A Lifetime With You

Chapter 64

“Sir, Miss Nagel left with her belongings after Madam’s visit yesterday and came back again at midnight. I truly do not know what has happened.” The housekeeper explained to Damien. Damien looked troubled and said, “So she left just like that?” “They left miss Nagel with no choice…” “Send someone to investigate. I want to know why is she asking for so much money.”

Ava could only return home to her mother after leaving the Radbury family residence. Her home was still in disarray from the aftermath of yesterday’s visit by the loan sharks. Her mother was seen taking a nap on the sofa and couldn’t care less about anything. Upon Ava’s return, her mother cried and reprimanded her for being such a useless daughter. Not only Ava had lost her husband but also failed to earn money for the family. Ava could not be bothered to argue with her mother. She knew her well enough by now. She suddenly saw new footprints in her home, which were definitely not present last night. “Mom, did anyone else come here while I was gone?” “Who else could it be? It was those gangsters again, and they barged in early this morning! See for yourself. They even took the television and the air conditioner away!” Jessica pointed at the empty house as she wailed miserably. “They also mentioned that if we failed to pay them back within three days, they will return and cause havoc every single day! Seizing our stuff was only the beginning and after three days, my fingers would be gone by then! Each finger is worth ten thousand dollars and once I have lost my limbs, they will stab my body then! Oh lord, why am I suffering so much!” Ava’s mother continued her howling. “Enough! Crying doesn’t solve any of our problems!” Ava was sick of listening to her complaints, and she went to hide in her own room. During the walk back home, she had time to think carefully. Since Damien refused to help her, she would have to go to Selden. Although Selden was merely a doctor, he was the next-in-line heir of the Oakley Corporation. Hence, five million dollars was nothing for him. But…it was already difficult enough for her to ask for money from Damien, not to mention Selden. She mulled over it for a long time before she decided to call him. “I thought you’re unwilling to meet me again, but it looks like

you’ve changed your mind.” Over the phone, Selden’s voice was as light-hearted as ever. But Ava was in no mood to banter. “Selden, I want to borrow…”

Before she could finish, she heard a demure female voice asking, “Selden, who are you talking to over there?”

Ava recognized it was Kelly. “Are you with Miss Hensley now?” “Yup, I need to settle something with her,” Selden glanced at Kelly who was sitting beside him. He was determined to get Kelly to apologize for scheming against Ava and framing her for the video leaks.

But Ava could not have guessed the reason for their encounter. She only prayed that she would not cause any further misunderstanding between Kelly and Selden. So she told Selden, “Then I’ll call you back later. Enjoy your time with Miss Hensley.”

Then she hung up.

Ava couldn’t do it…even if he was an old friend, she couldn’t bring herself to borrow money from him. She knew full well that Selden would not hesitate to grant her the loan, and she only had to ask for it. She scrunched her hair in frustration. As she rolled around in desperation, she accidentally knocked over her bag that was resting on the nightstand. The contents of the bag spilled out everywhere. As she bent down quickly to retrieve them, a small velvet box caught her eyes. It was her diamond wedding ring. She opened the box and was bedazzled by the diamonds within. Ava shut the box quickly, as though she was a thief sneaking around. With her heart thumping in her ribcage, she opened the box again, but this time very slowly. Considering the ring was a gift from Damien, it should not be a problem to claim it for herself, right? It was the last remaining memento that she had for her nightmare-like marriage. Cutting through her mother’s cries of despair and her own dejection, the ring almost seemed to glow brilliantly with an angelic halo.

The next day, Ava made up her mind to pawn the diamond ring. Although the money she got from it was barely even half of its true worth, she couldn’t be picky anymore.

The man at the pawnshop handed her a receipt. He then explained that she could redeem her diamond ring within two years at a higher price if she still wanted it back. Ava thought it was unlikely that she would ever get to do so within her lifetime. As soon as Ava received the cash for the ring, she immediately made her way to the loan sharks’ den.

Much to her surprise, the boss of the loan sharks welcomed her warmly. It was a stark contrast to his previous violent disposition. He even offered her a cup of tea upon her arrival. “Miss Nagel, I do hope you’ll kindly overlook our brashness earlier. We’re deeply sorry for the way we

behaved. Please, you must believe that we had no idea of your true identity!” The head of the loan sharks was a prominent figure in the underworld, and yet he was now bowing respectfully as he offered tea to Ava. Ava was more confused than surprised. “I have the money. Give me your bank account number now and I will bank in five million dollars before noon,” she said. “That will not be necessary. Someone has already paid off your mother’s debts.” “Who was it?” Ava was taken aback.

“That would be your husband, of course, the CEO of the Radbury Group. Miss Nagel, please forgive us. We know now that we have made a big mistake in underestimating you! We’re truly sorry, and please forgive us!”

Ava stood up in surprise.

So Damien eventually helped her to clear the debts? But, earlier on, he was… It was at that moment that she noticed the loan shark lackeys who trashed her house the other day. They were standing meekly in a corner with bruises and wounds on their faces. “Was this… Damien’s work?” They quickly denied her suspicions and explained themselves, “No, Miss Nagel, it’s all our own fault! We got these

wounds from uh…we uh…we ran into a wall! Yes..it was an accident! Miss Nagel, we didn’t mean to hurt you and your mother, please believe us!”

Ava turned around and quickly left the place. She hopped in a taxi and headed to Radbury Group. The young receptionist recognized Ava, and she did not question her. She followed Ava into the elevator quickly instead. In the CEO’s office, Damien was focusing on a briefing by his secretary. He didn’t seem perturbed by Ava’s intrusion, but merely motioned for his secretary to leave them. It was only the two of them in the room now. “You are here? Well, seems like you have everything figured out then.” Damien said as he grinned. “Was it you who paid off my mother’s debts?” “Five million dollars, phew! Your mother sure is something else.” Damien admitted. Ava was puzzled, “But why? You obviously didn’t…” “Ava, I’m a businessman, and obviously, I don’t do things for free.” Damien put aside the folder that he was holding. This is from NôvelDrama.Org.

It was right then that Ava spotted the wedding ring which she pawned this morning on his office desk!