A Woman Worth Billions Dated the Wrong Brother novel Chapter 346

Amber POV

The screen changed again.

A younger face appeared.

Franklin.

I blinked.

No.

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Absolutely not.

Mr. Stait continued.

“This participant has only recently turned eighteen.”

“We have very little information about him, but intelligence suggests that he possesses extraordinary analytical abilities.”

The screen displayed his name beneath the picture.

Franklin Owen, heir to the Owen family.

“He has already been categorized as a genius.”

I immediately raised my hand.

Mr. Stait looked genuinely confused.

“Yes, Amber?”

“I have a question.”

The entire auditorium turned toward me.

“Is this even allowed?”

Mr. Stait frowned.

“What do you mean?”

I pointed at the screen.

“Franklin Owen is my daughter Iris’s boyfriend-or, technically, her not-boyfriend boyfriend-and if I’m not mistaken, he’s turning eighteen today.”

The room erupted into laughter.

I crossed my arms.

“Seriously, wasn’t there a rule about participants having to be at least eighteen years old?”

“There is,” Mr. Stait replied, trying not to laugh.

“Then are we seriously recruiting people on their eighteenth birthday now?”

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Jasmine nearly choked beside me.

Daniel covered his face, laughing.

Mr. Stait adjusted his glasses.

“Mr. Owen meets the minimum age requirement as of today.”

I shook my head.

“That’s insane.”

“It is technically legal.”

I sighed dramatically.

“Wonderful. The military is now stealing students directly from high school.”

The laughter only grew louder.

“Also,” I added, pointing at the picture, “I was the one who trained him.”

The room fell silent for a moment.

“He goes to the school.”

Mr. Stait stared at me for several seconds before laughing into the microphone.

“Of course you trained him.”

The auditorium exploded.

He pointed at me dramatically.

“Amber, could you please stop training our adversaries?”

I raised both hands in surrender.

“In my defense, I didn’t know Sum was recruiting high-school heirs on their birthdays.”

Jasmine leaned toward me and whispered, “Your family is terrifying.”

“You’re just realizing that now?”

Daniel laughed.

“Wait, your daughter is dating the heir to the Owen family, your husband is competing for Sum, Alexander Vincent is competing for Starlite, and somehow you’re all in the same tournament?”

I thought about it for a moment.

“When you say it like that, it sounds like a reality show.”

Noah, who had been silent the entire time, finally spoke.

“A very expensive reality show.”

The entire auditorium burst into laughter once again.

Just as the laughter in the auditorium began to die down, Mr. Stait raised a hand and everyone’s attention

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immediately returned to the stage.

Before we continue, there’s one more thing you should know.”

The giant map of the island reappeared behind him.

“We’ve decided to do something differently.”

The room immediately grew quiet.

Mr. Stait pointed at the four teams displayed on the screen.

“Most countries are following the traditional strategy. Their four guides will remain at their respective command centers while the rest of their teams operate on the ground.”

He paused and looked directly at me.

“River City will not.”

I narrowed my eyes.

That sentence never led to anything good.

“The other three guides will deploy with their teams on the island.”

A wave of whispers spread through the auditorium.

Daniel turned toward me.

“Wait, then who’s staying behind?”

Mr. Stait smiled.

“Amber.”

Every head in the room turned in my direction.

Jasmine blinked.

“So we’re losing our guide?”

“Not exactly,” Mr. Stait replied.

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He switched to another image, showing the command center connected to four separate communication channels.

“Amber will be the only guide operating from headquarters.”

The auditorium exploded into murmurs.

“She will feed information to her own team, but also to the other three guides on the island.”

Noah frowned.

“Wouldn’t that put her in charge of the entire operation?”

Mr. Stait nodded without hesitation.

“Yes.”

The room fell silent.

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I slowly raised my hand.

Question.”

Mr. Stait sighed, already looking exhausted.

“Go ahead, Amber.”

I pointed at the map.

“Let me see if I understand this correctly.”

He nodded.

“I’ll be feeding information to my own team, while simultaneously feeding information to the other three guides?

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“Correct.”

“So, I’ll be responsible for my team, but also partially responsible for every other team on the island?”

“Also correct.”

I stared at him for several seconds.

“You’re putting the pregnant woman in charge of sixteen people?”

The entire auditorium burst into laughter.

Mr. Stait didn’t even look embarrassed.

“Essentially, yes.”

I crossed my arms.

“And if one of the teams ignores my instructions?”

“Then they’ll probably lose.”

Daniel leaned toward me.

“No pressure.”

“You’re not helping.”

Mr. Stait continued his explanation.

“The reason we’re doing this is simple.”

The map zoomed in, showing dozens of movement paths crossing the island.

“Having more guides on the ground will create confusion for the other countries.”

Jasmine tilted her head.

“Won’t they notice that Amber isn’t there?”

Mr. Stait smiled.

“No.”

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“Why not?”

Because there is no written rule stating that guides must remain in the command center.”

The room became silent again.

“Every country has been assigned its own operations room. No one outside River City will know how we’re distributing information.”

Several people exchanged impressed looks.

Daniel raised an eyebrow.

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“That’s actually brilliant.”

Noah nodded.

“We’ll look unpredictable.”

Mr. Stait pointed at me again.

“Everything will pass through Amber.”

I leaned back in my chair.

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“Fantastic. My husband lied to me, my daughter’s almost-boyfriend was recruited on his eighteenth birthday, and now I’m apparently running a military operation.”

Jasmine laughed.

