewhere else.”

Only then did Haines realize the rest of the family were staring at him with worry. Seeing their faces was akin to being splashed with cold water, sobering him up in an instant.

“Right. I’m sorry.” Haines cleared his throat and then looked at Charles sternly. “You got to see this, Charles.”

“Okay.” Charles cast Allison a short smile and excused himself.

But before the two men could leave, Nina spoke meekly.

“Uncle Haines, I don’t know if this is important, but I think I saw Penny come into the study last night.”

“What!?” Haines furrowed his brows while the rest of the brothers frowned. Allison’s expression screamed with worry, thinking Penny might’ve done something terrible.

The study areas of Charles and Haines were both important places in the house. Only Allison and Butler Jen could come in and out of those areas because it would be problematic if something went missing or was broken in it.

“Nina, are you sure?” Charles walked closer to the table, gazing down at his daughter solemnly. “Are you sure it’s Penny? Or were you probably mistaken because you were still sleepy?”

Nina pursed her lips, discerning the look of concern and solemnness on Charles’s face. “Well… if I think about it, if she’s wearing printed duck pajamas, I think it’s Penny.”

“What did she do this time?!” Slater grumbled, assuming Penny troubled Haines just because their uncle was very kind to her. “She’s the only one who wears printed animal pajamas! It must be her!”

Hugo quietly assessed Haines and sighed. “Uncle, I’m sure Penny was just curious and accidentally did something in the study.”

“Hugo, Penny might be pitiful, but that girl is also cunning,” Atlas remarked with displeasure. “Dad, what did she do this time? Are we going to starve now?”

Hearing Atlas’s remarks immediately brought panic to Slater’s heart.

“Dad! If the problem she caused this time is so great, then you should punish her severely! Send her back to the people who raised her since it seemed she liked it there!”

“Boys, why don’t you finish your meal first?” Allison tried to soothe her children before casting the two grown men a look.

She specifically told them not to discuss work in front of the children! But here they were, shouting and panicking, affecting the kids!

“Charles, Haines, why don’t you talk privately, hmm?” Allison’s tone was laced with displeasure. “It’s still morning and…”

Just then, Penny’s drowsy voice caressed everyone’s ears.

“Good morning.” Penny was rubbing her eyes, still feeling a little sleepy, and her arms aching. If not for her rumbling stomach, she would’ve slept more.

Sensing the stuffy atmosphere in the dining area, Penny darted her eyes to everyone. Allison and Charles looked at her with conflicted worry, the boys with displeasure, Nina with slight satisfaction, and then Haines with shock.

This didn’t feel right.

Penny panicked. Did they find out about the last bag of chocolate she ate last night?!