Chapter 109: Chapter 109

After Timothy Sinclair was rescued, he still could not calm his overwhelming grief. Read full story at novèlfire.net

The police took him back to the station for counseling, and Victoria Sinclair closely followed.

Outside the police station, they happened to encounter a group of fruit farmers who had come to report a case.

As soon as they saw Timothy Sinclair, their emotions became intense and they surrounded him, furiously demanding payment of the remaining balance.

"Timothy Sinclair, when are you going to pay us back?" the lead fruit farmer shouted, unable to contain his anger.

"Yes, we can’t even afford fertilizer anymore. How much longer are you going to delay?" others echoed, their voices harsh and jarring.

Luckily, the police were present and quickly shielded Timothy Sinclair and took him into a room.

Victoria Sinclair stood outside the door, her gaze firm, her voice cool but powerful: "Everyone, my name is Victoria Sinclair, I am Timothy Sinclair’s sister. I will pay the money my brother owes you."

The fruit farmers were stunned and looked Victoria Sinclair up and down. The lead farmer frowned and said, "It’s not a small amount that he’s owed us, over two million. You look like a fresh graduate, how will you pay?"

"Give me a week," Victoria Sinclair asserted firmly, leaving no room for doubt.

The fruit farmers instantly exploded, chattering loudly: "You’re just buying time!"

"This money has been delayed for months now, and we can’t even afford fertilizer!"

Victoria Sinclair took a business card from her bag, handed it to the lead farmer, and said with a strong tone, "No matter how much you protest, we can’t come up with the money now. In a week, bring your payment receipts to me."

With that, she turned and walked into the police station, leaving the fruit farmers to grumble among themselves and leave reluctantly.

Victoria Sinclair entered the room, sat beside Timothy Sinclair, and looked at his dejected state, her heart aching.

She asked softly, "Brother, how much do you owe in total?"

Timothy Sinclair sat with his head lowered, eyes vacant as he stared at the floor, seemingly soulless, without saying a word.

At this moment, a police officer handed her a document: "Your brother reported to us three days ago. We found that his wife, Molly, and the company driver absconded overseas with the money. Upon learning this, your brother was distraught and attempted suicide by jumping off a building."

Victoria Sinclair took the document, which detailed all the finances Timothy Sinclair reported: over three hundred thousand from selling a house, more than two million recently recovered from a client, plus all valuable family possessions such as gold jewelry and designer bags, amounting to nearly three million.

Adding to that Molly’s previous swindled debt of 1.95 million, Timothy Sinclair is now in debt by about five million.

Timothy Sinclair sat limp in the chair as if drained of all strength.

"Brother, I’ll take care of this five million," Victoria Sinclair stated calmly, as though it was a mere trifle, "It’s not much money."

Timothy Sinclair lifted his head, tears in his eyes, his voice hoarse: "This is my debt, it has nothing to do with you."

"We’re siblings," Victoria Sinclair held his hand, her gaze determined.

Timothy Sinclair was in tears, his voice trembling: "I’m your brother, not your burden. I’ve already owed you so much, this debt isn’t yours to bear."

Victoria Sinclair took a deep breath, pretending to smile lightly: "Brother, my divorce hearing is tomorrow. After the divorce, I’ll get tens of millions from Eugene, this few million is just a small matter to me, consider it a loan to help you tide over."

Timothy Sinclair looked half doubting, his eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

He opened his mouth but couldn’t say a word, only squeezing Victoria Sinclair’s hand tightly, tears silently falling.

Victoria Sinclair smiled gently, patting the back of his hand lightly: "Don’t do anything foolish again, remember you have me."

Timothy Sinclair nodded vigorously, tears streaming down uncontrollably.

Victoria Sinclair’s smile remained tender, but only she knew the bitterness in her heart.

She never intended to divide Eugene’s property; she said it only to comfort her brother, to put him at ease.

The next day, in court.

Eugene Vaughn did not attend, but the trial proceeded smoothly. The judge, a close friend of Vivian Miller’s father, paid special "attention" to the case.

After Victoria Sinclair presented her demands and submitted the evidence, the judge quickly ruled: granting the divorce.

Victoria Sinclair walked out of the court holding the judgment, standing in the sunlight, yet feeling a chill throughout her body.

Her chest felt weighed down by a heavy stone, so burdensome it was hard to breathe.

Although sad, she had always been strong.

She knew that in time, she would be able to let go of this brief and unfortunate marriage, let go of the man she loved for two years.

She didn’t go to the hospital but returned to the company instead.

