CHAPTER 83: CHAPTER 83: JULIAN SINCLAIR INVITES ME TO THE HOTEL

When Jenna Sutton and I heard the name ’Julian Sinclair’, our ears perked up, and our hearts leapt to our throats.

Just as we were curious about whether Timothy Xavier would agree to the proposition, the sound of the waiter bringing dishes interrupted their conversation.

"Let’s eat."

Timothy Xavier said blandly, not responding to Serena Sawyer.

Jenna and I exchanged uneasy glances, silently gesturing to each other to leave first.

After all, right now we’re only separated by a screen from Timothy’s group. If they finish their meal before us, they might pass by our table on their way out.

Jenna and I finished recording and quietly stood up.

At that moment, the lobby manager suddenly approached, saying enthusiastically, "Miss Sutton, are you and your friend dissatisfied with our service? Why leave before eating today?"

Jenna was afraid that if she spoke, Timothy would recognize her voice, so she kept making eye signals to the manager.

But the manager completely missed her signals and continued, "By the way, it’s our restaurant’s twentieth anniversary, and we’ve sent a gift to The Sutton Family. Have you received it?"

With a sense of hopelessness, Jenna closed her eyes.

And at this moment, Timothy Xavier had already walked up to us.

The manager was very surprised: "President Xavier? You... you know Miss Sutton too?"

Timothy Xavier forced a knowing yet mocking smile, saying to Jenna, "We’re all friends here, let’s sit down and chat?"

"Who’s friends with you! Don’t flatter yourself."

Jenna stood up straight, not showing any guilt from our secret recording, and pulled me to leave.

After only two steps, Timothy grabbed my wrist, forcing Jenna to stop too.

He glanced at the manager, who wisely left.

My wrist ached from his grip, and I frowned, saying, "Timothy Xavier, do you really want to make a scene here and embarrass everyone? If you don’t mind, I don’t either. Let’s see who ends up more ashamed?"

Jenna snorted coldly, asking, "Timothy Xavier, don’t tell me you can’t even afford to treat your mistress to a meal? Holding Zoe here, are you expecting her to pay the bill?"

She hinted at the freezing of Timothy’s assets.

The man’s eyes surged with cold light, looking at me, "Zoe Ellison, are you serious? About the divorce, have you made up your mind?"

I calmly said, "I never joked with you about it. You just didn’t believe it from the start."

"Fine, don’t regret it."

He nodded, released me,

and Jenna pulled me away, as if avoiding the plague.

As soon as we were outside, she angrily said, "Serena Sawyer is such a bitch! Trying to involve Julian Sinclair means leaving you no way out!"

"Julian Sinclair won’t defend them in court."

Recalling the scene at my grandpa’s house, I said, "Though he’s Timothy Xavier’s uncle in name, their relationship doesn’t seem close. Besides, I’ve told him that Doris might be my biological daughter; he doesn’t seem like someone with no principles."

Jenna suddenly laughed, teasing, "Oh my, you seem to have a good impression of Julian Sinclair! Are you that close to him to know he’s principled?"

"What nonsense are you talking?"

I couldn’t be bothered with her, walking straight ahead.

But Jenna followed closely, saying, "I can tell Madam Sinclair wants to set you up with Julian! Why not consider him? If it works out between you two, you’ll become Sophia Kendall’s sister-in-law, and Timothy Xavier will have to call you ’Aunt’! Just imagine how satisfying that would be!"

"Jenna Sutton!"

Embarrassed and angry, I looked at her, "If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll really get angry!"

Jenna finally stopped joking, hooking her arm around mine, saying, "Alright, I’m sorry, okay? Just imagining a plot in a feel-good story! If you don’t like it, I won’t mention it next time!"

Later, we changed to another restaurant.

After lunch, we each went our own way.

As soon as I got home, I turned on my computer to update my novel.

The editor suggested splitting the novel into two parts. The producer plans to shoot the first part first; if it’s well-received, they’ll proceed with the second part.

But the first part needs to be finished by the end of the year, or it will delay the filming schedule.

So, time is tight for me.

To speed up, I sat in front of the computer until late at night, cranking out 20,000 words in a day.

