Hope Crawls Through Ruins by Kain Rwan Vale 150

If this had happened before, Briana would have been so happy to hear those words. 

But now, it just felt ironic. 

When she craved his love the most, he held back, pulled away, and acted cold. 

Now that she didn’t care anymore, now that she’d finally let go, he was suddenly all cager to hand it over, like she was still waiting for it. 

Briana thought, ‘Why bother? 

‘Why do people always take things for granted until they’re gone?‘ 

Half an hour later, the police left. 

Ten minutes after that, the department staff left as well. 

Shepard’s gaze locked onto Janet. He asked, “Are you going to come clean and turn yourself in, or-” His words trailed off, heavy with implication. 

His aura was so intimidating. He didn’t need to raise his voice, but people just wanted to obey. 

Janet had never met someone with that kind of authority before. Her knees nearly buckled, and she had the urge to fall to the ground right then and there. 

“I… I…” she stuttered, her voice trembling. 

Her gaze kept flickering toward Sophia. 

Janet stammered, “I… I just thought those paintings… they shouldn’t be shown. They’re indecent, so I… I…” 

She was so flustered that her words were a mess, her voice shaking. 

In the end, she couldn’t even finish her sentence. 

She was so terrified; she was practically on her knees. 

If Sophia hadn’t been glaring daggers at her the whole time, she would’ve confessed everything. 

Janet had thought this was easy cash: just throw a tantrum and get paid. 

She never imagined it would be this hard. 

Suddenly, the sound of knocking echoed through the room. 

Briana’s assistant stepped inside, cradling Briana’s painting in both hands as if it were a priceless treasure. 

The assistant said, “Ms. Lane, I’ve been trying to restore this painting, but it’s impossible. The paint is smeared 

15:19 Mon, Jan 5 

Chapter 150 

all over, a swirl of colors. It’s destroyed.” 

Briana stood up and took Divine Muse into her hands. 

She didn’t say anything, simply letting her fingertips glide softly across the painting’s surface. 

After a long pause, she finally sighed. 

56 velichats 

The assistant said, “What are we supposed to do now? You’ve spent days working on this painting, it was so close to being finished, and now it’s all ruined.” 

“What choice do I have? Guess I’ll just have to paint it all over again,” Briana replied, her voice flat. 

It sucked, but there was nothing else she could do. She would just have to start from scratch. 

But even if she painted it again, it just wouldn’t be the same. 

No two paintings were ever truly identical. 

Briana’s heart ached as she carefully smoothed out every edge of the paper. Then she said, “Frame it and hang it in my studio.” 

“Yes, Ms. Lane,” the assistant replied. 

Briana added, “And one more thing: don’t mention any of this to Leonard.” 

“Okay,” the assistant replied. 

Briana didn’t want Leonard to get angry or get mixed up in all this drama. 

The assistant walked out, carrying the painting. 

Briana couldn’t bear to look away from the painting, the pain written all over her face. Shepard saw it all. 

His voice dropped, cold and sharp, as he demanded, “Who did this?” 

No one said a word. 

He fixed his gaze on Janet and asked, “Was it you?” 

This time, Janet finally broke down. She crumpled to the floor with a loud thud. She stammered, “I… I was put up to it. It was all her!” 

Janet jabbed a finger at Sophia and said, “She told me to come here and stir up trouble at the gallery, said she’d pay me 30 thousand if I pulled it off. I’m just an ordinary person. I don’t know anything about this stuff. 

“When I heard I could make that kind of money just by making a scene, I jumped at it! 

“Is that painting worth a lot? I don’t know anything about art. All I know is, she made me do it!” 

Sophia was so furious that her face was practically contorted. 

15:19 Mon, Jan 5 

Chapter 150 

She thought, ‘How could I have picked such a moron? 

‘Shepard barely had to say anything before she confessed it all! 

Bavoucher 

Sophia shot back, “Expensive? Yeah right. It’s not like Briana’s some famous artist or anything. Her paintings are worth a couple of hundred bucks, tops.” 

Shepard’s eyes locked onto Sophia, cold and menacing. He demanded, “Say that again.” 

Sophia wanted to mouth off, but with Shepard staring her down like that, the words just died in her throa 

Shepard said, “Briana’s paintings are priceless. Even if you handed over the entire Lane Group, it wouldn’t be enough to pay for what you’ve destroyed.” 

He paused, then threw in, “Not to mention, the Lane Group isn’t even yours to give.” 

Edward and Diana were just about to step inside when they caught Shepard’s words. 

Edward’s face instantly darkened. 

Shepard had always stayed out of the Lane family’s affairs. 

That was why Edward had been able to manage the Lane Group with peace of mind. 

But if Shepard ever got involved, no matter how skilled Edward was, he’d be no match for Shepard. 

Keeping his cool, Edward put on a smile and walked in. 

