Chapter 321 The Cemetery, Mr. Hearst Drinking Alone
Hannah cupped her cheeks and pouted, "So, Ashley, Mr. Long's up against KM. You're tough, he's tough, but KM's legal team? They're on another level. I dug up a bunch of old cases, and anyone who went up against KM lost in the weirdest ways. It's like they have some secret sauce for winning lawsuits. It's freaky impressive."
Ashley knew deep down that if they ended up in court, it would be a brutal fight. "No matter how tough they are, we gotta stick to the law. If our evidence is solid and they can't mess with it, we've got a shot."
Hannah was seriously spooked by the giant KM, and thinking about the infamous Damian made her even more jittery. "But... I'm with you all the way! I'll be your rock!"
Ashley smiled and patted her head, "Good girl."
Five days after Robert's divorce case wrapped up, a subpoena from the prosecutor's office landed at his place, and he got busted for colluding with Alexander in some illegal smuggling scheme.
After his arrest, all his assets were frozen.
Tina, who had managed to escape to Sylvania, barely got away and kept the compensation she received.
Ashley skimmed through the news again. Still no updates on KM and Emperial Avenue Group, and Damian hadn't shown up in days. Was something up?
Feeling uneasy, Ashley hesitated for a long time before deciding to make a call.
The phone rang for almost a minute, and just when Ashley thought no one would pick up, Damian's voice finally came through, "Hello?"
Hearing his raspy voice, Ashley felt a wave of relief, like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "Robert's case is done. Today, the prosecutor's office took him away. The court said Alexander's facing a bunch of charges and will probably never see the light of day again."
Damian responded coolly, "And?"
Was he really that calm? He didn't seem to care at all.
Ashley ran her fingers through her bangs, feeling lost for words. "How's your arm?"
Damian's tone stayed flat, "Much better."
"Still having trouble sleeping?" Ashley asked.
"Yeah," Damian replied.
Ashley looked out the window, her mind blank. She struggled to find something to say, "Well..."
Damian asked, "Anything else?"
That question shattered Ashley's already strained attempt at conversation. "No, nothing else."
"Then hang up," Damian said.
The silence of the disconnected call echoed in her ears.
Ashley stared at the screen, which showed that the call had ended, feeling confused and empty.
What was going on with him?
After finishing the documents in front of her, Ashley looked up and realized it was three hours past quitting time. The office was empty; the lights in the hall were off, and only her office was still lit.
As soon as her work-focused mind stopped, Damian's cold voice echoed in her head again.
Unable to make sense of it, Ashley rubbed her sore neck, packed up her things, and was about to leave when she noticed the calendar under the roses.
The 19th.
Such a familiar date.
Suddenly, a huge realization hit her like a ton of bricks. Today... if she remembered right, it was Faye's death anniversary.
She'd been overseas for the past three years and had only visited Faye's grave once since coming back. That day, she cried at the cemetery for what felt like forever, but no amount of tears or pain could bring Faye back.
Driving to the cemetery, Ashley clutched Faye's favorite baby's breath and sunflowers tightly.
She still remembered Faye's little face lighting up as she said, "Ashley, these two flowers together mean my eyes are only for you."
'I want to be by your side forever, seeing no one else.'
If she were still alive, that smart and adorable girl, just like Damian, would be ready to get married. She'd definitely meet a guy who truly cherished her, holding her in his heart, with no room for anyone else.
Each step was like a dagger, a chill, a searing agony.
No matter how much Damian hurt Ashley, no matter how much the Hearst family humiliated her, it had nothing to do with Faye. Faye was innocent.
But this girl became the sacrifice of this tragedy.
Tears quickly blurred her vision, and Ashley could barely make it up the last few steps. Just standing on this land made her break down uncontrollably.
"Ashley, you like Damian so much, he will be moved! Don't give up."
"Damian, don't be so cold, please."
"I'm angry, I'm really angry."
"Ashley, if Damian doesn't comfort me, could you?"
When she thought of those precious moments, Faye's smiling face appeared before her eyes again, a beautiful girl with dimples and big, blinking eyes.
"What charity gala? It's just a scam to get money. I'm not going."
"Let's go! We'll throw money at them!"
Ashley was suddenly amused when she recalled some of her words, a difficult smile breaking through her tear-streaked face.
Suddenly, Ashley's steps froze.
In the moonlight, there was someone else in front of Faye's tombstone.
The Hearst family wouldn't come to mourn her this late, so she waited until dark.
In a moment, Ashley recognized the man sitting on the stone ground, holding a bottle of alcohol.
Damian's arm bandage was off, but he wasn't using that arm, resting it on his knee. His other hand held the bottle, and he sat sideways on the steps, his silhouette thin in the moonlight.
In just a few days, Ashley noticed he seemed much thinner, his jawline even more defined.
She lost the courage to move forward and wanted to retreat quietly.
"Since you're here, aren't you going to see her?" Damian sensed someone approaching and knew it was her without turning around. His posture and gaze remained unchanged, his voice hoarse and low from the alcohol. The wind blew up his bangs, revealing his forehead and eyes darker than the night, hiding emotions he rarely showed.
Ashley took a deep breath, walked over quietly, and placed the bouquet in front of the tombstone, not daring to look closely at the smiling girl in the photo.
There were four or five empty beer bottles at Damian's feet and a few unopened ones beside him. It looked like he planned to drink them all before leaving.
Ashley's eyes burned, and tears welled up. "Your arm is still not healed; you should drink less."
Her voice betrayed her tears.
Damian moved the bottles aside, revealing a spot. "Sit?"