Chapter 302 Trust Me
Damian zipped over like a bullet and was right in front of her. "What's your deal now?"
Ashley was holding a pan, plating the second pancake, which looked halfway decent. "Nothing."
Damian gave her a once-over to make sure she wasn't hurt. "If nothing's wrong, why'd you yell?"
Ashley put down the pan, poured some oil, and glared at him. "Can't I just yell?"
Damian felt like some magic had calmed him down. He held back and said, "Sure, yell all you want, as loud as you want."
Ashley did it on purpose.
From her spot, she could see Damian's profile as he leaned against the bookshelf reading. He was still, his gaze serious, and he actually seemed into it.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got, and she yelled out of frustration.
After getting his attention, seeing his expression made her feel a bit better.
What could she do to him?
She couldn't outsmart him, couldn't beat him. No matter how hard she tried or how many people she enlisted, she couldn't win against Damian.
She could only act like an angry cat, showing what she thought were sharp claws, scratching and biting him. And she wasn't even a fierce big cat, but a small one with a huge disparity in strength.
To Damian, all her resistance probably seemed like a tantrum, right?
Damian saw her eyes go blank, not knowing where her mind had wandered off to. He waved his hand in front of her. "Ashley? Cooking."
Ashley snapped back to reality, pouting. "What's the rush? Isn't there one already? Eat it if you want."
Damian looked at the pitiful pancake on the plate, with ragged edges and holes in the middle. He couldn't even tell if it was cooked properly, let alone how it tasted. "You took this long to make one? And it's this ugly?"
Ashley retorted confidently, "There were two, but I threw one away."
Damian glanced at the trash can, and Ashley kicked the lid shut.
"I told you it's my first time making it. Can't I fail?" Ashley said.
What else could he say?
"Fine." Damian picked up a fork and took a small piece. The hot pancake smelled quite good. He blew on it and put it in his mouth, ready to spit it out, but he was surprised by the soft texture and the fragrance of green onions.
Ashley asked, "How is it?"
She didn't expect him to say anything nice.
"Not bad." With that, Damian took the plate and fork away.
"If you take the plate, where do I put my pancake?" Ashley said.
"Aren't there over a hundred plates in the cabinet?" Damian said.
Ashley wasn't sure about the taste, but she wasn't as picky as Damian.
She made another plate of pancakes, poured two glasses of milk, and they ended up having breakfast for dinner.
This was probably the most makeshift meal Damian had ever had.
Ashley didn't fuss with him. "If you don't like it, you don't have to eat."
She tried to move the plate in front of her.
Damian unceremoniously placed it in the middle. "I didn't say I didn't like it, did I?"
He really knew how to give himself an out.
Ashley muttered to herself as she took a bite, her eyes lighting up.
She was surprised to find she had a knack for making pancakes; despite not having eggs, they were quite fluffy.
They ate in silence and soon finished the meal.
Ashley took the dishes to the kitchen, not to wash them but to avoid Damian and think about some things.
After a few minutes of contemplation, Ashley made up her mind. Meanwhile, Damian, full from the meal, was chilling on the sofa, reading again. A shadow blocked the light from the floor lamp, casting a shadow over his book. Against the light, he saw Ashley's cold face. "What's up?"
Ashley stared at the light, lost in the darkness. "You sent people to find my brother. What do you want from him?"
Damian placed the book on his lap and leaned back on the sofa. "How long have you been holding onto this question?"
Since the first time she met him, probably?
Ashley continued, "Since you found my brother, you must have seen how my family is living now. Even if we were at fault, isn't the current punishment enough? What more do you want?"
Damian's face, bathed in warm white light, gradually turned cold. His innate aura always showed unintentionally. "Is that what you think of me?"
"Why pretend with me, Mr. Hearst?" Ashley said.
She had seen and experienced what kind of person he was over the years. Couldn't they be honest with each other? Why did he wear a mask of hypocrisy?
Damian said somewhat helplessly, "I found him to investigate some things, not to make things difficult for your brother."
Ashley smiled. "Investigate what? The embezzlement of KM funds you mentioned? That money is gone. Whether you believe it or not, it's all gone."
Damian didn't care about the money anymore, but Ashley's hollow sarcasm pierced his heart. It felt like a hand was reaching through his flesh, gripping his heart tightly. "I won't make things difficult for him, but the truth must come out."
After all that, he still wanted revenge.
"If you want a result, come at me. Leave my family alone," Ashley said.
Damian closed his eyes and calmed himself for a moment, suppressing his once-bloodthirsty temper deep inside. When he opened his eyes again, he was very calm. "Ashley, I don't want to hurt your family. This time, you can believe me."
Even if she didn't believe him before, he wouldn't do it in the future.
Ashley stared at him in a daze.
She had a thousand examples to refute him, a thousand words to retort, and she could even use her not-so-great strength to fight him. But for some reason, when she looked deeply into his eyes, she felt inexplicably drawn in.
There was a bottomless vortex there, hypnotizing her into a trance.
She wanted to believe him this time. "If my brother really took that money, our family wouldn't be in this state. I know you're angry, but I believe my brother wouldn't do that."
Damian looked at her quietly, knowing she wasn't as agitated now. "Ashley, if you want your family to return to the country, the best and only way is to clear up the past and let them come back with their heads held high."
Ashley was stunned, her eyes wide open.
Did she hear wrong?
Did Damian mean he wanted to help her?
From her astonishment, Damian felt a sense of satisfaction. So this was what she looked like when she was happy to the point of being dumbfounded. "Didn't understand? As a lawyer, you know better than I do what financial fraud means. Even if you secretly bring them back, they can't escape legal punishment. So, the only way is to find the truth."
After the initial joy, Ashley's heart fell from the soft clouds to the hard rocks. "What if... what if the truth is as you say?"
Even though she didn't want to believe it, when the overwhelmingly negative news bombarded them, neither her father nor Dorian clarified. Did that count as tacit admission?
Did they really, intentionally or unintentionally, commit a great crime?
Ashley's confidence wavered.
Damian said calmly and confidently, "Then we'll deal with it with money."
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