Edward greeted, “All here, I see.” His eyes landed on Janet and asked, “So, what’s this about? Who is she?” 

Shepard jerked his chin toward Sophia and said, “Ask your daughter.” 

Edward turned to Sophia and demanded, “Sophia, why don’t you tell your dad what happened?” 

Edward already knew exactly what was going on. 

He and Sophia had plotted this move together. 

The plan was to use Janet to make a scene, then get Briana’s gallery shut down for “displaying indecent art.” 

That 

way, the gallery would be forced to close and couldn’t operate normally. 

Edward had already pulled all the right strings. There was no way he’d let the gallery reopen anytime soon. 

He’d keep it closed for as long as he could. 

Then they’d launch an online smear campaign, spreading rumors and wrecking the gallery’s reputation. 

By the time the gallery finally reopened, business would tank, and the crowds would disappear. 

It would never be the same again. 

2000 

Chapter 150 

If Briana couldn’t even keep a gallery afloat, how could she ever hope to run Dreamscape Corporation? 

Edward had covered all his bases, making sure every move was calculated. 

But for all his careful planning. Edward never expected Shepard to step in. 

Shepard, the husband who’d always acted like Briana was invisible, now, with the whole divorce mess blowing up, was suddenly showing concern for her. 

Seeing this, Edward wasn’t so sure of himself anymore. 

Edward and Sophia locked eyes for a few seconds. 

Sophia burst into tears. She choked out, “Dad, Mom! Briana hit me. Look at my face. She slapped me twice without even thinking. You two have never laid a hand on me, but now she’s treating me like this. 

Diana gently stroked her face, her voice full of concern. She exclaimed, “Oh wow, you really do have marks 

left.” 

Edward scolded, “Briana, you shouldn’t have hit Sophia. If you had something to say, you could’ve just talked it through.” 

Diana chimed in, “Exactly. Isn’t this just straight–up bullying? Just because Shepard’s got your back doesn’t mean you can throw your weight around.” 

Briana kept a straight face. 

She called them out, not bothering to play along. She snapped, “Are you done? Or do you still want to keep pretending? Just so you know, you didn’t get what you wanted. You blew it. Now get ready to deal with what’s coming.” 

Edward stammered, “W–What do you mean? What kind of consequences?” 

Briana gave a faint smile and said, “Uncle Edward, what do you think? Shepard just said that even if you handed over the whole Lane Group, it still wouldn’t be enough to make up for what you did to my painting.” 

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Chapter 150 

If this had happened before, Briana would have been so happy to hear those words. 

But now, it just felt ironic. 

When she craved his love the most, he held back, pulled away, and acted cold. 

55 vouchers o 

Now that she didn’t care anymore, now that she’d finally let go, he was suddenly all eager to hand it over, like she was still waiting for it. 

Briana thought, ‘Why bother? 

‘Why do people always take things for granted until they’re gone?‘ 

Half an hour later, the police left. 

Ten minutes after that, the department staff left as well. 

Shepard’s gaze locked onto Janet. He asked, “Are you going to come clean and turn yourself in, or-” His words trailed off, heavy with implication. 

His aura was so intimidating. He didn’t need to raise his voice, but people just wanted to obey. 

Janet had never met someone with that kind of authority before. Her knees nearly buckled, and she had the urge to fall to the ground right then and there. 

“I… I…” she stuttered, her voice trembling. 

Her gaze kept flickering toward Sophia. 

Janet stammered, “I… I just thought those paintings… they shouldn’t be shown. They’re indecent, so I… I…” 

She was so flustered that her words were a mess, her voice shaking. 

In the end, she couldn’t even finish her sentence. 

She was so terrified; she was practically on her knees. 

If Sophia hadn’t been glaring daggers at her the whole time, she would’ve confessed everything. 

Janet had thought this was easy cash: just throw a tantrum and get paid. 

She never imagined it would be this hard. 

Suddenly, the sound of knocking echoed through the room. 

Briana’s assistant stepped inside, cradling Briana’s painting in both hands as if it were a priceless treasure. 

The assistant said, “Ms. Lane, I’ve been trying to restore this painting, but it’s impossible. The paint is smeared 

15:20 Mon, Jan 5 

Chapter 150 

all over, a swirl of colors. It’s destroyed.” 

Briana stood up and took Divine Muse into her hands. 

She didn’t say anything, simply letting her fingertips glide softly across the painting’s surface. 

After a long pause, she finally sighed. 

65 Vouchers 

The assistant said, “What are we supposed to do now? You’ve spent days working on this painting, it was so close to being finished, and now it’s all ruined.” 

“What choice do I have? Guess I’ll just have to paint it all over again,” Briana replied, her voice flat. 

It sucked, but there was nothing else she could do. She would just have to start from scratch. 

But even if she painted it again, it just wouldn’t be the same. 

No two paintings were ever truly identical. 