Perhaps because many things were personally experienced, inspiration was rarely lacking, making writing much faster.

Even the editor was amazed, saying I didn’t seem like a newbie, more like an author of many books.

"Vera, do you have time recently? This film is a big production, so we’re supposed to meet with investors, producers, and directors before shooting."

Looking at the message, though I wanted to refuse, I’m not someone detached from reality; I wouldn’t reject normal social events.

However, remembering that the production company was a subsidiary of The Sinclair Group,

I asked, "Are the investors from The Sinclair Group?"

Although this novel artistically adapted my own story, it’s not entirely about me. But if acquaintances find out, it would be a bit awkward.

If the representative from The Sinclair Group is Julian Sinclair, wouldn’t that be even more embarrassing?

So it’s better to ask clearly.

The editor replied, "Hold on, I’ll check."

Soon, the editor informed me that the major investor will attend personally.

Therefore, as the author, it’s best if I attend; after all, meeting the big boss is a rare opportunity.

I figured the big boss was likely Julian Sinclair.

So, I found an excuse, saying I’m an introvert, and declined.

I thought that’s the end of it.

But not long after, I received a notification from WeChat.

To my surprise, Julian Sinclair sent me a message himself.

Opening it, it was just a few words: "Am I that frightening?"

I was taken aback for a moment, then replied with a question mark, adding: "Uncle, did you send this by mistake?"

He sent another message: "Are you declining the dinner because of me?"

Right then, I realized, my face burning hot.

So he’s known all along that I’m the author of this novel?

I thought with such a large company, Julian Sinclair being so busy, he’d only manage big issues and not notice these minor details.

Knowing that he found out earlier and probably saw the novel’s content, I felt the urge to disappear into a hole.

I forced myself to reply: "I’m allergic to alcohol, so I never attend social events, sorry."

"With me there, no one will force you to drink."

Looking at his message, I was pondering other excuses.

But then he sent: "The day after tomorrow, 7 PM, The Regent Grand Hotel."

Leaving no room for me to refuse.

I took a deep breath and gave an ’OK’ gesture, but my heart was all over the place.

It was mainly because I felt awkward.

I wondered if Julian Sinclair would link every character in my novel to me when he read it.

Even more embarrassing was that there was a lawyer in my novel too.

But the lawyer I wrote was intended to be paired with my best friend, not based on his image at all!

I let my mind wander, feeling uneasy, and finally waited for the day after tomorrow.

...

To show my seriousness about this dinner, I put on light makeup and chose a camel cashmere coat with an intellectual touch, and tidied myself up.

The Regent Grand Hotel was not close to where I lived, and with traffic, it would take more than an hour.

Around five o’clock, I was about to leave the house when my phone suddenly rang.

When I answered, I heard Victoria Monroe’s voice on the other end, which surprised me quite a bit.

Although we had once stood on the same side against a common adversary at work, there was always a layer of politeness between us.

Now that we had both left our jobs, I didn’t expect her to contact me.

"Zoe, how have you been lately? Why haven’t I seen any of your news articles recently?"

As I walked out, I replied, "Not long after you left, I got dismissed because of some things."

Victoria paused on the other end, her tone becoming more understanding, "Was it also related to Serena Sawyer? I saw when you and your aunt were cyberbullied. Is everything resolved now?"

Those oppressive past events were something I didn’t want to talk about, so I changed the subject, "It’s all in the past. Did you call because something’s up?"

"I just got word that there’s been a mass food poisoning at Starlight Kindergarten."

Victoria’s voice was filled with urgency typical of a workaholic, "It’s a good news point, but my new job is too busy, and I’m handling a human trafficking case, so I’m overwhelmed. Could you help me follow up on it?"

The words "Starlight Kindergarten" stopped me in my tracks.

It seemed that recently, Timothy Xavier had transferred Doris to this kindergarten.

This kindergarten was also the only one in Veridia that could rival the elite school run by the Sutton Family.

Without any hesitation, I agreed, "Okay, send me the information, and I’ll head over there now."

...

On the way, Victoria sent the information about the food poisoning at Starlight Kindergarten to my phone, and I quickly skimmed through it.

