Chapter 34
Chapter 34
Lillian hoard Clayton come home in the middle of the night and hurriedly threw on a coat as she walked out.
Before she could say anything, Clayton got straight to the point. “Mom, give me back the bank card I gave you.”
Lillian froze fer a moment, then her expression turned cold. “Did Audrey tell you to come ask for it? She thill has the nerve to want your bank card?
“if she apologizes with the right attitude this weekend, maybe I’ll consider it. But right now? Absolutely not.
Clayton rubbed his face and sounded exhausted, “Mom, my law firm’s opening a new branch. The cash flow’s a bit tight.”
“is the firm getting dragged down by that Ashwood Mental Hospital mess?” Lillian’s eyes were full of irritation, and her tone was just as nasty. “That whole thing started with Audrey. Have her make a public statement saying she chose to go there herself.
“It’s not like she has family or friends–her reputation means nothing. But you’re different. Your firm hurs tons of clients, and your father and brother hold important positions. None of your can afford this scandal. You need to handle it fast.”
Clayton was already frustrated, and Lillian’s constant nagging only made it worse.
Audrey was the victim. She would never agree to lie to cover for the firm
Seeing that he didn’t want to say more–and not wanting to wake her husband who had just fallen asleep–Lillian reluctantly took out the bank card and handed it to Clayton.
She remarked, “If you’re expanding the firm, I won’t stop you. But don’t let Audrey touch a cent of the money. She’s got nothing that’s what makes her depend on you. This money is like a chain. It keeps her tied to you.”
She started to lecture him again, but Clayton had already taken the bank card and turned to leave.
Riley ran out just in time to see Clayton’s car pulling away. “Uncle Clayton already left? I still had something to tell him.”
Lillian replied, “He’s bringing Audrey over this weekend to apologize. You can talk to him then. Your grandpa’s been really busy lately. He just went to
bed. Don’t wake him.”
Riley pulled Lillian into her room and said, “Grandma, Audrey’s been tutoring my classmates. Some of them even won first prizes, and some saw a big
boost in their grades.
“My mom wants to send me to a private high school, but I need better scores. I want Audrey to tutor me.”
“Since when does Audrey know how to tutor?” Lillian asked in disbelief
She thought, ‘She only got that government job back then because of her pretty face and shady tactics. Riley’s too naive–I can’t let Audrey be a bad
influence on her
“Don’t listen to her nonsense. She’s just trying to make herself look good because she’s scared Clayton will dump her,” Lillian remarked.
“It’s true, Grandma. Even that kid who always ranked dead last went up by more than thirty points” Riley clung to her hand.
She added, “When she shows up to apologize to me this weekend, you’ll play good cop and play bad cop. She slapped me before. You can say if she helps with my grades, my parents will forgive her
Lidian still didn’t buy it. But then she thought Audrey was coming this weekend to apologize anyway, if she could give Audrey a hard time first and then boss her a little carrot, that wasn’t a bad deal.
“Fine. I’ll tell her to tutor you when she comes.” Lian replied,
With that promise secured, Riley returned to her room happily. The moment she lay back on her bed, she opened her group chat and started texting her
1/3
Chapter 34
Friends.
Riley: [My aunt–in–law’s coming over this weekend to tutor me.]
Someone replied: Wall, is it the same teacher who’s been tutoring Elise and Jessica? That’s really your aunt–in–law?)
Riley: Yeah. They had to pull strings just to get her help. I’m like them. I turned her down several times–Aunt Audrey insisted on tutoring me.1
Another one of her friends typed back: [Riley, my mom bought me two sets of skincare products. I’ll bring you one this weekend.
Riley’s classmates clearly wanted tutoring too, and naturally, they started buttering her up. Riley’s ego swelled with satisfaction. She turned and snapped a picture of the skincare products on her desk.
Riley attached a photo and sent a message: [I’m using La Mer right now, I can’t get used to anything else.
Someone texted: [Oh my goodness, La Mer? That stuff costs more than a thousand dollars a set. We could never afford that]
The group chat lit up with another wave of flattery. Riley was smiling so hard her face started to hurt before she finally sent a message, like she was tossing out a favor.
Riley: [Aunt Audrey’s tutoring me either way. One kid or four doesn’t make a difference. I’ll text you guys when she gets here. You can join.]
Another classmate typed: [Riley, you’re the best.]
Satisfied, Riley put her phone down and pulled the covers over herself before falling asleep
Meanwhile, Audrey had just gotten home. She watched the video Calvin had given her. The more she watched, the more she suspected that Luna wasn’t really Valerie’s biological daughter.
Valerie wasn’t just rough with Luna. The look in her eyes was pure disgust.
Audrey
rey was growing more and more certain that something was off. She thought about how Luna seemed to end up sick and in the hospital all the time, and instead of getting her help right away, Valerie always went running to Clayton first.
In the apartment next door, Calvin made a call. “Sir, I’ve sent you the video.”
“Leak Valerie’s current situation to her ex–husband,” came the low, icy voice on the other end.
“Yes, sir,” Calvin answered promptly.
The line went quiet. The man didn’t hang up. Calvin held his breath and stayed on, not daring to end the call himself.
Aber a long pause, the men on the other end finally asked, “Is she sad?”
“No. Ms. Henderson seems like she’s already moved on. It’s Clayton who can’t let go.” Calvin paused for a beat. “Do you want me to teach him a lesson?”
wet the man replied.
“Not yel.”
Calvin understood right away. The man didn’t want to come down on Clayton too hard too soon. If Audrey ended up feeling sorry for Clayton and took him back, the two years the man had spent waiting would’ve been for nothing.
The room the man was in remained dark, the only light coming from the giant screen in front of him, casting a dim glow across his face.
On the screen, Audrey landed a solid kick to Valerie’s shoulder–she didn’t hold back. The second kick landed squarely on Clayton, just as hard.
The man picked up the remote, rewound the clip, and hit play again, watching Audrey’s kicks on repeat.
Chapter 34
His fingers tapped lightly on the armrest of the couch, and the corner of his mouth curled into a soft, Indulgent andia.
The weekend came in a blink. Audrey stepped out to take out the trash, only to find Clayton standing at the door, just about to knock.
She froze. “Did you sign the divorce papers? Then let’s go to the courthouse on Monday.”
Clayton pulled out his bank card. “This is my payroll account, I want you to keep it from now on. Can we stop fighting and just go back to how things used to be?”
Audrey glanced at the bank card in his hand. She knew he wasn’t done talking.
Seeing she didn’t immediately shut him down, Clayton pressed on, “Come back to Patel Manor with me. Riley was out of line for showing up at your door and provoking you.
“But she’s still just a kid. Let’s go back and clear things up with Wyatt and Alexa. I promise I won’t let you get mistreated.”
Audrey thought, ‘Clayton really knows how to play the give–and–take game. He hands me his bank card one second, then expects me to show up at Patel Manor and apologize the next.”
Clayton continued, “I already gave my mom my word. Just do it for me
Audrey cut in, shoving the bank card back into his hand, “Clayton, your word doesn’t mean a damn thing”
His expression darkened. He thought, I handed her my bank card, swallowed my pride, promised to protect her going forward–and that’s still not enough? What does she want, an apology from my mother?”
Clayton then said, “What happened last night was my fault. I jumped to conclusions without getting the full picture. But seriously, why didn’t you just tell me what happened?”
Clayton insisted on slipping the bank card into Audrey’s pocket. “Vally was just trying to help patch things up between us. Yeah, she went too far, but she moant well”
AD
