?<strong>Chapter 610:</strong>


    Elyse drove to the headquarters of the Lloyd Group. With Lanny behind bars, the authorities had shuttered the business.


    By the time Elyse arrived, the employees had already stripped the ce of anything valuable, leaving behind only the husk of a once-thrivingpany.


    Papers littered the floor, and chairs were haphazardly strewn throughout the deserted office space.


    Surveying the chaos, Elyse felt a pang of sadness. “My father built thispany from the ground up,” she said, her voice tinged with mncholy.


    “It flourished in its early days, poised to make a mark in Watscar. I never imagined it woulde to this after falling into Lanny’s hands.”


    Morgan, who had apanied Elyse, offered her analysis with a calm demeanor.


    “Lanny was never cut out for this. Hecked any real business sense. When he took over, he relied solely on those capable employees. It didn’t take long for everyone here to see him for what he was, and many talented individuals quit one after another.”


    Elyse nodded, her resolve firming. “I need to visit the CEO’s office. That’s where my father spent his days.”


    Morgan responded with a nod of her own. “I’ll head to the archives. Maybe I can find the original meeting reports.” Those reports had all been signed by Rickey, and Morgan clung to the hope of uncovering anything rted to him as a memento.


    Elyse offered no reply, her thoughts too scattered to focus on Morgan’s suggestion. She doubted that much of anything remained in the ravagedpany, especially records from so long ago.


    Arriving at the CEO’s office, Elyse found it as barren as she had anticipated, devoid of surprises. She stepped on a sheet of paper lying on the floor, and it emitted a sharp squeak.


    Only one desk remained in the office, crafted from solid wood, this hefty desk bore the marks of many years, rendering it virtually worthless. Thus, departing employees had left it behind.


    Elyse circled the desk several times. Recalling her childhood visits to the office, she remembered always seeing this desk. Indeed, it had been acquired by Rickey.


    Leaning her hands on its surface, her mind went nk, her gaze hollow. How she wished her dad were still alive. She deeply missed him.


    Overwhelmed by a surge of emotions, Elyse crouched down awkwardly, sping her hands around her knees as she fought to steady the swirling thoughts and feelings inside her.


    After ten minutes, Elyse managed to quell her grief, and her attention was drawn to the three drawers on each side of the desk.


    In a burst of emotional release, she yanked open the drawers. Upon opening the second drawer on the right, she inadvertently noticed a small hiddenpartment at the top.


    Doubting her eyes, she leaned in for a closer look and indeed, there it was. She reached in, her fingers brushing against a small notebook tucked away inside. This find startled her.


    Suppressing her excitement, she quietly withdrew the notebook. The notebook was old, its pages yellowed and brittle, almost disintegrating upon touch.


    Elyse opened it with utmost care. The contents nearly knocked the wind out of her—these were the musings of her dad, penned in his diary. Realizing she had stumbled upon her father’s personal writings, a wave of embarrassment washed over her.


    Yet, her curiosity about her father’s past, the memories he had left behind, beckoned strongly. After a moment of internal struggle, Elyse lifted her gaze and whispered into the stillness, “I’m sorry, Dad. I need to understand you better. Please don’t hold this against me.”


    With that, she plunged into the diary. It took her an hour to absorb the words of her father. He possessed a mind of remarkable sensitivity, viewing the world through a lens ofpassion.


    To him, no one was inherently evil. Circumstances shaped actions.


    The diary was less of a daily ount and more a collection of Rickey’s unrealized dreams. Elyse’s heart ached reading about his regrets, particrly about Morgan, someone he had hoped to experience more of life with, yet never did.


    Among the pages, Elyse discovered records of unique, unfulfilled desires that seemed almost alive.


    Reflective, she quietly closed the notebook. A resolve settled within her—to make her father’s dreams a reality. Slipping the notebook into her purse, Elyse headed to the archives.


    There, she found Morgan in tears on the floor, likely disheartened by an unsessful search. Though Elyse longed to offerfort, she hesitated, then decided against it. Instead, she resolved to be there for Morgan silently.


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