After Divorce I Married a Tycoon-Chapter 124: So Angry He Didn’t Sleep for Two Days
Claire Mercer was still pondering the question even after she returned home.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that the misfortunes of the Mercer Family, Mr. Bower, and Chester Lawton...
Someone had to be pulling the strings, punishing them from the shadows.
Otherwise, given their standing in Rhonia, it was hard to believe they could all suffer such a major downfall so suddenly.
But she still couldn’t figure out who was behind it all.
Even though, as Scarlett Jewel had suggested, it was most likely the Rowan Family.
She didn’t believe they would go to such lengths for her sake.
’And I still don’t even know... was the person behind all this trying to help me?’
’Or had those three simply made too many enemies?’
’And someone just took advantage of the situation when they saw they were vulnerable?’
Adrian Sutton noticed she was distracted during dinner, a worried expression on her face.
He couldn’t help but ask, "What’s wrong, Claire? You seem to have something on your mind."
Claire Mercer looked at Adrian Sutton.
’She couldn’t shake the suspicion that he had told Silas Rowan about her situation.’
’And then Silas, for whatever reason, had decided to help her.’
She wasn’t one to keep things bottled up. She didn’t want to waste energy endlessly second-guessing.
She preferred being direct and asking questions as soon as they arose.
"Adrian Sutton, do you know that the Mercer Group went bankrupt?"
"Not only did it go bankrupt, but the Mercer Family is also saddled with over a hundred million in debt."
Adrian Sutton grunted in acknowledgment. "I’ve heard some whispers."
Claire Mercer pressed on: 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚
"And do you know that Chester Lawton is in trouble too?"
"He wasn’t just taken away by the police; his company is now facing bankruptcy as well."
Adrian Sutton’s expression remained unchanged. "Not much."
"Don’t you think it’s a little incredible that both of them went under one after another in such a short amount of time?"
"It is rather surprising," Adrian Sutton agreed.
"For companies of their strength to collapse so quickly, someone must have been targeting them specifically, right?"
"Did you tell the Rowan Family about my situation?"
"And then they went after Julian Mercer and Chester Lawton to get revenge for me?"
Adrian Sutton had originally planned to brush it off with a laugh.
After all, she had said she didn’t want to trouble the Rowan Family with her problems.
But now that both the Mercer Family and Chester Lawton were in trouble, it was only natural for her to suspect that he had told the Rowan Family, who then took action.
’Oh, well. It’s not like he could admit he was the one who handled them.’
’He’d just have to use the Rowan Family as an excuse again.’
"I’m sorry, Claire. I just couldn’t stand by while they bullied you like that."
"So I couldn’t help but tell Silas Rowan what happened."
"Silas is fiercely protective of his own. When he heard what happened to you, he was so angry he didn’t sleep for two days."
"He stayed up all night drawing up a plan to get back at the Mercer Family for you."
"That’s why the Mercer Group not only went bankrupt but was also saddled with massive debt."
"As for Chester Lawton, he was already on the authorities’ radar. It was only a matter of time before he was caught."
"Silas just gathered all the evidence of his crimes beforehand, which only sped up the inevitable."
"So please, don’t feel burdened, or like you owe them some huge favor."
Claire Mercer knew it. He *had* told the Rowan Family.
Otherwise, there was no way the Mercer Group and Chester Lawton’s company could have collapsed so quickly, without even a chance to fight back.
She never imagined the Rowan Family would go to such lengths just to get revenge on her behalf.
She was moved, but she also felt a heavy sense of obligation.
"They went to all that trouble to get revenge on the Mercer Family and Chester Lawton for me. How could I not feel burdened?"
"I owe them a debt so huge I’ll never be able to repay it."
Adrian Sutton had thought she would be happy to see the Mercer Family and Chester Lawton brought so low.
He hadn’t expected her to look so troubled, feeling like she owed the Rowan Family an enormous debt.
’If he’d known she’d feel this burdened, he would’ve just made up some other excuse.’
He sighed inwardly and began to reason with her.
"It’s not like you asked for their help. They wanted to do it..."
"That makes me feel even more indebted," Claire said.
"I didn’t even have to ask, and they did all this for me."
"I can’t just pretend it never happened and take their kindness for granted."
Adrian Sutton: "..."
After moping for a moment with a long face, Claire Mercer asked Adrian Sutton:
"Since Silas helped me so much, how should I thank him?"
Adrian Sutton fell silent.
’The truth was, Silas Rowan didn’t know a thing...’
’The trap he’d set for Julian Mercer, the way he’d sent Chester Lawton to the police—none of it had involved Silas at all.’
’Yet here was Silas, who’d done nothing, getting all the credit with Claire.’
’No matter how he looked at it, the thought irked him.’
"Silas has been on edge lately because Mrs. Rowan keeps pressuring him to get married."
"If you want to thank him, you could help by distracting Mrs. Rowan."
"You could visit the Rowan residence more often when you’re free, keep her company, chat with her, go shopping, that sort of thing."
"That way, Mrs. Rowan won’t be so focused on Silas, pestering him to find someone and get married."
Claire Mercer was a bit stunned by Adrian’s suggestion. "That’s it?"
’It’s that simple?’
’All I have to do is keep Mrs. Rowan company, and that’s considered repaying Silas?’
Adrian Sutton nodded and added,
"Actually, Mrs. Rowan has always wanted a daughter, but she only has one son, Silas."
"If you really want to repay the Rowan Family, you could treat Mrs. and Mr. Rowan as if they were your own parents."
"Let them experience what it’s like to have a daughter around."
"The truth is, the Rowan Family helped you mainly because Mrs. Rowan is genuinely very fond of you."
"Really?" Claire felt a little shy.
She recalled how Mrs. Rowan would always give her a genuine, heartfelt smile whenever they met.
She was always so gentle when she spoke to her.
Her gaze was filled with warmth and maternal affection.
She would hold her hand affectionately and ask after her well-being with genuine concern.
They had only met a few times, but each encounter left her feeling endlessly warm.
It was a warmth she had never once experienced from Judith Caldwell.
’It must be just as Adrian said,’ she thought. ’Mrs. Rowan really does like me.’
With that in mind, Claire Mercer decided to make time every week to visit Mrs. Rowan.
It was a perfect arrangement. Mrs. Rowan wanted a doting daughter, and she, in turn, longed for a warm mother figure.
"Since you put it that way... tomorrow is Saturday. I think I’ll pay the Rowan Family a visit."
"If you’re not busy tomorrow, would you come with me?"
Adrian Sutton nodded. "Alright, I’ll go with you."
"You’re the Rowan Family’s goddaughter now, and as your husband in name, that makes me their son-in-law."
"Going together shows respect and that we take this seriously."
’Perfect. Ever since his aunt found out he and Claire were married...’
’...she had been calling him almost every day, urging him to bring Claire to visit the Rowan residence.’
"I was thinking the same thing. After dinner, we can go to the mall and buy some gifts."
"Okay, whatever you say."
After dinner, Adrian Sutton cleared the table and cleaned the kitchen, and then the two of them went to the mall downstairs to buy gifts.
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