Chapter 209
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“Ms. Henderson, I just ran into that idiot again,” Paige huffed, rushing up to Audrey and fanning herself with her hand. “He’s the one who made me late last time, and now he drove me in circles to charge me extra.”
Audrey asked, “Was your ride–hail driver named Clayton Patel?”
Paige’s jaw nearly dropped. She scrambled to check the app and confirmed it. She thought, ‘Same name? Or just a coincidence?”
“But isn’t he a lawyer?” Paige frowned.
Audrey sneered but didn’t explain. She turned to Paige. “Just order another ride. I’ll reimburse you.”
“I’m reporting him.” Then, Paige ordered a new ride and immediately called the platform to complain.
Clayton, who had been trailing them at a distance, received the platform’s inquiry. He admitted his mistake and agreed to refund the extra fare.
By the time Audrey arrived at her destination, the platform had already processed the complaint–refunding part of Paige’s fare and slapping Clayton with a 30–dollar penalty.
“That bastard. I’m blasting his practices online,” Paige grumbled, following Audrey into Washburn Tower.
StrideVestment occupied the eighth floor.
Emilia stood up in surprise when she saw them. “You didn’t have to come in person. I could’ve picked up the documents.”
“We were nearby anyway.” Audrey motioned for Paige to hand over the facial mask test reports to Emilia.
Emilia passed them to her team for risk assessment.
From their conversation, Paige pieced it together. Audrey was planning to launch her skincare line.
Paige’s heart raced with excitement. She thought, ‘Audrey promised me the project lead role if I performed well. And judging by their discussion, it seems
ambitious.
“I want to incorporate natural ingredients. Please analyze the market share of existing masks first, and then we’ll finalize positioning,” Audrey said, rising
to leave.
Emilia walked her out. “Personally, I swear by alternative medicine, but the field is full of quacks. With real expertise behind it, I think this could carve out
a niche.”
Emilia walked Audrey to the elevator and glanced at Paige.
“Ms. Henderson, I’ll go ahead and order a ride.” Paige knew when to make herself scarce and headed downstairs first.
Once she was gone, Emilia spoke, “Malcolm asked me to confirm. Do you intend to send Clayton to jail?”
The lawsuit against Clayton for illegally confining his ex–wife was airtight, with both physical evidence and witness testimony guaranteeing a win. The question wasn’t about the outcome but Audrey’s intent–prison time or financial compensation.
Audrey didn’t need compensation, and Clayton had none to give.
Emilia framed it solely as a choice about jail because she already knew the answer. But Malcolm had insisted, so she did.
Audrey didn’t hesitate. “Everyone pays for their mistakes.”
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Emilia nodded, understanding. When the elevator returned, she pressed the button and held the door for Audrey. “I’ll call you once the market research is ready.”
“Sounds good,” Audrey smiled. The doors closed.
As Emilia turned to leave, a hand clamped onto her shoulder.
“Clayton?” She whirled around, first checking that the elevator was gone before facing him. “How did you even find this place?”
“StrideVestment?” Clayton glared at the directory by the entrance and smirked. “I thought you would join another law firm after leaving Blackthorn Legal. Instead, you’re playing venture capitalist?”
Emilia shrugged off his grip and stepped back warily.
Clayton flexed his badly damaged, nearly useless fingers, his voice icy. “You took my father’s case while secretly helping Audrey send me to prison.
“Emilia, I brought you into my firm. I wanted you to run the branch office. And this is how you repay me? Conspiring with Audrey to ruin me!”
The alert in Emilia’s eyes faded into calm resolve. There was no point hiding it. “You did recruit me first, but was it really for my skills? Or just to share the
risk?”
Clayton froze, caught off guard by her questions.
Emilia pressed on. “When the firm was failing, I stuck by you and shared the losses. After you married Audrey and the practice revived, I became just an employee.”
Clayton had no rebuttal.
“I gained valuable experience and connections at the firm. That’s why I didn’t charge you a penny for handling your father’s case. We’re square now.” With that, Emilia turned to leave.
Clayton caught up and blocked her path. “Who owns StrideVestment? What’s Audrey’s relationship with the boss?”
“None of your business.” Emilia tried to push him away.
“Is the owner of StrideVestment the man funding Audrey?” Clayton’s eyes bulged as he grabbed Emilia’s shoulders. “Audrey got you this job, right? You knew she was cheating all along. You-”
Emilia broke free and slapped him.
Clayton froze, staring at his former right–hand woman in disbelief. The woman who had once weathered storms with him had just struck him over Audrey.
Emilia’s chest heaved with anger. “Wake up, Clayton! You threw Audrey away for Valerie. These consequences? En
self–inflicted.”
Her voice turned cold. “Audrey is a good girl, but you were blind before. She’ll keep rising until she’s out of your league. If you don’t change, you’ll spend the rest of your life drowning in bitter envy.”
Emilia’s outburst voice drew attention from the office.
Colleagues streamed out to see what was happening. “Emilia, are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Emilia replied calmly, walking back inside with the group.
Clayton tried to follow but was blocked by several men.
As Emilia stepped inside, she turned to him one last time. “Your time is running out. Stop wasting energy on denial. Take responsibility for what you’ve done.”
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Chapter 209
Someone had already called security, and soon, several guards led Clayton out of the building.
Dazed and defeated, Clayton stumped in his car. Emilia’s words still echoed in his mind.
He knew Audrey was different. She radiated confidence–an aura of quiet strength in her every glance, every movement.
Clayton’s heart twisted with regret, but beneath it festered a refusal to let her go.
He thought, ‘Audrey loved me once. She endured my family’s cruelty because of me. How dare she move on so easily?”
Clayton slammed the steering wheel, triggering a sharp honk. He thought, ‘No. There’s still a chance. Audrey said she won’t be a mistress. I need to divorce Valerie. If I end things cleanly, I can win Audrey back.“‘
When Clayton looked up, his eyes burned with obsession. He told himself in his mind, ‘I’ll remarry Audrey. Those people who laughed at me will choke on their mockery.‘
