“Got it. Go grab us some coffee,” Leo said while rubbing his face.
He took a deep breath and turned to his assistant. “Linda, go to Child Protective Services tomorrow and try to suppress the situation.”
Linda replied, “Alright, Mr. Sanchez. I’ll go out now.”
20
Just as Clayton entered the reception room, his phone rang. He gave Leo a nod and stepped outside to take the call.
The clerk who came in to deliver the coffee was none other than Gloria
Parker, the one who was responsible for Audrey.
Gloria watched Clayton’s retreating figure, her eyes lighting up. She mumbled to herself, “Mr. Patel’s so cool. Audrey didn’t value him and went against him. She deserves to be locked up.”
She had secretly been in love with Clayton for ages, and it burned her that Audrey had married him. She was convinced that she was a better match for him. She’d always dreamed it was her that Clayton had picked, not Audrey.
Linda Mayers got up and moved her chair back, muttering, “Yeah, he’s good–looking, but he’s kind of a jerk.”
Audrey spent a month in Ashwood, and not once had Clayton come to visit her. Valerie, though, had visited a few times.
But Valerie wasn’t there to see Audrey. She came to talk to Leo. They would always spend hours locked in Leo’s office, and Linda, being next door, overheard quite a bit of their conversation.
In Linda’s mind, Valerie was practically a master in the art of gossip.
Valerie mentioned she and Clayton grew up together. She talked about how Clayton turned down a huge deal and risked his career, just to help
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Chapter 14
her with her divorce case. Anyone who hurt Valerie, Clayton would make them pay, and Audrey was just one example.
20
Valerie even dropped that Clayton married Audrey only to shut his family up. After they got married, they split everything 50/50 and even slept in separate rooms.
Linda sneered at what Valerie said and thought, ‘No matter how much Mr. Patel favors Valerie, Audrey is still his wife. What’s Valerie got to gloat about? She’s just a single mom.’
“It depends. Mr. Patel is wholehearted to Ms. Patterson, isn’t he?” Leo said with a grin
Hearing Leo’s comment, Gloria became even bolder. “If Audrey doesn’t learn her lesson and gets sent back here again, I’ll give her the dog’s leftovers. If she refuses to eat, I’ll let her starve for three days and see if she’s still got any dignity left.”
“Gloria,” Linda whispered, intentionally moving her chair to make some
noise.
Gloria didn’t realize someone was standing in the doorway. She kept saying, “No matter how tough one is, Ashwood can make sure to make them submit. Mr. Patel doesn’t care about her, so why should we?”
“Mr. Patel, I’ve got some other business. I’ll go do the rounds,” Linda said, edging past the door and practically running.
Her job was dealing with internet–addicted teenagers. She had never even seen Audrey. She wasn’t the type to punish kids–she focused on psychological counseling, so she didn’t want to be dragged into the mess.
Clayton’s presence was like a storm cloud hanging over the room.
When Audrey told him she’d been mistreated at Ashwood, he didn’t fully believe her words. But hearing it with his own ears now, it was like someone stabbed his heart with a dull knife, over and over again.
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Gloria, meanwhile, turned around and froze when she saw the icy expression on Clayton’s face.
“Oh, Mr. Patel,” she stammered.
Clayton’s eyes were like a blade of ice, and his 6’2” frame felt like a towering mountain, radiating cold fury.
He walked up toward Gloria with slow, deliberate steps and coldly asked, “Who gave you the guts to abuse my wife?”
He slapped the coffee cup off the counter, and it shattered, spilling everywhere.
Leo jumped up in an instant. After dodging the scalding coffee, he stared at Clayton in disbelief and wondered, ‘Mr. Patel is known for being calm and mature in the industry.
‘He’s faced ruthless criminals and never lost his cool. He’s not into Valerie, and he doesn’t care about Audrey, so why the hell is he losing it now?‘
Gloria stood frozen, soaked in coffee, with coffee stains all over her face. She turned to Leo, silently pleading for help.