When I arrived at the kindergarten, the entrance was already crowded with parents demanding answers and many media cameras flashing.

I showed my credentials from when I was a reporter, and caught key information from the chaotic conversations between teachers and parents.

But the school administration, in an effort to contain the news and minimize the impact, refused to disclose the list of affected children.

I was extremely anxious.

Reporting was secondary; I just wanted to know if my Doris was unharmed.

Until a parent who claimed to be the head of the parent committee presented the list.

Sure enough, among the names of poisoned children was ’Doris Xavier’, alongside the name of the hospital, Veridia First Municipal Hospital.

I felt ice-cold all over and immediately drove towards the hospital.

...

Fortunately, the hospital was not far, and I arrived in half an hour.

The municipal hospital was also crowded with parents due to the influx of children from the kindergarten.

As soon as I reached the pediatrics department, I spotted Timothy Xavier among the many parents.

His tall figure emanated a cold aura that kept people at a distance, holding a cigarette between his fingers but not lighting it.

Jack Sullivan was continually talking beside him, seemingly reporting something?

"Timothy Xavier." I quickly walked over, my voice carrying an almost imperceptible tremble.

He turned his head upon hearing my voice, frowning as he saw me, and asked displeased, "Why are you here?"

To avoid arousing his suspicion, I feigned calmness and showed my reporter’s ID, saying, "I’m here for an interview."

Timothy’s face grew even darker, his tone icy, "Go interview someone else."

His demeanor made my heart sink, and I pressed on, "How’s Doris? Is she... was she severely poisoned?"

Timothy’s indifferent gaze was devoid of warmth, and he replied coldly, "This has nothing to do with you."

"Does Doris really have nothing to do with me?"

Anger surged within me, and I blurted out, "She’s clearly my..."

Just as I spoke halfway, Jack Sullivan interrupted, saying, "Ma’am, maybe you should... go interview someone else first? President Xavier is in a bad mood right now, so... don’t provoke him."

Just then, Serena Sawyer hurried over, wearing sunglasses and a mask.

She paused slightly upon seeing me, then immediately squeezed past me to Timothy’s side, asking, "Timothy, is Doris okay? Why did this happen?"

As she spoke, her voice already carried a sobbing tone, and she leaned into Timothy’s embrace.

Timothy gently held her, his voice soft and low, "The doctors are still rescuing her."

My heart was tightly clenched.

He used the word ’rescuing’?

So, was Doris severely poisoned?

I clenched my fists and said bitterly, "Timothy Xavier, if you hadn’t transferred Doris to Starlight Kindergarten, this wouldn’t have happened!"

He suddenly lifted his gaze, his eyes dark and sharp like ink, "You dare mention this? Who knows what you and Jenna Sutton are plotting with Doris?"

Serena Sawyer looked distraught and said, "Miss Ellison, I beg you to leave my Doris alone! She’s already suffered so much, are you here to gloat?"

With her words, Timothy’s gaze grew even colder, and he said to me, "Do I really need to call the bodyguards to kick you out?"

If he really did that, I would have no way to find out about Doris!

So, I stopped arguing with him and, using my journalist identity, went to interview the doctors, hoping to gather some useful information.

At the very least, I needed to know if Doris was safe.

During the interviews, I learned that the cause of the children’s poisoning was that the kindergarten principal had accrued massive gambling debts and misappropriated public funds, leading to cost-cutting in every area, even using substandard expired ingredients for the children’s meals.

While I was interviewing a few pediatricians, a nurse suddenly rushed into the office, "Dr. Morgan, three children are in critical condition! The ER needs assistance!"

My heart almost leaped out of my chest; could it be my Doris?

I sprinted after the doctor.

However, today I was wearing high heels meant for attending a social event, and as I ran, I tripped and fell to the ground.

Embarrassed, I got up and continued to stumble toward the emergency room.

Suddenly, I bumped into a wall of flesh.

Looking up, I realized it was Timothy Xavier.

Where had Serena Sawyer gone?

"Where’s Doris?" I grabbed his lapel, my voice trembling, "Is she... in the emergency room?"