Over the following days, she spent a week negotiating to sell the company and a soon-to-be successful project to the state, bringing in over ten million.

The first thing she did with the money was to settle all her brother’s debts, set aside enough for her father’s medical expenses, and even saved a sum for her nephew’s education.

She bought herself a car and deposited the remaining millions in the bank.

When making this decision, she didn’t tell anyone. The only one who knew was her friend, Angela Austin.

In a quiet little pub, Angela Austin stamped her foot angrily, tears brimming in her eyes as she looked at Victoria Sinclair, full of regret: "Why did it have to come to this? You could have taken a loan or asked your ex-husband for help, why did you have to sell the company? It’s a business you built with painstaking effort, how could you bear to let it go?"

Victoria Sinclair did not answer, only gave a bitter smile, changing the subject: "Did Harold Vaughn return the monkey?"

Angela Austin clenched her fists in anger, gritting her teeth: "He returned it, but it’s already a corpse without any research value."

Victoria Sinclair had expected this result long ago.

Without medication treatment, the virus-infected monkey was doomed. But at least, it was retrieved, the spread of the virus was stopped, and the issue was finally settled.

"So what are your plans?" Angela Austin wiped her tears and held Victoria Sinclair’s hand.

Victoria Sinclair took a sip of sweet bayberry wine and said, "Once my dad’s health improves a bit, I’ll take my parents on a trip to see the beauty of our country."

"Can you really let go of two years of feelings?" Angela Austin asked, heartbroken.

Victoria Sinclair gave a bitter smile: "Two years of living like roommates, what kind of feelings are those? It was just my one-sided longing."

Angela Austin was about to ask something else when a clamor erupted suddenly.

"Let’s toast, celebrating Eugene Vaughn’s successful divorce, and the happiness coming for Vivian!"

"After this drink, let’s go to the next place to sing and dance."

Victoria Sinclair and Angela Austin followed the sound with their eyes.

The door of the private room was pushed open, and three women walked out—Vivian Miller, Jenny Vaughn, and Victoria Sinclair’s former best friend Sarah Lowell.

The three of them paused when they saw Victoria Sinclair and her companion.

Immediately, Vivian Miller smiled and walked up to Victoria Sinclair, "Sister-in-law, what a coincidence, you’re here too?"

Sarah Lowell sarcastically added, "Vivian, she and Eugene have divorced, why do you still call her sister-in-law?"

Vivian feigned surprise and covered her mouth, "Oh right, you and Eugene are divorced, no longer related."

Angela Austin clenched her fist, so angry that her hand was trembling, glaring at them with gritted teeth.

"You..." Angela wanted to stand up, the retort already at her lips, but Victoria Sinclair gripped her arm, signaling her not to be impulsive.

Angela’s fist remained tightly clenched, her knuckles turning white from the pressure, her hand slightly trembling from anger.

Victoria turned her head, looking at Vivian, her expression calm, her tone indifferent yet imbued with undeniable coldness: "Please move away, don’t disturb us."

Although Vivian was displeased, thinking of Eugene and Victoria’s divorce, she couldn’t help but curl her lips into a smug smile.

She raised her chin, like a victor, leading Jenny and Sarah away with a frivolous tone: "Come on, let’s change venue and go sing and dance."

As Jenny walked, she took out her phone, her voice carrying a hint of boast: "Alright, I’ll call my big brother."

Watching their departing backs, Angela puffed her cheeks in anger and punched the table, her voice low but filled with resentment: "Birds of a feather flock together!"

Victoria didn’t say a word, just quietly picked up her wine glass and took a gentle sip of fruit wine.

Her gaze settled on the swaying liquid in the glass, as if through it, she saw some distant memory, a flicker of indistinguishable pain in her eyes.

Angela looked at her with concern, her voice soft yet laced with worry: "Are you really okay?"

Victoria lifted her head, a faint smile on her lips, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes: "What’s there to worry about?"

Angela sighed, raised her glass, trying to sound lighthearted: "True, then let’s toast to your happiness as a single woman."

Victoria clinked glasses with her, her voice as light as a whisper: "To our happiness as single women."

At three in the morning, the rain poured down in torrents.

Thunder roared as if trying to tear the sky apart, rainfall splashing down with a dense pattering sound.

The whole world was shrouded in a veil of rain, leaving only a blur of mist in sight.

Leaving the club, Charlie Spencer held an umbrella, supporting a drunken Eugene Vaughn as they arduously walked towards the car.