If looks could kill, she would have been slaughtered by Clayton’s glare a hundred times over.
Clayton’s hand clenched around his briefcase, his veins standing out, his gaze sharp as an eagle’s as he fixed his eyes on Gloria and Leo, watching for their reactions.
Hearing his wife being humiliated, belittled, and despised, he couldn’t help but get furious. He thought to himself, ‘Everything Audrey has suffered is because of me. No wonder she wants a divorce.’
Gloria stammered, trying to explain, “Mr. Patel, I punished Audrey just to seek justice for Ms. Patterson. It was… Ms. Patterson’s idea.”
Clayton’s eyes narrowed with a dangerous glint, his tone as cold as ice.
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“Lying comes with consequences. Valerie has never been here.”
20
Clayton believed Valerie was a victim of violence herself, and there was no way she’d ever inflict the same pain on someone else, especially not his wife.
“M–Mr. Sanchez can vouch for me,” Gloria blurted out in panic.
Leo was deep in legal trouble and couldn’t afford to upset Clayton. Leo said, “Mr. Patel, Gloria felt sorry for Ms. Patterson, so she just punished Audrey a bit.
“If we don’t teach Audrey a lesson, she’ll just get worse. After she gets out,
who knows what she’ll do.”
The sharp crack of a slap rang through the room. Leo’s face jerked to the side, the cold, dark anger flashing in his eyes. He wiped his mouth and saw
blood.
Gloria froze with her legs trembling and could barely hold herself up.
Clayton looked at Leo with icy contempt. “Ashwood has been sued for child abuse multiple times. For Mr. Reed’s sake, I helped you many times. But now, you’ve laid a hand on my wife? Don’t expect me to be kind.”
Leo was stunned. He had never expected Clayton to hit him over Audrey.
“Mr. Patel, there must be some misunderstanding.” Leo tried to hold back his frustration, wanting to smooth things over with Clayton.
“Mr. Sanchez, I called you. I told you to take care of my wife,” Clayton cut him off, his voice like a glacier. “Physical punishment, starvation, and isolation. You promised me but didn’t take it seriously, did you?”
Leo had never backed down from a fight. But this time, not only did Audrey blackmail him for money, but he was slapped in the face by Clayton. Leo wasn’t about to take this lying down.
He shot back, “Why don’t you ask Ms. Patterson? If it wasn’t her idea, who
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would’ve touched Mrs. Patel?”
“Impossible.” Clayton immediately rejected it without a second thought.
20
Leo sneered, “Mr. Patel, you’re so caught up in that little scrape of Ms. Patterson’s that you personally put your wife in here. If you really want her to cool off, why not send her on a vacation instead?”
Gloria shakily stepped back. She had never seen Clayton this furious before, nor had she imagined Leo could look so evil.
Gloria blurted, “Mr. Patel, since you slapped Mr. Sanchez, please don’t hit me. Whether Ms. Patterson came to Ashwood and gave us orders to punish Audrey, the surveillance footage can show you the truth.”
Clayton was like a living ice sculpture, cold and unyielding. He shot a glance at Gloria, then at Leo, who looked like he was about to explode. Seeing their expressions, Clayton had an answer in his mind.
“From now on, Blackthorn Legal will no longer work with Ashwood Mental Hospital,” Clayton said in a cold tone as he turned on his heel, his vibe of fury trailing behind him.
“Mr. Sanchez, Valerie used us as her pawns,” Gloria whispered, her face pale.
She thought, ‘How could this be our fault? Clayton’s over–the–top devotion to Valerie misled us into thinking he would divorce Audrey.
‘She’s just a nobody from out of town with no background or family to back her up. We thought she was nothing. Who would’ve guessed Clayton would sever ties with Ashwood because of her?‘
Leo spat blood into the floor, sneering, “I’ve been duped by his facade. Trying to cut ties with Ashwood? I’m dragging him down with me.”
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