Letting out a sigh, Ashton wrapped his arm around me. “There’s a long and painful process before justice is served. This is the same case for me, let alone the common folks. How many of them do you think can survive the ordeals? Compared to offending the Ziegler family and bringing troubles on themselves, they see hiding away and living a stable life as a blessing.”
I said nothing as despondency crept in. In other words, John went to all the trouble to dig up dirt on the Ziegler family only to end up embarrassing them to a small degree.
As the intensive care unit was not open to visitors all the time, we could only stand outside and see Jackson through the window.
Lying on the bed, Jackson was covered in bandages. Only the ventilator could prove that he was still alive.
He could still scold me the day before, but he could not even open his eyes at this moment. The thought brought a lump to my throat and tears to my eyes. Not daring to cry, I covered my mouth and nose for fear of disturbing Jackson.
Ashton patted me on the shoulder to comfort me. “I’ve arranged for some people to renovate Jackson’s clinic and to appease the patients who caused troubles. After he wakes up, he can start over. This is an unfortunate accident. Since you’ve had depression before and are now pregnant, you can’t get too sad, or you may easily lose control of your emotions. How can you take care of your kids then?”
Hearing this, I could only compose myself and try not to dwell in the frustration.
However, there was still a pressing matter to be dealt with. While keeping my eyes on Jackson, I asked Ashton in a hushed voice, “Are you going to attend the dinner tonight?”
“Yes,” Ashton replied as he put more weight on my shoulder. “You’ll use the identity as Mrs. Fuller for the last time to put on an act with me.”
If we wanted the divorce agreement to be convincing later on, we did need to show some signs of discord prior to our so-called divorce. Hence, I responded in silent agreement.
After standing outside the ICU for one hour, Ashton got Stella to come over and asked her to give him a first-hand report on everything concerning Jackson. Then, he left with me as my legs were severely swollen due to the pregnancy.
After walking out of the elevator, we bumped into Lydia, who came with her kid. She merely took a glance at us and entered the elevator without even sparing us another glance.
The wait was torment. I had been waiting for the news of Jackson getting better the entire day, but I only received a text from Stella that read The doctor said that Mr. Kane still needs to be under observation.
Worried, I was out of spirits when we left for the dinner. As Ashton helped me walk outside, my mind was preoccupied, so I was stunned for a second when I saw John.
“Why are you here?” Judging from his formal attire, he seemed to be going with us.
“Why can’t I be here?” John did an annoying shimmy and asserted proudly, “After all, I’m the only one who’s embarrassed the Ziegler family big time in the past ten years. Besides, I’m representing Uncle Louis and the Stovall family today. Alright. Let’s get in the car.”
Then, he went up to me and helped me to get in the car of the Stovall family, whereas Ashton got in the Fullers’ car that was parked behind us.
We soon departed.
Glancing at the car behind me from the rearview mirror, I tilted my head and asked John, “What are the two of you up to?”
I was there when Cameron and Zachary came the day before, but I did not hear them say that Ezra invited the Stovall family. Moreover, John had sent the internet into a frenzy with Mitchell’s scandals in the morning and had become a thorn in the side of the Ziegler family. His presence at the dinner would only irk them.
Looking at me, John flashed me a fake grin. “Nothing. I just want to meet the Ziegler family, so Ashton brings me along. That’s it.”
The expression on his face sent chills down my spine. Knowing that I could not find out the truth from him, I stopped pressing him for an answer.
