CHAPTER 104: CHAPTER 104: GOING TO THE CIVIL AFFAIRS BUREAU

Zinnia Lawrence cried for a while. After releasing her emotions, she felt much lighter.

She stood up, too embarrassed to look up at Alaric Hawthorne. But as she kept her head down, her gaze landed on the coffee stain on his chest. If he hadn’t shielded her, that coffee would have spilled all over her, which made Zinnia Lawrence feel even more mortified.

She looked up. "Alaric, I’m so sorry about today. Let me buy you a new shirt and coat to make up for it."

"Sure, let’s go," Alaric Hawthorne immediately replied.

Zinnia Lawrence froze, not quite processing his words.

Alaric Hawthorne pointed at himself. "I can’t go back to the hospital like this. Aren’t you going to compensate me for my clothes? Why don’t you come to the mall with me?"

In reality, he had his own office at the hospital with plenty of spare clothes. After all, doctors were busy day and night and often stayed overnight.

Zinnia Lawrence, however, didn’t overthink it and nodded. "Okay, no problem. But don’t you have to meet your elders?"

Alaric Hawthorne chuckled and gestured with his phone. "I can’t meet them looking like this; it would be rude. I’ll just call and reschedule."

Zinnia Lawrence felt even more embarrassed and pointed across the street.

"I know there’s a mall just across the way. I bought clothes for my older brother there before, but they don’t carry any luxury brands. If you don’t mind, Alaric..."

Alaric Hawthorne interrupted her, "I’m not particular about brands. Let’s go there."

"Then I’ll wait for you by the road, Alaric."

The mall wasn’t far, just across the street, so Zinnia Lawrence walked to the roadside to wait for Alaric Hawthorne to bring his car around.

She took out her phone and looked down at WeChat. Suddenly, a car screeched to a halt beside her. Zinnia Lawrence assumed it was Alaric and was about to look up when she was abruptly lifted off her feet. Before she could react, she was picked up and shoved into the back seat. Her abductor immediately jumped in after her, slammed the door, and the car sped away.

Zinnia Lawrence scrambled up from the seat and turned to glare angrily at the man who had just kidnapped her.

"Jenson Forrest! What do you think you’re doing? I need to get out! I have things to do!"

Jenson Forrest sat there with a cold expression, completely ignoring Zinnia Lawrence’s protests as his eyes scanned the rearview mirror. He saw a car pull up behind them. Alaric Hawthorne stopped his own car, got out, and stood by the road, looking around frantically. But he’s destined to find no one.

A mocking smirk touched Jenson Forrest’s lips as he finally turned to Zinnia Lawrence and sneered, "Let you out so you can run off with another man? Do I look like that much of a magnanimous saint to you?"

Zinnia Lawrence gritted her teeth. "You certainly don’t. Unable to tell right from wrong, arrogant, and tyrannical—that’s you. At least you have some self-awareness."

Jenson Forrest remained indifferent to her sarcasm, his handsome face unperturbed. "Any other insults? Go on, I’m listening."

Zinnia Lawrence felt like she was punching a pillow. Her chest heaved as she sat back down.

"Fine, if you won’t let me out, then drive to the Civil Affairs Bureau. I paid off my debt today, so I’m in a good mood. I’m treating you to a divorce. The processing fee is on me."

Jenson Forrest let out a cold chuckle. "We can’t go."

"What do you mean by that?" Zinnia Lawrence frowned, whipping her head around to glare at him.

Seeing her anxious expression, Jenson Forrest ground his back teeth. He pulled a card from his pants pocket and tossed it to her. "The card broke. I didn’t get the thirty million."

Zinnia Lawrence stared at the bank card that had landed on her lap. It was snapped in two. Her whole body began to tremble.

"How could it break!"

"Who knows? It was so brittle. Maybe it was a fake card."

Zinnia Lawrence was seething. She gritted her teeth and said, "I have online banking enabled. I’ll transfer the money to you right now."

