Chapter 85
Professor, Audrey dressed up especially for tonight’s event. We’ve both missed you so much,” said Clayton.
Clayton looked at Audrey with gentle eyes, hinting for her to play along. “You’ll be staying at Ironhaven for a bit, right? Once the banquet’s over, I’ll bring her to visit you.”
Everyone in the private room was either a respected guest of the professor or a beloved student. Audrey was only here because of him. Clayton didn’t believe she’d dare throw a tantrum–unless she wanted to be kicked out.
“Oh? Is that so?” Samson looked at Audrey with a kind smile.
Everyone else turned to look at her, too.
Yann took a sip of red wine, the air around him turning cold and distant.
“Mr. William, I do admire you very much, but I only got to attend tonight’s banquet thanks to Mr. Gibson’s invitation,” Audrey said with a soft smile, her tone polite and humble.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of nervousness or timidity one might expect from a small–town girl stepping into a grand occasion. Instead, she carried a composed stubbornness–neither arrogant nor servile.
Clayton had hoped Audrey would speak well of him in front of the professor, but she completely removed herself from the situation.
“Audrey!” he snapped, a hint of reproach in his voice. “This isn’t the time for your tantrums.”
He then turned to Samson with a forced smile. “Professor, it’s Audrey’s first time at an event like this. She doesn’t know the rules–I’ll teach her when we get home.”
“Mr. Patel can twist the truth in front of Mr. William–imagine how lawless he must be outside,” Audrey said flatly, offering him no face.
Clayton wanted to cover her mouth. Unfortunately, he was too far away. Before he could reach her, Audrey had already come clean to Samson. “Mr. William, Clayton, and I are already divorced. But he keeps bothering me.”
“Audrey, don’t make things up!” Clayton shouted, veins popping on his forehead, temples throbbing.
He thought, ‘If Audrey cares so much about me, then why is she acting like a completely different person now, not sparing a single thought for what I’m going through? She’s my wife! Well, ex–wife. But still, we were once husband and wife.
“For her to deny me like this in front of the professor and my senior brother–it’s more devastating than hearing a stranger call me a scumbag. How can she kick me while I’m already down?‘.
“What exactly did I make up? Are we not divorced? Or is it that you haven’t been harassing me?” Audrey raised her chin slightly, staring him down with cold eyes.
Clayton trembled with rage, his lips quivering. All the blood in his body seemed to rush to his swollen fingers, his arm going numb with pain. He bit down hard on the tip of his tongue, trying to restrain himself from going berserk.
He forced a smile at Samson. “Professor, there’s just a little misunderstanding between Audrey and me. She’s just headstrong and speaks rashly–please don’t take it to heart.”
Samson gently rubbed the teacup in his hand, his gaze casually sweeping over to Yann beside Audrey.
Then he looked back at Clayton. “Are you two really divorced?”
Clayton swallowed nervously. When he noticed the professor glancing at his hand, he quickly hid it behind his back.
“They are,” Malcolm interjected, “Last month, Clayton had Audrey forcibly sent to Ashwood Mental Hospital, confiscated her phone, and cut off all her
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Chapter 85
communication with the outside world. She was locked up for an entire month.”
A low buzz of murmurs rippled through the room–it was full of lawyers from Samson Legal.
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They thought, ‘Even an average person wouldn’t do something like that–let alone a lawyer. Didn’t he know unlawful detention is a crime? And he did that to his own wife! What was he thinking? How did he dare?‘
The condemning stares hit Clayton like blades, stabbing into him from all sides. He felt like he was sitting on pins and needles. A cold sweat broke out across his back, soaking the collar of his shirt in seconds.
He wanted to deny it, but with Malcolm describing everything in such detail–and Audrey standing right there he had no way out. But he couldn’t afford to be abandoned by everyone.
Samson’s opinion of him would have a huge impact on his reputation and standing in the industry.
“Professor, I…” he started, wanting to explain himself.
He had seen Audrey stab Vally with a knife—that was why, in a moment of panic, he made the wrong decision.
As for what happened at Ashwood Mental Hospital–that wasn’t his intention. It was Leo who misunderstood his instructions, and Audrey suffered for it.
He was wrong, but not unforgivably wrong.
Yann set his wine glass down on the coffee table with a crisp sound. The chatter stopped instantly.
The words stuck in Clayton’s throat.
Audrey could sense the anger radiating off Yann.
After they reunited, he only asked her, “You got divorced?“–never questioned her reasons. So she never explained. She had insisted on marrying Clayton. The consequences–good or bad–were hers to bear.
She could face them, she could handle them. She didn’t want Yann worrying about her when he already had so much on his plate.
Audrey wanted to comfort him, but with so many people around, she couldn’t afford to act too familiar. So she subtly shifted her foot, her heel brushing against Yann’s shoe.
Yann leaned slightly toward her, spreading his long legs and quietly drawing her foot fully into his space.
Samson’s expression turned cold as he set down his teacup. “Samson Legal will never tolerate such a disgraceful incident.”
Clayton felt extremely embarrassed. The cold sweat on his temples was like someone had splashed water on his face.
Samson looked at Malcolm and said, “Notify every law firm across the country. Conduct thorough investigations. Anyone found guilty of such conduct- fire them for life, no exceptions. Hold them accountable, too.”
“Yes, sir,” Malcolm responded, then turned to the lawyers present and added, “Anyone who studied under my father should hold themselves to even higher standards. Uphold the ethics of this profession. If you violate public morality, you’re out of the fold.”
Malcolm wasn’t a judge–he couldn’t sentence Clayton. But his words had cut off Clayton’s future in the legal field. Clayton had become a cautionary tale, someone the entire industry would soon treat with disdain.
Only when he was driven out of the banquet hall did he come back to his senses. The heat of late summer still lingered, but he felt like he was standing in a frozen tundra. The chill seeped out from his bones.
He thought, ‘How could Audrey have the guts? All she suffered at Ashwood Mental Hospital was a little humiliation–but I just lost my entire career.
His phone kept vibrating nonstop in his pocket. Clayton pulled it out and answered feebly, “Hello?”
“Clayton, you need to come back right now–something terrible’s happened!” Valerie was sobbing, and her voice only made his headache worse. He
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even felt a hint of disgust.
“No–it’s my mom… Mom! Listen to me, please. I’m begging you” The phone slipped from his hand and fell to the ground, Valerie’s desperate crying still coming through the speaker.
Clayton reached to rub his temples and accidentally touched his injured finger. The pain made him curse out loud.
Clayton drove home. As soon as he stepped out of the elevator, he saw several people standing outside his apartment door, whispering and pointing. When they saw him, they all shot him a look of disgust and quickly scattered.
Inside, he could vaguely hear Cheryl’s yelling and Valerie’s crying.
It sounded like the fight had been going on for a while–long enough to attract the neighbors.
Clayton pulled out his keys and unlocked the door. The moment he walked in, Cheryl slapped him across the face. “You beast! I’ll beat you to death!”
Valerie jumped in front of him, taking the slap for him. “Mom! Clayton has work tomorrow. How’s he supposed to show up with a red handprint on his face?”
“He had the nerve to do something so disgusting, and now he’s afraid to be seen?” Cheryl ripped off her slipper and started hitting Clayton with it.
He stepped down the stairs and took a deep breath. “Did something happen to Luna?”
