“Mr. Nelson.”

“Ashley?”

“It’s me,” Ashley stepped aside, “Anna said you were looking for me.”

“Yes,” Mark said in a muffled voice, “It wasn’t Robert.”

His bluntness left Ashley silent for a moment.

Seeing that Ashley didn’t respond, Mark added, “I’ve been in touch with him. I happen to know everything he’s been up to lately. Well, he doesn’t have the time to be involved in your situation.”

Ashley was skeptical.

Sensing her disbelief, Mark paused for a few seconds and explained, “The news of him confessing to you got back to his family. To force him to give up, the Walker Family cut off his funds. The little money he had left was all spent on hiring a private investigator.”

In other words, Robert didn’t have the resources to target Ashley.

“I understand.” Ashley replied calmly.

Mark had expected her to seize the opportunity and beg for his help. But after waiting a while, Ashley remained silent.

He laughed in exasperation, “I have some clues about this incident. I can help you.”

Ashley stayed clear-headed, “Mr. Nelson, you don’t like doing charity, and you wouldn’t step in just because a part-time worker is in trouble.”

“Exactly.” Mark chuckled softly, “I can help you resolve this, and you just need to pay a small price.”

Ashley instinctively glanced at the second floor of the villa.

The doors and windows were still tightly shut, and heavy blackout curtains blocked all view.

On her eighteenth birthday, she had spent a sleepless night in Brian’s bed, filled with bewilderment and fear; Three days after her eighteenth birthday, she knelt at his feet and begged for five million yuan; When Melissa was caught stealing for the first time, she was tied to the bed and tormented until he decided to show leniency.

Ashley withdrew her gaze, “I’ll think about it. Thank you, Mr. Nelson.”

She didn’t believe in Brian’s sincerity, nor in the young delinquent she’d only met a few times.

Hearing the underlying meaning in her words, Mark was silent for a few seconds before saying in a low voice, “You’ll regret it.”

Ashley hung up the phone.

Anna came over, worried, “How was it? Is he willing to help? Can this be resolved?”

Ashley didn’t reply and handed her phone to Anna, “Don’t worry, I have a way.”

Seeing Ashley’s expression, Anna knew she hadn’t accepted Mark’s help and anxiously pushed her, “What are you doing?! What’s wrong with letting Mark help you?

“Ashley, every minute later will cause much more trouble! If you don’t look out for yourself, no one else will. You’re not going to ruin your life over some rich jerk, are you?!”

In her anxiety, Anna’s face turned red, and a faint blush spread to the corners of her eyes.

Her eyes were moist, as if she might burst into tears at any moment.

Ashley looked at her, paused, and then said hoarsely, “You knew that, right?”

Anna froze, realizing she had said too much.

She bit her lip, and finally, unwillingly, said, “I’m not an idiot! I’ve known you for over a year. You let slip so many things, how could I not notice? Ashley, I know you have something with Brian, but people like them don’t have true feelings. Mark just wants information on Brian. Just give him some; it’s not like Brian is going to die!”

Ashley sighed, wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes, and said slowly, “How can you be sure Mark isn’t lying to me?”

Anna was stunned.

Ashley continued, “You’re right? someone like Brian can’t possibly have genuine feelings for me, but I’ve known him for nearly twenty years. What about Mark? From the time I met him until now, it hasn’t even been twenty days.”

Anna was momentarily speechless.

“I’ll try to figure something out first. If I really can’t resolve it, then we’ll see.” Ashley reassured her.

Anna felt a twinge of sadness.

Everyone has their own personal hell to navigate, and Ashley would have to find her way out on her own.

...

After seeing Anna off on the bus, Ashley finally returned to her room.

Melissa was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at the constantly vibrating phone.

Ashley frowned, walked over, and forcibly turned off the phone.

Only then did Melissa snap out of it, with her eyes red as she looked at Ashley, “Ashley, what’s going on? Your phone...”

“You saw it, didn’t you?” Ashley looked at her red-rimmed eyes, “Maybe it was Jack trying to force me to comply.”

“That’s impossible!” Melissa instinctively denied, “He’s your father. How could he do this to you?”

“You really believe him,” Ashley looked at Melissa, “Believe a man who treats me like a commodity to be sold and who beats you?”

Melissa’s lips trembled, “He...he wouldn’t treat you like that.” She lowered her head slightly, and her eyes were filled with sorrow and sadness, “When you were sick, he went out and sold his blood to get money, and he even considered selling his kidney to pay for your surgery. Ashley, your father has just lost his way temporarily. He’s not that bad.”

Ashley closed her eyes briefly and gave a bitter smile, “I would have preferred if he hadn’t saved me back then.”

Melissa’s face turned pale, “Ashley...”

Ashley wiped her face, “Mom, do you really not want to move out?”

“No, we can’t!” Melissa always became particularly agitated when this topic came up, “We can’t move out of the Quinn Family!”

Her voice was so sharp and harsh that it made Ashley frown.

Normally gentle and soft-spoken, Melissa turned into a different person every time this topic was mentioned, leaving Ashley both speechless and astonished, “Why? You have to give me a reason.”

“Reason? There’s no reason! Our family was in such a dire situation back then. If Mrs Quinn hadn’t helped us, we would have died in the hospital! Ashley, you can’t be ungrateful and forget their kindness!”

“Ungrateful? Forget their kindness?” Ashley looked at her.

So, her way of repaying Mrs Quinn’s kindness was to be Mr. Quinn’s mistress?

Melissa realized she had overreacted again. Then, she tried to say something, but held back.

“Knock, knock.”

Ashley looked towards the door, “Come in.”

The butler opened the door and came in, “Ashley, you have a visitor.”

“Is it a girl?”

Had Anna returned? The butler shook his head, “It’s a boy.”

Ashley quickly stood up, “Mrs...”

“Mrs Quinn is napping. I let him in; he’s waiting in the living room.”

Ashley quickly thanked the butler.

When she reached the living room, she saw John sitting on the sofa, looking like he was on pins and needles.

“John? Why are you here?”

John quickly stood up and walked over to her, checking her over, “Are you alright? The school and the internet are in chaos. I heard a lot of people are looking for you.”

“I haven’t left the house, so I am pretty cool...” Ashley pushed John back onto the sofa, “How’s the situation at school?”

“School...isn’t good.” John’s expression darkened.