Chapter 284
“One line,” Audrey said.
“Two lines,” Lena announced.
“Two lines,” Emilia agreed.
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What? Am I blind, or are both of them seeing things? Are they just making up lines out of thin air?‘ Audrey thought. She rubbed her eyes hard and looked at the display window again. “It’s clearly just one line. I’m not wrong.”
“It’s obviously two lines,” Lena and Emilia said in unison, contradicting her.
Lena pointed at the blank area of the display window. “There’s clearly another line right here.“”
Audrey looked at her with exasperation, then turned to Emilia, who nodded seriously with complete conviction.
‘This is impossible,‘ Audrey thought. ‘Have I bought some kind of magical pregnancy test that only they could read? Why are they the only two who could see this mysterious second line? They have to be messing with me.‘
Audrey stood up and, after a moment’s thought, tossed the pregnancy test into the trash. “Stop lying to me.”
“Audrey!” Lena stamped her foot in frustration. If she wasn’t so grossed out by the idea, she would have reached into the trash to fish it back out.
Lena could use that pregnancy test to get a reward from Yann. He was way more generous than Her brothers. That could have been a whole year’s allowance right there. Now the evidence was gone.
Seeing Audrey about to leave, Lena hurried to follow her, but when she reached the bathroom door, she turned back around.
‘Mom said I can’t use sneaky tactics to grab things, but when opportunity knocks, I should take it. A whole year’s allowance is sitting right there in the trash can, practically within reach,‘ she thought.
Lena pulled some clean tissues from her bag, planning to fish out the pregnancy test.
“Lena,” Audrey called from outside.
“Coming!” Lena replied, but the small tissue packet slipped from her hand and fell into the trash can, pushing the pregnancy test that had been on top all the way to the bottom.
‘Ugh!‘ Lena thought. She was so frustrated. She waved her hands frantically in the air and stormed off in anger. ‘Whatever, if the money isn’t meant me, I’ll just forget about it,‘ she thought bitterly.
Audrey waited for her at the front door and warned both her and Emilia that neither of them was allowed to mention what had just happened, or else… She made a throat–slitting gesture.
Emilia nodded with a smile. Lena pouted, caught Audrey’s warning look, and nodded reluctantly.
The three of them headed to the hospital to visit the bodyguard who had taken Randy’s place in the car.
Because they had made thorough preparations beforehand, the bodyguard wasn’t injured, but the car had been completely crushed. As a safety precaution, the doctors recommended he stay overnight for observation and be discharged the next day.
As they were leaving, they passed Clayton, who was there handling discharge paperwork.
Clayton watched Audrey surrounded by her companions, his eyes filled with both regret and pain.
Just a few months ago, Audrey had been his wife, caring for him when he was sick, doing his laundry, and cooking his meals.
Chapter 284
She was still the Audrey Clayton knew, but now, she carried herself with an air of nobility, every gesture radiating the confidence of someone in power. ‘If she were still my wife now, how wonderful that would be,‘ he thought.
Someone squeezed his fingers hard, snapping him back to reality, Clayton looked down at Luna beside him.
“Clay, it’s your turn,” Luna said, pointing ahead.
Clayton realized everyone in front of him had already finished their paperwork. He hurried to hand over his documents. The other party was covering all the hospital costs, but he still needed to handle the insurance paperwork himself.
After completing the process, they transferred another 70 thousand dollars to Clayton as compensation for medical expenses.
“What would you like to eat? I will take you somewhere good,” Clayton said.
“Can we go to KFC?” Luna grabbed two of Clayton’s fingers and swung them happily. “Audrey took me there once. It was really, really delicious.”
For a five–year–old who barely got enough to eat, KFC was an absolute feast, especially when she’d been hungry and away from home. She might not remember it forever, but she’d definitely remember it for at least a year.
Hearing Audrey’s name made Clayton’s eyes well up again. He tilted his head back, not wanting the child to see his defeated and remorseful expression.
“If you’re not moving, get out of the way. Don’t block traffic,” someone said, bumping into Clayton and glaring at him as they walked past.
“Luna!” Clayton heard the familiar voice and quickly pulled Luna behind him, staring in disbelief at the person who had bumped into him. “Weren’t you supposed to be in custody?”
He never would have expected to see Valerie at the hospital. He never would have expected to see Valerie at the hospital.
Valerie was equally shocked and pointed at Clayton, her mouth hanging open for several moments. ‘How did he end up looking like this?‘ she thought. He wasn’t just thin–his complexion was terrible, stubble was sprouting on his chin, and dark circles ringed his eyes.
Clayton looked nothing like the distinguished lawyer he used to be. If he wasn’t holding Luna’s hand, Valerie wouldn’t have recognized him at all.
It’s just donating bone marrow, not donating his life,‘ Valerie thought. “How did you end up looking like such a mess?” She looked him up and down, making no effort to hide her disgust, then reached for Luna. “Come here. Come to Mommy.”
Clayton pulled Luna back with him. “You’re sick. Don’t touch her.”
“I’m her mother.” Valerie threatened. “Give her to me, or I’ll start streaming that you’re abducting my child.”
Luna hid behind Clayton and gripped his clothes nervously. The deep–seated fear that rose from within made her speechless whenever she saw Valerie.
“You still haven’t answered my question,” Clayton said angrily. “What are you doing here?”
Valerie noticed people around them starting to stare and didn’t want to make a scene, mainly because it would be embarrassing. “I haven’t eaten yet. Take me to get some food and I’ll explain everything slowly.”
Clayton waved his hand to indicate she could follow but needed to keep her distance, then protectively guided Luna toward the exit. As the three of them passed through the parking lot, they spotted Audrey talking with two men nearby.
Valerie spat in disgust. “All that jewelry and fancy clothes, but she only got them by sleeping around with men. Mixing with so many people, she’ll catch something nasty sooner or later.”
Clayton looked at her like he was seeing a stranger. No, more like he was finally seeing her true nature for the first time. His expression shifted from shock and disbelief to understanding, then regret, and finally settled into disgust and self–reproach.
“Before you curse other people, maybe think about how you got your own disease,” Clayton said coldly.
“Clayton, what’s that supposed to mean?” Valerie snapped.
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Clayton didn’t want her to make a scene and draw Audrey’s attention. He honestly couldn’t face Audrey right now. He was afraid he wouldn’t be able to control his emotions and might try to claim her for himself.
As soon as Audrey stepped outside, she ran into Hardy and Edward. Thank goodness Edward was there, or she would have doubted her ability to communicate with Hardy, who barely spoke.
Edward explained that Hardy had an old wrist injury from his competitive gaming days, and like most esports players, he dealt with occupational injuries. They were here for physical therapy.
While they were talking, Audrey suddenly heard Valerie’s voice. She turned to look but didn’t see anyorie. She must have been mistaken. Valerie should still be in custody.
After they said their goodbyes, Audrey got back in the car and asked Emilia, “Has there been a verdict in Valerie’s case? The one about using kids for extortion?”
“I haven’t been following it. Let me check,” Emilia murmured.
After Clayton dragged Valerie a good distance away, she yanked her hand free from his grip.
His middle finger had been injured multiple times and never healed properly, leaving it slightly deformed and weak. Valerie easily broke free from his grip.
“What’s wrong? Are you afraid Audrey will see you looking like this pathetic mess? The great lawyer Clayton, who always thought Audrey wasn’t good enough for you–what happened? Feeling insecure now?” Valerie taunted.
AD