She took out her phone, and just as she unlocked it, the man’s chilly voice sounded beside her again.

"Are you sure you can make a large-sum transfer of thirty million?"

Zinnia Lawrence froze. There were daily transfer limits. Transferring thirty million all at once required pre-approval from the bank, something she hadn’t arranged.

She said angrily, "Then tell the driver to go to the bank! I’ll get a replacement card immediately."

"I don’t have time to waste waiting around for you."

Zinnia Lawrence finally saw it clearly. Jenson Forrest was just stalling. He never intended to take the thirty million, nor did he ever plan on divorcing her. She suddenly felt like a fool for all her frantic efforts over the past month. He was just toying with her the entire time.

Her eyes reddened. "Jenson Forrest, are you playing games with me? You never planned on letting me go, did you? You promised! You even signed the divorce agreement! How can you be so shameless? How could you do this?"

She had just finished a bout of crying, so the moment her eyes grew red, her almond-shaped eyes immediately looked swollen and bloodshot.

Jenson Forrest’s gaze locked onto those eyes filled with hatred, despair, and pain. He felt as if an iron fist was squeezing his own heart, making it so painful he could barely breathe.

He tore his gaze away, refusing to look into her eyes. He loosened his tie before speaking.

"Are you this desperate for a divorce because of Alaric Hawthorne?"

Zinnia Lawrence retorted angrily, "Leave him out of our problems! Do you think everyone is like Crystal Sutton, shameless enough to be a homewrecker?"

When Jenson Forrest saw her defend Alaric Hawthorne so vehemently, he remembered the sight of her crying under the man’s coat. A vein throbbed at his temple. The man suddenly reached out, grabbed Zinnia Lawrence’s slender waist, and pulled her into his arms.

He lowered his gaze to hers. "You get this worked up just mentioning him, and you still claim it’s not because of him?"

Zinnia Lawrence let out a bitter laugh as tears began to stream down her face.

"So it turns out, not only do you look down on me, but in your eyes, I’m also a promiscuous woman, just like Sienna Forrest said—vile, shameless, and with no moral compass."

Her heartbroken face was reflected in Jenson Forrest’s eyes. His pupils constricted as if trying to lock her deep within them, caging her there like a prisoner.

His thin lips twitched. "The feeling is mutual. In your eyes, I’m no saint either."

Zinnia Lawrence’s mouth fell open. For a moment, she was speechless. It took her a while before she could finally speak.

"But you are a cheating scumbag! The ironclad proof is in Crystal Sutton’s belly, and there’s no denying it!"

Jenson Forrest’s expression instantly darkened. He had told her that Crystal Sutton’s child wasn’t his. But clearly, this woman didn’t believe him in the slightest.

Fine. Just fine.

Jenson Forrest closed his eyes. He was afraid he would lose control and strangle her.

Zinnia Lawrence, however, suddenly raised her hand and grabbed his sleeve. Her face was pale, her lips trembled, and she looked at him with pleading eyes.

"We don’t even have a final shred of trust left. Being tied together is just mutual torture. Brother, I’m begging you, please let me go. Just do this one last kindness for me, for your little sister, all right?"

Jenson Forrest opened his eyes. His gaze was turbulent, as if shrouded by a dense forest, making his emotions impossible to discern. He stared into her eyes, which were filled with pleading hope. He felt as if she would shatter like glass in his arms if he so much as shook his head. She had always been so clever, a keen observer who understood human nature. She always knew exactly how to strike his weak spots and make him compromise.

Jenson Forrest suddenly released the hand gripping her waist and said coldly, "Zinnia Lawrence, once you’re divorced and out of the country, don’t ever come back."

Zinnia Lawrence lowered her head as two streams of tears slid down her face. Choking back a sob, she slowly sat up from his embrace and moved to the side. After a long moment, she managed a quiet, "Okay."

"To the Civil Affairs Bureau," the man beside her ordered in a cool voice.