A Reborn Bride Pearl Emerging from Dust

Monty and the others had just settled back into their cozy living room, a mix of emotions swirling around as they plopped onto the plush, oversized armchairs.

Almost immediately, Horatio's phone buzzed, slicing through the thick air of anticipation.

Everyone's eyes shot over to Horatio, who was fumbling with his phone like it might explode any second.

"Is it your buddy?" Valerian asked, eyebrows raised. "Did he find out something?"

"Yeah," Horatio nodded, glancing at the screen before adding, "Hold on. I'll put it on speaker."

The room fell silent, a strange cocktail of excitement and dread hanging in the air.

Was Calliope really that impressive? Did she actually own that swanky club they'd been hearing whispers about? Maybe she had a whole empire out there that they knew nothing about.

Part of them hoped she did; maybe they could cash in on her success.

But another part worried that if she was that powerful, she might not share her wealth or influence. And if she was that influential, had they really underestimated her all this time?

The call connected, and Horatio's friend's voice boomed from the phone, a mix of disbelief and admiration. "Horatio, man, is your sister that amazing?

I always heard your family, the Jewells, weren't too fond of her, that you guys preferred that adopted girl. I guess that was all just talk, huh? There's no way you'd actually favor someone else over her! If she were my sister, I'd treat her like royalty, man. Heck, forget a sister'd worship her like a queen!"

Horatio's friend was gushing. "When will you introduce me? I'm thinking about partnering with one of her companies. She's a genius! You guys sure know how to keep things under wraps!"noveldrama

"What nonsense are you spouting?" Horatio frowned, clearly confused by what he was hearing.

Monty and the others exchanged tense glances, a knot of anxiety tightening in their chests.

Could it be true? Was Calliope that formidable?

No way. They all saw her as a nobody, a screw-up. There was no way they could have missed something this big, right?

Especially Zelda, who was the most skeptical. She absolutely despised Calliope, thought of her as a jinx. To her, Calliope was nothing but bad news, no matter what.

"Hey, I'm just telling it like it is," his friend replied sounding a bit taken aback. "You asked me to dig around, and I did Turns out, Calliope opened that high-end club, Pearl Tiger Club at fifteen. And she didn't stop there. She turned it into a global franchise injust a few years!

The craziest part? Regular folks can't even get in. It's all high-profile clientele. And the word is that Calliope has connections that reach far and wide. All the big shots love dining there, and many of them Powe her favors. In other words, Calliope's got a fistful of IOUS from some of the world's most powerful people!"