Chapter 364: Pathetic Threats

Just as Zachary was about to step into his car, Riley’s voice stopped him. His expression tightened, and he cursed under his breath as his patience wore thin.

‘For God’s sake, I might accidentally kill this asshole brat if he says another word to me again.’

After setting aside his anger, Zachary turned around and looked directly at Riley. His expression was calm, and there was no sign that the argument inside the house had affected him.

“Do you need something else from me?” he asked casually, his tone as flat as usual.

Riley stopped only two steps away from him. A faint smile appeared on his face as he tried to make himself look apologetic.

“Uncle, I’m sorry if I offended you inside,” he said. “But you didn’t give me a chance, and I had no choice but to reveal your secret to the family. I only did it because—”

“Get straight to the point, or I’m leaving.”

Zachary cut him off without raising his voice. He turned slightly, preparing to get back into his car as if Riley’s explanation did not matter to him.

“Wait, Uncle.”

Riley hurried forward and grabbed Zachary’s arm to stop him.

Zachary looked down at the hand holding his arm, then slowly raised his eyes to Riley’s face. The calmness in his expression disappeared, replaced by a cold warning that made Riley’s smile falter.

“Move your hand,” Zachary said quietly. “Or you’ll regret touching me.”

Riley released him at once and stepped back. He could see he had genuinely irritated his uncle. However, instead of backing away completely, he forced another anxious smile, as if he could still control the situation if he stayed patient.

“Speak,” Zachary said coldly.

Riley cleared his throat and tried to regain his confidence. “Uncle, you still haven’t answered my question. Are you going to stop the legal proceedings between Cresswell and Sterling Tech? If you are willing to stop them, then we can—”

A quiet chuckle escaped Zachary.

Riley’s words stopped immediately.

“Even if you exposed my identity as a shareholder of Cresswell, it wouldn’t change anything,” Zachary said. “Cresswell will still pursue the case, and if they have enough evidence, you’ll still end up in jail.”

Riley’s confident smile disappeared. He stared at Zachary, clearly not expecting such a direct answer.

“What?” Riley asked, his voice rising. “Uncle, do you really want to destroy me and our family business just because you’re being selfish?”

Zachary was utterly speechless. He studied Riley for a moment, his eyes holding a mix of pity and quiet mockery. Riley had clearly expected his revelation about Cresswell to frighten Zachary into backing down. Instead, Zachary remained perfectly calm, as if Riley had told him something entirely insignificant.

That reaction irritated Riley even more.

“Uncle, I know you’re angry with me because I like Sienna,” Riley’s voice becomes more desperate. “But you can’t sacrifice our family business over something like that, right?”

He swallowed and tried to soften his expression as he continued, “Please, Uncle. Think about our family. Think about my friendship with Sienna. I promise I won’t do anything to her if you stop the legal action.”

Riley’s eyes began to water as he spoke, but his words held little sincerity. He was trying to make Zachary feel guilty, as though his uncle were the unreasonable one and he was simply trying to protect everyone.

‘How foolish.’ Zachary muttered inwardly, seeing how foolish his nephew was now.

Zachary had never seen Riley as someone who lacked confidence. If anything, his nephew had always believed he could get whatever he wanted if he pushed hard enough.

But now Riley was trying to turn his own actions into Zachary’s responsibility, and he seemed completely unaware of how shameless he sounded.

“Riley.”

Zachary’s voice remained calm, but the coldness in his gaze made Riley’s expression stiffen.

“After what you did, you now want to turn the situation around and act as though you’re the victim?” Zachary asked. “You are being completely hypocritical. And you’re shameless enough to believe I should feel guilty because you created this situation yourself.”

“Damn it, Uncle!”

Riley ran a hand through his hair, his frustration becoming harder to hide. He expected Zachary to get angry, argue with him, or at least show some concern about what he had revealed to the family. Instead, Zachary had remained completely composed, and that made Riley feel as though all the control he thought he had was slipping away.

Still, Riley refused to give up.

Zachary had already gotten into the car and buckled his seat belt when Riley followed him to the side of the vehicle. He knocked on the window, refusing to leave.

“Please don’t push me into using my last card,” Riley shouted through the glass. “If you don’t stop the lawsuit, I’ll expose Sienna’s family background and let everyone know about her father.”

Zachary paused.

‘Sienna’s father?’

He had heard enough to catch the significance of those words. His expression didn’t change, but his interest immediately shifted to the threat. He knew Sienna’s father had gone missing, and he hadn’t expected Riley to bring him up.

Zachary raised one hand, signaling Logan to wait.

Then he slowly pressed the button to lower the window and turned toward Riley; he needed to hear more.

Before Zachary could ask anything, Riley leaned closer and lowered his voice.

“Well, Uncle, I’ve captured Sienna’s father,” he whispered. “If you don’t stop the lawsuit, he will appear on social media and make a statement that his daughter married you without his permission. I think the media will love that kind of story. And you know how badly Sienna would feel if something like that happened.”

Riley watched Zachary closely, waiting to see if the threat would have an effect.

Instead, Zachary simply chuckled.

“Are you finished?”

Riley stared at him in confusion.

“Uncle, did you even understand what I just said? I will expose Sienna and her family!”

“Yes, I understood you perfectly,” Zachary replied. His tone remained calm. “And if you’re finished with your pathetic threats, then we’re done here.”