After Gavin and his wife returned to their old house in Viento Court, the more they thought about everything, the angrier they became. With nothing to distract them, they cursed Joel’s family non-stop, scolding everyone from his parents and grandparents to his children.
They could only blame themselves for not raising Joel properly. That was why he had become so impudent—immoral and lacking respect for his older brother.
Quentin and his wife listened in silence the entire night, not daring to make a sound.
Gavin sent a message to Arthur, asking the Carter family to provide a written guarantee that the house in Viento Court would be transferred to his family—and that Joel’s family would have no claim to it.
Arthur was so furious he wanted to cut ties with Gavin on the spot. However, he held back and didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he took a screenshot of Gavin’s message and sent it to Joel to stir up more discord between the two brothers. Since Joel’s and Gavin’s families had already deleted and blocked each other’s contacts, the Carter family could say whatever they wanted without getting caught.
When Joel and his wife saw the message, they were so angry they nearly vomited blood.
They replied: [Gavin’s family has really gone too far! Auntie cannot agree to this!]
Arthur followed up with another message:
[My mother wouldn’t dare to agree...]
Then he stopped texting Joel and messaged Gavin instead:
[Joel told us that if they don’t get the house, they’ll live in our restaurant until they die. We can’t let that happen, so we’ll have to agree to his demands for now. Anyway, it’ll take at least half a year to process the new property deed.
We’ll see who ends up getting the house—you or Joel.
Just a reminder: Brandon hates Joel’s guts now. Don’t follow Joel’s example and threaten to cause trouble at the restaurant—it’ll affect our business. Brandon said that if you dare show up at the restaurant, he’ll kick your entire family out of the house.]
With that, Arthur turned off his phone.
Gavin and his wife were left extremely anxious.
Although they were living in the house rent-free, they still had to spend money on food and necessities. Plus, their two children would start school at the end of August. If they wanted to attend school in Rosemont City, they’d need financial support from the Carter family. So, they contacted Maria.
"I’m taking care of Grandpa in the hospital and I’m exhausted. I can’t make decisions about the house anyway, so you should talk to Brandon."
With that, she turned off her phone and pretended to be unreachable.
Gavin considered going to Carter’s Restaurant to confront Brandon, but he was afraid Brandon would lose his temper and throw them out.
Just when he was at his wits’ end, Gavin suddenly received a message with a phone number attached:
[You can contact a person named Andrew Murphy. He can help you. This is his phone number.]
Clinging to hope, Gavin called the number without hesitation, but no matter how many times he tried, the call wouldn’t go through.
Helpless, he finally tried calling Andrew directly.
This number was Andrew’s private line—only close contacts knew it. So when he saw Gavin’s call, he answered immediately.
When Andrew realized the caller was Claire’s eldest nephew, he was stunned for a moment. Then an idea struck him, and he smiled as he said,
"I can help you. Are you free tonight? I’ll treat you to a meal, and we can talk more then. But come alone. Don’t let anyone know about this—not even your family."
Gavin was still a little wary.
"Who are you? Why are you helping us?"
Andrew, unaware that Shane’s identity had already been exposed, didn’t see the need to discuss the situation with anyone else. He simply wanted to use the opportunity to teach the Carter family a lesson. He casually replied,
"I was once close friends with their family. We studied together for years, but after they got rich, they looked down on me. I’m not happy about that. And now, seeing how they treat you—their own family—I can’t stand it anymore. So I’ve decided to help you. If you trust me, meet me tonight. If not, forget it."
His lie struck a chord with Gavin.
Gavin felt like he’d found a kindred spirit and replied eagerly,
"I believe you. I’ll definitely be there tonight. Please don’t stand me up."
Andrew sent the time and location before hanging up.
At 7:30 p.m., Gavin arrived at the restaurant Andrew had chosen and met him in a private room.
Gavin, who never watched TV dramas, didn’t recognize Andrew. But judging by Andrew’s clothes, mannerisms, and confidence, he could tell the man was wealthy—and decided right then that he had to befriend him.
Over the next two hours, Andrew asked Gavin about Claire and the Carter family, and Gavin told him everything he knew.
At the same time, Andrew also shared several shocking revelations about the Carter family. Gavin was stunned.
His voice echoed through the private room as he cried out,
"Two years ago, the Carter family found Zilvia’s twin sister who had been separated for 18 years? And this woman Avery even got a perfect SAT score? Damn! How could they keep something this huge from us? They don’t see us as family at all!"
A few moments later, he exclaimed again,
"What? That little girl who won the talent show was adopted by the Carter family? So they’d rather adopt an illegitimate child than let our kids step into their house? How despicable!"
Shane had never told the Stevens family any of this because he had only recently become Andrew’s assistant and wasn’t familiar with the history between Andrew and the Carters. Andrew hadn’t had time to explain everything to him either, so Gavin was hearing all this for the first time.
Furious, Gavin’s face twisted in anger.
"If the Carter family doesn’t treat me like family, then I won’t show them any courtesy."
Following Andrew’s advice, Gavin logged onto Twitter and sent a private message to the notorious paparazzo, Jerry:
[I’m Zayn Carter’s eldest cousin. I know a lot of the Carter family’s secrets and can give you an exclusive. Are you interested?]
Jerry replied almost immediately:
Zayn’s drama and movie were currently airing and incredibly popular. Any news about him and his family would definitely go viral.
[Yes. I guarantee you’ll be satisfied. Can we meet in person right away?]
One man was eager to earn money; the other, to get a scoop—so they quickly agreed on a meeting spot within the next hour.
Andrew personally drove Gavin to the location. On the way, he even coached him on how to negotiate a good price for the information.
When Gavin realized how much money could be made from celebrity secrets and scandals, he was stunned.
"If I had known this stuff could make so much money, I wouldn’t have bothered with the Carter family."
The next day at noon, Jerry posted a teaser on Twitter:
[At 8 p.m. sharp tonight, there will be a live broadcast featuring an insider who will reveal exclusive secrets about a popular male celebrity. Don’t miss it.]