“You forgot the twins.”

“Right. I’m running a military operation while pregnant with twins.”

“Much better.”

The auditorium erupted into laughter once more.

Mr. Stait waited for everyone to calm down before speaking again.

“There’s one final thing.”

The screen changed, displaying the flags of the eight participating countries.

“Most countries are offering rewards to their winning teams.”

He began reading from the list.

“Cash bonuses.”

“Military promotions.”

“Scholarships.”

“Government contracts.”

The room buzzed with excitement.

Then Mr. Stait smiled.

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“River City has decided to offer something else.”

The image zoomed in on the island.

“If we win, the sixteen of you will each receive land rights on the island.”

The entire auditorium froze.

Daniel was the first to react.

“Wait.”

Jasmine blinked.

“Actual land?”

Mr. Stait nodded.

“Equal shares.”

Noah crossed his arms.

“You’re serious.”

“Completely serious.”

The room exploded into noise.

People stood up from their seats, talking excitedly among themselves.

I looked at Jasmine.

“Well.”

She grinned.

“I suddenly care a lot more about this competition.”

Daniel laughed.

“You own half a city. Why do you care about more land?”

I shrugged.

“Because if I win, Jason will never hear the end of it.”

That earned another wave of laughter.

Mr. Stait raised his microphone one final time.

“Then I suggest all sixteen of you start getting along.”

He pointed at the island behind him.

“Because from this moment on, it is in everyone’s best interest to win.”

And, judging by the expressions around me, everyone in the room had just become a lot more motivated.

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Mosquitos

Amber POV

The auditorium had finally emptied, and for the first time since arriving at the base, I found myself alone in one of the hallways.

Well, alone except for the dozens of soldiers running around and the fact that I was apparently responsible for an entire military operation.

I pulled out my phone and called home.

Alice answered on the second ring.

“Mommy!”

I smiled immediately.

“Hi, princess.”

“Mommy, Daddy left!”

I blinked.

“Really?”

“Yes! He left with the president and a handsome man.

I covered my mouth to stop myself from laughing.

“A handsome man?”

“Very handsome.”

“Did Daddy say where he was going?”

There was silence on the other side.

Then Alice whispered dramatically, “He told us not to tell you that he left.”

I burst out laughing.

“Did he now?”

“Yes.”

“Well, thank you for betraying your father for me.”

Alice giggled.

“I love you, Mommy.”

“I love you too, sweetheart.”

“Can you put me on speaker?” I asked.

A few seconds later, chaos erupted through the phone.

“Mom!”

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“Amber!”

Teacher!”

“Mommy!”

I smiled as all the voices mixed together. Alex, Rose, Iris, even little noises in the background.

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They were all together.

They were safe.

“Okay, everyone quiet for a second.”

That bought me approximately two seconds of silence.

“Iris, are you there?”

“Hello, Amber.”

I smiled.

“Do you know where your boyfriend is?”

“He is not my boyfriend.”

I leaned against the wall.

“Interesting.”

“Because I didn’t say anyone’s name.”

There was complete silence.

On the other side of the line, I could practically hear Iris realizing her mistake.

“Amber-”

“Then how did you know who I was talking about?”

Alex started laughing loudly in the background.

“Mom got you!”

“I hate all of you,” Iris muttered.

“Anyway,” I continued, “Franklin Owen is apparently representing Sum in the military game.”

“What?”

That answer came so quickly that I almost laughed again.

“You didn’t know?”

“No!”

“Apparently, your not-boyfriend boyfriend was recruited.”

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“He’s not my boyfriend!”

Alice shouted into the phone, “I think he’s your boyfriend!”

“I’M HANGING UP.”

The entire room on my end erupted into laughter.

Before Iris could actually disconnect the call, someone tapped my shoulder.

Jasmine.

“We’re boarding the jet.”

I nodded.

“One minute.”

Alice’s voice immediately returned.

“Mommy?”

“Yes?”

“You have to win.”

I smiled.

“That’s a lot of pressure.”

“You promised.”

“I didn’t promise anything.”

“Promise now.”

I laughed softly.

“Fine. I’ll do my best.”

“No.”

I could practically see her pouting.

“You have to win.”

I closed my eyes for a moment.

“Okay, princess. I’ll win.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

“Love you, Mommy.”

“I love all of you.”

I hung up and slipped the phone back into my pocket.

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For some reason, the promise felt heavier than any military mission.

The military jet was already waiting for us on the runway.

The moment we boarded, Mr. Stait stood up from his seat and looked directly at me.

“Amber, planning is yours.”

I blinked.

“You’re just giving me control?”

He shrugged.

“You’re the strategist.”

Daniel laughed from across the cabin.

“Poor decision.”

“Terrible decision,” Jasmine agreed.

Mr. Stait ignored them and sat down.

Wonderful.

I opened the files spread across the table and began reviewing every participant.

Alexander Vincent’s name immediately caught my attention.

I frowned.

“He isn’t here for the competition.”

The entire cabin fell silent.

Emory looked up.

“What do you mean?”

I placed Alexander’s file in the middle of the table.

“Alexander Vincent doesn’t do anything without a reason.”

“So?”

“So he’s here for something.”

Jasmine crossed her arms.

“Or someone.”

I nodded.

“Exactly.”

The room became quiet.

Daniel leaned forward.

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“You think he’s here because of you?”

think Alexander wants something on that island.”

Emory frowned.

“Or he heard that you were participating.”

I sighed.

“That’s not impossible either.”

Emory thought for a moment before speaking.