Eugene suddenly pushed away Charlie’s umbrella and shoved Miles Shaw aside, his voice hoarse and broken: "Leave me alone..."

The heavy rain instantly soaked the three of them, Eugene’s hair clung to his forehead, rainwater tracing down his cheeks indistinguishable from tears.

His steps were unsteady, his body teetering as if a gust of wind could knock him down.

Miles Shaw, hands on his hips, yelled in frustration: "You’ve been drinking day and night for days now, if we don’t get you home soon, you’re going to drink yourself to death at the club!"

Eugene tilted his head back, letting the rain hit his face, his voice empty and desolate: "Go home? What home do I have left..."

Charlie rushed over and grabbed his arm, his voice urgent: "The rain is too heavy, get in the car!"

But Eugene violently flung him off, stumbling a few steps back, his voice hoarse and despairing: "I said leave me alone!"

Charlie yelled, his voice mixed with uncontrolled anger and heartache: "You’re my best brother, how can I not care about you?"

Miles stepped forward, "It’s just a divorce, is it worth pushing yourself to the brink? Keep this up, and no angel could save you!"

Eugene closed his eyes, his voice so light it was almost drowned by the rain: "Then let me die, let me be free..."

Charlie finally lost patience, forcibly grabbed his arm, pushing him towards the car: "It’s embarrassing to be forcibly divorced, but with your looks and status, Eugene, are you afraid of not finding someone better?"

Miles chimed in: "Yeah, lose one, find another, better one."

Forced into the back seat, Eugene leaned weakly against the car window, eyes closed, breathing heavy. Though the heat gradually rose in the car, his body remained cold, as if even his heart was frozen.

Charlie sat in the car, his voice tinged with exhaustion and worry: "Don’t you have OCD? How can you tolerate not showering for days, getting drunk every day?"

Miles started the car, his voice carrying relief: "If not for the owner fearing you’d die in his club, he wouldn’t have called us to pick you up."

Eugene didn’t respond, just muttered in a low voice, hoarse and fractured: "Victoria... I beg you, don’t leave me..."

Charlie and Miles exchanged a heavy look, neither saying anything more.

Inside the car, only Eugene’s murmurs and the rhythmic swish of the wipers filled the suffocatingly oppressive atmosphere.

Miles sighed, shaking his head helplessly: "If he keeps this up, something bad will happen."

Charlie reached out to touch Eugene’s forehead, his face changing suddenly: "He’s burning up, it’s very hot! Drive faster, get him to the hospital!"

Miles immediately pressed the accelerator, the car speeding through the torrential rain.

Raindrops pounded on the windows with a dense sound, as if the whole world was collapsing.

Charlie looked at Eugene’s pale face, his voice filled with helplessness and heartache: "It’s just one woman, why push yourself to the brink for this?"

Eugene still kept his eyes closed, his voice weak yet adamant: "Victoria... I won’t divorce..."

Charlie covered his forehead, closing his eyes, letting out a long sigh: "You’re beyond saving."

The car sped into the hospital, Eugene was rushed into the emergency room.

From four in the morning until daybreak, the emergency room light stayed on, and two critical notices were issued during this time.

The whole Vaughn family had arrived, Grandma Vaughn knelt by the window, hands clasped, tearfully praying in a low voice: "Buddha, please bless my grandson..."

Jenny sobbed, her voice filled with confusion and anger: "My big brother was so healthy, how did he suddenly become ?"

Miles stood to the side, his tone heavy: "He turned off his phone, hid in the club, drank day and night, not eating for days. If not for the owner notifying us, he might have really died there."

Harold Vaughn clenched his fists, his face dark, his voice seething with repressed fury: "Victoria Sinclair is a curse!"

Grandma Vaughn slowly stood, aided by her daughter-in-law, and walked to sit on the bench, her voice hoarse yet firm: "A blessed woman doesn’t marry into an unblessed family. In these two years of marriage to Eugene, none of you treated her as family, including Eugene. Her leaving is justified."

Jenny fumed, her voice laced with tears: "I really can’t understand, my brother didn’t even like Victoria, why after being forcibly divorced, does he drive himself to the brink?"

In the corner, Ethan Vaughn lazily leaned against the wall, eyes still on his phone, his tone nonchalant yet hitting the nail on the head: "Twelve years of deep love, only to be repaid with betrayal and abandonment, anyone would break."

Jenny froze, puzzled: "What?"

Just then, the door to the emergency room opened again, a nurse quickly stepped out, carrying a third critical notice, her voice heavy: "Family, please sign."

The Vaughn family felt their hearts sink to rock bottom.