Novel Xo
Chapter 6
Chapter 6
Chapter 6 A Favor to Ask
If Rosalie were just an average person, all Claudia would need to do was gather evidence.
But Rosalie was the sole daughter of the influential Clayton family.
The Clayton Group was a company with a nationwide reach rivaling the might of the Lamont Group. It had a great reputation and wide connections.
Claudia had once believed Rosalie was as kind and nice as people said. But her ruthlessness in toying with lives shattered that image.
The memory of her grandmother’s mysterious death sent an icy chill from her toes to her head, reddening her eyes.
Moved by her sorrow, Waldron was in pain as well.
If Claudia were his sister, then it was his fault to let her suffer so much these years.
Waldron’s voice softened.
“You can start by telling me what you need.”
Claudia, suppressing her hatred, said, “I want her to bear legal consequences. Pay with her life.”
Waldron nodded unsurprisingly. “To take down Rosalie, you’ll need to take down the Clayton family.”
The Clayton family’s influence and wealth were immense. They would help minimize the sentence even if Rosalie was jailed.
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Chapter 6 A Favor to Ask
Waldron proposed, “My family has recently reached a partnership with the Clayton family. If this alliance were to crumble, it could wipe out their three-year revenue. Would you like me to end the cooperation?”
Leaning against a large tree, arms folded, he presented the tempting offer. This belongs © NôvelDra/ma.Org.
“What do you want in return?”
Waldron’s proposal was so alluring. He would probably ask her to pay back.
“I have a request,” he said, his lively eyes focused on her. “Your hair tie.”
What?
Before Claudia could fully process it, Waldron had acted.
He quickly took the tie away from her hair. Claudia only felt a sudden sting in her scalp.
Holding it in his hands, Waldron held it under the sun and examined it. Everyone who had seen him now would be captivated by his exquisite beauty and seductive persona.
Waldron was just too handsome. No wonder some people with deep pockets desired him.
Claudia felt the deal was unfair.
“Just for a hair tie?”
She just couldn’t believe all Waldron asked was a hair tie.
Waldron examined the hand tie again. After confirming something, he grinned. “It’s not meant entirely for you though.”
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He wanted to teach Rosalie a lesson for all the bulls hit she said at the
bar
The hair tie’s strands would serve a purpose, for a gene test.
As his suspicions grew, Waldron wanted to root it once and for all.
Seeing Waldron’s peculiar actions, Claudia was filled with uncertainty. She began doubting his commitment to her plan.
The scheme to take down the Clayton family felt less like a goal and more like Waldron’s way of toying with her.
Probably she should take Waldron’s word for it from the very start.
His family helping her seemed to be dubious.
Deciding not to linger any longer, Claudia said goodbye to Waldron. She didn’t bother to ask about the timeline for disrupting the cooperation since she had no faith in Waldron’s sincerity.
Watching her departure, Waldron wanted to follow. But he stopped at the thought of the hair tie in his possession.
What he needed to do next was a gene test with her hair.
The truth about Claudia’s relation to him, whether sister or not, would soon come to light.
***
“I can’t believe she gave her hair tie to Waldron. Could she and Waldron be…”
Standing at the villa entrance, Rosalie looked at Edmond with mild. astonishment.
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Frowning, Edmond revealed no emotions. No one could read his mind.
“I’ll send you back.”
As Edmond strode forward, Rosalie followed.
Claudia betrayed Edmond?
Rosalie had been thinking hard about how to deal with Claudia. Now Claudia voluntarily presented the evidence to her.
Rosalie sent a text message to the largest news media outlet, detailing the impactful news.
The next day, Claudia came to the hospital that treated her grandma.
Claudia wanted to find more evidence.
She unexpectedly encountered an old acquaintance.
It was none other than Rosalie,
Seeing Rosalie’s suspicious meeting with a doctor, Claudia covertly followed them,
“Did you manage the situation last time?”
Inside the room, Rosalie’s voice dripped with anxiety.
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep your secret safe.”
His voice was soothing and elegant,
Claudia’s heart raced. The familiarity of the man’s voice struck a chord within her. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by an intense gaze.
Claudia met the steady, penetrating gaze of Edmond,
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Edmond dressed casually with hands in his pocket. His posture exuded a relaxed yet formidable presence. He cast a casual glance at Claudia.
When had he arrived? How much had he seen?
“Mr. Lamont,” Claudia greeted with a wry smile.
Edmond didn’t respond.
Unlike the well-behaved, polished woman Edmond remembered, Claudia now radiated an alluring aura in her braces skirt. The
ensemble, combined with her unassuming cardigan, accentuated her curves in a tantalizing manner.
Edmond’s gaze involuntarily settled on her hair tie. It was not the one Waldron had claimed.
Stepping forward, he lowered his voice, “Claudia, we need to talk.”
Talk?
After three years of marriage, he hadn’t given her much attention. Why the sudden interest in talking with her?
Claudia’s smile carried a tinge of bitterness for her stu pid dedication and naivety.
In a café near the hospital.
Edmond wanted to ask about her relationship with Waldron but held the urge back upon the thought of his claim to let her go. So, he said, “Don’t mess with Rosalie.”
“Is that a warning?”
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Chapter 6 A Favor to Ask
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Edmond’s tone hinted at a veiled threat.
Claudia wore bitter smiles, her eyes welling with tears.
Indeed, crossing paths with Rosalie would be dangerous, especially given the power of both the Clayton family and Edmond.
Recalling what had happened yesterday, Edmond revealed an
unsettling piece of information, “Rosalie’s family is gathering evidence against your defamation.”
Claudia’s eyes reddened, her gaze unwavering, “Slander She was responsible for my grandmother’s death!”
“You don’t have any proof.”
“I’ll find it.” Claudia smiled wistfully, concealing an intense determination, “Before the Clayton family kills me, I’ll do it first.”
“We’ll see if you succeed.”
Edmond’s cold voice echoed like a blade slicing through the air and piercing into Claudia’s heart.
The sudden rush of tears compelled her to bite her lip in case they flowed out.
“Edmond, my grandmother never wronged you. Promise me you won’t interfere in my conflict with Rosalie,” Trembling, her voice quivered.
Claudia was expectant.
Claudia clung to a fragile hope that Edmond would sit on the fence. Dealing with the Clayton family on her own was a daunting prospect. If Edmond joined them, Claudia would have no chance of winning.
She gazed at Edmond with expectation, but he looked away.
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Chapter 6 A Favor to Ask
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“I’m sorry,” he uttered.
Sorry.
It turned out he wanted to protect Rosalie, whatever the cost.
Their three years of marriage dissolved into nothingness.
Her cherished husband, the one she had relied on, had allied himself with her adversary.
“It’s fine,” Claudia forced a smile. Her grip on her thigh tightened as she fought back tears. “Rosalie is so lucky, indeed.”
Despite her grave transgressions, Rosalie had powerful protection, perhaps even more than she deserved, including Edmond.
Edmond had presumed her defeat, yet his actions ignited a fiercer determination within her.
He hated seeing Claudia being like this, isolated and stubborn. This was vastly different from her usual self, that quiet girl in his memory.
“Edmond, from this day on, you’re my enemy.”
Enemy…
The word stung him.
A peculiar anger stirred within Edmond, an anger he couldn’t explain. “Enemy? What about Waldron?”