Briana’s heart ached as she carefully smoothed out every edge of the paper. Then she said, “Frame it and hang it in my studio. 

“Yes, Ms. Lane,” the assistant replied. 

Briana added, “And one more thing: don’t mention any of this to Leonard.” 

“Okay,” the assistant replied. 

Briana didn’t want Leonard to get angry or get mixed up in all this drama. 

The assistant walked out, carrying the painting. 

Briana couldn’t bear to look away from the painting, the pain written all over her face. Shepard saw it all. 

His voice dropped, cold and sharp, as he demanded, “Who did this?” 

No one said a word. 

He fixed his gaze on Janet and asked, “Was it you?” 

This time, Janet finally broke down. She crumpled to the floor with a loud thud. She stammered, “I… I was put up to it. It was all her!” 

Janet jabbed a finger at Sophia and said, “She told me to come here and stir up trouble at the gallery, said she’d pay me 30 thousand if I pulled it off. I’m just an ordinary person. I don’t know anything about this stuff. 

“When I heard I could make that kind of money just by making a scene, I jumped at it! 

“Is that painting worth a lot? I don’t know anything about art. All I know is, she made me do it!” 

Sophia was so furious that her face was practically contorted. 

15:20 Mon, Jan 5 

Chapter 150 

She thought, ‘How could I have picked such a moron? 

‘Shepard barely had to say anything before she confessed it all. 

Sophia shot back, “Expensive? Yeah right. It’s not like Briana’s some famous artist or anything. Her paintings are worth a couple of hundred bucks, tops.” 

Shepard’s eyes locked onto Sophia, cold and menacing. He demanded, “Say that again.” 

Sophia wanted to mouth off, but with Shepard staring her down like that, the words just died in her thro 

Shepard said, “Briana’s paintings are priceless. Even if you handed over the entire Lane Group, it wouldn’t be enough to pay for what you’ve destroyed.” 

He paused, then threw in, “Not to mention, the Lane Group isn’t even yours to give.” 

Edward and Diana were just about to step inside when they caught Shepard’s words. 

Edward’s face instantly darkened. 

Shepard had always stayed out of the Lane family’s affairs. 

That was why Edward had been able to manage the Lane Group with peace of mind. 

But if Shepard ever got involved, no matter how skilled Edward was, he’d be no match for Shepard. 

Keeping his cool, Edward put on a smile and walked in. 

Edward greeted, “All here, I see.” His eyes landed on Janet and asked, “So, what’s this about? Who is she?” 

Shepard jerked his chin toward Sophia and said, “Ask your daughter.” 

Edward turned to Sophia and demanded, “Sophia, why don’t you tell your dad what happened?” 

Edward already knew exactly what was going on. 

He and Sophia had plotted this move together. 

The plan was to use Janet to make a scene, then get Briana’s gallery shut down for “displaying indecent art.” 

That way, the gallery would be forced to close and couldn’t operate normally. 

Edward had already pulled all the right strings. There was no way he’d let the gallery reopen anytime soon. 

He’d keep it closed for as long as he could. 

Then they’d launch an online smear campaign, spreading rumors and wrecking the gallery’s reputation. 

By the time the gallery finally reopened, business would tank, and the crowds would disappear. 

It would never be the same again. 

15:20 Mon, Jan 5 

Chapter 150 

If Briana couldn’t even keep a gallery afloat, how could she ever hope to run Dreamscape Corporation? 

Edward had covered all his bases, making sure every move was calculated. 

But for all his careful planning, Edward never expected Shepard to step in. 

Shepard, the husband who’d always acted like Briana was invisible, now, with the whole divorce mess blowing up, was suddenly showing concern for her. 

Seeing this, Edward wasn’t so sure of himself anymore. 

Edward and Sophia locked eyes for a few seconds. 

Sophia burst into tears. She choked out, “Dad, Mom! Briana hit me. Look at my face. She slapped me twice without even thinking. You two have never laid a hand on me, but now she’s treating me like this.” 

Diana gently stroked her face, her voice full of concern. She exclaimed, “Oh wow, you really do have marks left.” 

Edward scolded, “Briana, you shouldn’t have hit Sophia. If you had something to say, you could’ve just talked it through.” 

Diana chimed in, “Exactly. Isn’t this just straight–up bullying? Just because Shepard’s got your back doesn’t mean you can throw your weight around.” 

Briana kept a straight face. 

She called them out, not bothering to play along. She snapped, “Are you done? Or do you still want to keep pretending? Just so you know, you didn’t get what you wanted. You blew it. Now get ready to deal with what’s coming.” 

Edward stammered, “W–What do you mean? What kind of consequences?” 

Briana gave a faint smile and said, “Uncle Edward, what do you think? Shepard just said that even if you handed over the whole Lane Group, it still wouldn’t be enough to make up for what you did to my painting.” 

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