Chapter Eight: Clara's Pov

Two years ago, the Thorne family suddenly announced that Thorne's full brother, Vitaly, had returned to the Thorne family.

At the banquet on the day of Vitaly's return, I was at the corner of the staircase and accidentally overheard a conversation between Caroline and Vitaly.

"Do you know how much I've missed you all these years? You've suffered outside, child."

"Mother, fortunately, everything has passed."

"Yes, that's right. Everything has passed. Now that you're back, the Thorne family's affairs will depend on you from now on."

"Don't worry, Mother. I know what to do. Being exiled from the family for so many years may not necessarily be a bad thing. I believe I can handle everything that comes next. But Thorne, he..."

"Back then, they were worried that you two brothers would pose a threat, so they deliberately framed you and exiled you. Your father and I have fought for so many years to get the chance to bring you back to our side. It's just having Thorne enter into a marriage alliance. I believe he can understand."

I stood at the stairwell, my hands suddenly clenched tight.

I had heard before that Thorne had a brother three years older than him who was exiled for some unknown reason. Now it seemed that in the Thorne family's internal strife, someone feared the two Thorne brothers joining forces, so they framed Vitaly and exiled him.

But what did Vitaly's return have to do with Thorne's marriage?

I frowned, my back pressed tightly against the wall, and continued listening.

"But Mother, I heard that Thorne doesn't like that woman, and he's even unwilling to stay in Manhattan because of it."

Caroline sighed softly.

"There's no other way. If Elena's family background were to form a marriage alliance with Thorne, it would probably alert them again, so randomly finding someone to marry Thorne is the best solution at the moment."

"Does Thorne know about this?"

Caroline hesitated. "No. But Vitaly, you're more suitable than Thorne to be the leader of this family."

"But Mother, I think this is unfair to Thorne, at least... to his feelings."

"Good child, don't worry. Thorne will get divorced sooner or later. The key right now is to have him get married quickly, and then bring you back to the family."

...

It was only then that I realized that both I and Thorne were nothing more than pawns for Caroline.

Pawns to bring Vitaly back to the Thorne family.

I shook my head with a bitter smile. These weren't the things I should be thinking about right now.

What worried me more was what my father said tonight.

He was right. As long as he wanted, he could give up my mother's treatment at any time.

And I had no way to stop him.

If my father knew that Thorne and I were getting divorced, my mother's situation would probably become dangerous.

So before the divorce, I had to find a way to get custody of my mother and get her out of the current nursing home.

After thinking for a long time, I decided to ask my senior Romano for help tomorrow.

I remembered that the medical business under Romano's company had a deep cooperative relationship with the nursing home where my mother was staying. He might have a way to help with this matter.

The next day at noon, I met Romano at a restaurant in the city center.

"Clara, long time no see. The proposal you did for Stellar Global last time was simply fantastic. I heard you pulled several all-nighters. That must have been hard work."

"Don't say that. It's what I should have done."

I lowered my head, stirring the coffee cup in my hand. "Romano, I asked you to come today because I have a personal matter I'd like to ask for your help with."

"What happened? As long as I can help."

"I remember your company has medical cooperation with Hyatt Nursing Home. My mother is there. I want to help my mother transfer to another facility and also get her guardianship back from my father."

Romano frowned slightly. "Transferring hospitals shouldn't be a big problem, but guardianship might be a bit tricky. As far as I know, when your mother was first admitted, she had already lost self-awareness. Your father, as her spouse, naturally obtained guardianship. Now, unless he voluntarily gives it up, it will be difficult to handle."

"I understand, but..."

Before I could finish speaking, I heard someone calling my name from behind.

"Clara?"

When I turned around, I found it was actually Knight's mistress, Ollie.

"I didn't expect it to really be you. Why did you come to eat in the city center today?"

Ollie walked over enthusiastically, pulling my hand with a familiar manner.

I pulled the corners of my mouth slightly and withdrew my hand from Ollie's palm. "Meeting a friend for a meal."

Ollie turned her head and looked at Romano. Her expression was a bit strange, but soon she smiled and said goodbye to me.

"Then I won't disturb your meal. I hope you enjoy your dining."

"Okay, we'll chat together when we have a chance."

After Ollie left, Romano and I talked more about my mother's situation. He promised he would try to think of a way and told me not to worry too much.

When I got home, I leaned on the sofa for a long time, feeling very anxious.

I was preparing to go swimming to relieve my mood, but just as I stood up from the sofa, the phone rang.

Looking at the name on the incoming call screen, I was stunned for a moment.

Thorne... why would he suddenly call me?

"Where are you?" Thorne's voice was somewhat cold.

"At home."

"Don't go anywhere. I'm having Miller come pick you up. You'll accompany me somewhere later."

Before I could answer, Thorne hastily hung up the phone.

I listened to the busy tone on the phone and helplessly curved my lips. It looked like the swimming plan was going to fall through.

When Miller arrived, it was already dusk, and he was holding a gift box.

"Ma'am, this is the dress the boss asked me to bring over. Once you've changed, we can leave."

I looked at myself in the mirror, at the exposed chest and back, and my brow furrowed involuntarily.

When we first got married, Thorne would also take me to some cocktail parties. He disliked it most when I dressed revealingly, but now this outfit...

Seeing that I hadn't come out for a while, Miller urged from outside.

"Ma'am, ma'am, have you finished changing? We're running out of time. The boss is already urging from his side."

I let out a soft breath, took out a coat from the closet and put it on, then left home with Miller.

The car first went to Watson's building. When Thorne got in the car, the expression on his face was terribly gloomy. He looked at the coat I was wearing and snorted coldly. "Now you're concerned about appearances."

I frowned, not understanding what Thorne meant.

After getting in the car, Thorne stopped talking. He just kept a cold face, looking straight ahead, not knowing what he was thinking about.

The car drove toward the outskirts. I turned to look at Thorne. "Where are we going?"

"Just sit there. You don't report everything to me either."

"What's wrong with you? Can't you speak properly?"

"Heh, I'd like to speak properly too. Then you explain to me where you went at noon today?"

Noon?

Could Thorne be talking about my lunch with Romano?

"Eating with a friend. I'm not your private property. I don't need to report everything to you."

Thorne's expression became even uglier.

"Friend? What kind of friend requires such intimate behavior!"

As he spoke, Thorne placed a photo in front of me. In the photo, Romano was placing a salad in front of me, but the shooting angle was tricky, making it look like we were behaving very intimately.

"When Knight's woman sent the photo over, I could hardly believe it. Clara, I can't believe you would do something like this."

Looking at the photo before me and the furious Thorne, I knew that no amount of explanation would be useful.

"Whether you believe it or not, he and I are just ordinary friends. It's not as sordid as you think."

Thorne's hand suddenly clenched tight, the veins on his hand clearly visible. I thought he would lay hands on me, but he just gritted his teeth and turned his head away, no longer looking at me.

But the more he acted this way, the more uneasy I felt. I looked down at the dress I was wearing and wrapped the coat tighter around myself.

Thorne... having me dress like this, where exactly was he taking me?