CHAPTER 233

As chaos reigned, a young woman's voice rang out clear and loud across the room. "Let me help. I am a doctor."

The crowd parted, and she moved to kneel beside the collapsed man. Her hands, as dainty as butterfly wings, pumped his chest several times before he slowly came to his senses.

When the ambulance arrived, she briefed the paramedics on what happened before rushing off.

Ethan had been so preoccupied with his business partner's condition that he did not even talk to her before she left. However, after everything had calmed down, he constantly recalled the beauty of her face and how calm yet lively she looked.

People came and went into a person's life. Some people would meet every day yet leave no impression on the mind, while others would be unforgettable despite having only met once. In this case, to Ethan, the young doctor was the latter.

Just a brief glance was enough to carve her into his memories. Whenever he had time, he would suddenly find himself thinking about her. Where was she, and what was she doing now? Would they meet again? Was she going to suddenly appear before him just like how she did on their first meeting?

If they ever met again, he would never be foolish enough to let her out of his life so quietly.

If he were given another chance, he would ask for her name and contact details.

Finally, he was able to meet her again. However, he did not know if it was a wish come true or a joke played on him.

Moments later, he quickly shook the question out of his head.

There was no doubt about it.

This was no wish come true; it was a prank the world was playing on him.

He would rather never see her again than get to know her under the current conditions.

Throughout the night as he waited, he had thought up countless excuses to persuade Leigh with. He would offer everything he could as long as she agreed to let Holly go. He would do anything she asked of him.

However, now that Leigh was sitting across from him, all he could do was dazedly and silently stare at her.

It was evident that she no longer remembered him, for she looked at him as if he was a stranger. "Ethan Taylor, correct? I am Leigh Shefford. Tell me what you have to say. You do not have much time though, as I am a busy woman. You have five minutes."

Her voice was as beautiful and sweet as he remembered, except, there was a chill and mocking tone in it that was not there in their last meeting.

As chaos reigned, a young woman's voice rang out clear and loud across the room. "Let me help. I am a doctor."

He opened his mouth to speak, but his words were stuck in his throat.

Seeing that he was acting weird, she raised a brow.

After taking a few deep breaths, which he hid well from her, he pinched his hand hard to force himself to calm down.

When his heart eventually stopped racing, he spoke, "Hello, Doctor Shefford. You have likely forgotten, but we met once in Talvit last year..."

"Mr. Taylor," she bluntly interrupted. "We are enemies. I am not in the mood to chat with you. Please tell me what you want."

The rest of his speech died in his throat.

Gazing at Leigh staring silently at him, he finally understood what the phrase "so close yet so far" meant.

He was born to be the best of the best. Hence, this was the first time in his life that he felt dejected— that he realized he was not the beloved child of the world; that the world would play jokes on him too.

When he was speechless again, she prompted him by asking, "You are here because of your mother, right? More accurately, you are here to plead on her behalf, yes? What do you wish to say? Are you planning to bribe me, or threaten me?"

He tried speaking once more, but no words left his mouth.

Her face clouded over with a frosty chill. "You should not be wasting your time here. I do not care about

what you offer or threaten as I will never let your mother go! For the past sixteen years, I have lived with the sole purpose of avenging my family!"

She sneered at him. "Unless you silence me by killing me, like how your uncle and mother killed them, I will never let them walk free." content.

He found himself at a loss for words.

Somehow, he left Sun Garden unknowingly.

When he was waiting outside the gates last night, he had been determined to persuade Leigh to let Holly walk free.

It was true.

Deep down, he knew she would want revenge for her family's deaths.

However, the main culprit was Scott. Let him be the scapegoat for her anger. Let him be the sacrifice to appease the dead. Why did Holly have to be dragged too?

He had thought up essays upon essays that he would use to persuade Leigh.

However, none of those were ever spoken.

Leigh was a great woman.

She waded through a crowd of people to save a stranger in need.

Furthermore, that person was obviously rich. If she had stayed, she would have been well rewarded.

Even so, she did not even tell them of her name before leaving.

She was a kind woman...

All she wanted was justice for her murdered family.

He had actually thought of using his status and wealth to coerce her into giving up on that dream.

At that moment, she must have thought he was as black-hearted and despicable as Holly.

He was overwhelmed by the distress of a magnitude he had never felt before. It felt like his heart had been carved out.

This was a situation he had never wanted to be met with.

He did not recall how he made his way back to the police station.

When Ruben spotted him, he hurried over. "Mr. Taylor, you did not answer any of my calls. Your mother is about to be charged..."

Ethan was silent.

Moments later, Ruben prompted once more. "If we cannot provide the police with any significant proof of your mother's innocence, we must be ready to defend her in court. Based on my experience, I

believe she would be faced with at least ten years of imprisonment."

Ten years?

Although he had been as pale as a ghost and felt like a walking, mindless corpse, Ethan shivered.

Ten years...

If Holly were imprisoned for that long, she would be ruined for life, and there would be no happy retirement for her.

She was his mother, the woman who loved him and raised him.

If possible, he wanted to do everything he could to save her, no matter what it took.

Even so, there were things that were impossible for him.

Even if his mother walked free, the backlash...

"Your mother..." The hesitation in Ruben's voice grew stronger when he saw the distressed look on Ethan's face. "She wishes to see you. If you would like to see her, I can arrange for it to happen."

Ethan hesitated. "Let me meet her," he said with a nod.

He had to meet her once anyway.

He needed to tell her to stop hoping for the impossible.

There was no way he could save her.

She was going to prison—for sure.