CHAPTER 9: CHAPTER 9: I CAN’T TAKE YOUR CASE

The village elder broke the door open, grabbed The Seeress, and shouted, "Ungrateful child, stealing your grandmother’s old clothes to play ghost, take down everything on the table."

"Oh, Grandpa, you’re hurting me, I won’t dare do it again, please let go."

The Seeress took off her outer robe and hat, revealing herself to be just a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl.

The village elder apologized to Justin Holden standing aside, "This child usually studies in the city and is spoiled during summer vacation. She didn’t mean to deceive our distinguished guests."

"I heard there’s a Seeress in this village."

Justin Holden glanced lightly at the young girl in front of him, a hint of disappointment in his eyes.

It turned out to be fake.

"There was one, it was this child’s grandmother, but she passed away last year."

"Our village is remote, and few people outside are aware of this. It gave this child the opportunity to impersonate and collect money."

The young girl pouted and muttered, "I’m just saying some auspicious words for some tips, I didn’t deceive anyone."

"Why did you say she wasn’t dead? How did you know I came to find someone?"

Justin Holden, meticulous and logical, stared deeply at the young girl in front of him.

"A kid at the entrance of the village told me you were looking for The Seeress to ask about someone’s whereabouts, so of course, I said the person wasn’t dead, just still alive."

"If you wanted her dead, why come so far to ask, even resorting to such a superstitious method."

"Judging by your attire, you’re learned, what’s this, even people like you believe in such things?"

The young girl had a way with words, her lips met and parted, and she spoke better than anyone.

The village elder grabbed her sleeve, scolding, "No more antics, apologize to them."

The young girl snorted, tough as nails, she didn’t feel she was wrong.

"No need."

Justin Holden spoke first, his voice clear and cold, turning to leave.

The village elder called after him, "Hey, distinguished guest, your money..."

The money placed on the altar table, he hadn’t taken it yet.

"She said auspicious words; this is a tip."

Justin Holden said while walking, not stopping his steps.

Driving back home, he passed by a private hospital, intending to get some sleeping pills.

Picking up the medicine from the pharmacy, he saw a young girl in the corridor, about four years old, wearing a beautiful princess dress.

She seemed familiar to him; upon closer inspection, he recognized her as Jean Ellison’s daughter, apparently named Jesse Ellison.

He had seen photo of Jesse in the documents Lawyer Warner had passed on to him.

The child was very adorable, like a delicate porcelain doll, with an oval face, big double-lidded eyes, and dimples at the corners of her mouth when she smiled.

Hair as black as ebony, skin as white as jade, clearly a child from a wealthy family.

A young woman dressed luxuriously, holding Jesse with one hand and an expensive crocodile leather handbag with the other, followed by a nanny and a bodyguard.

"Mom, when can we stop seeing the doctor?"

Jesse looked up, asking her mother, her height reaching only the woman’s thigh.

Coming to the hospital every month, she was very resistant, disliking the doctors in white coats who seemed quite stern.

"After Jesse finishes her surgery next month, we won’t have to come to the hospital so often, but for now, we still need to have regular check-ups."

Jules Ellison spoke gently to her, stroking her head, eyes filled with maternal love.

"Hmm." The little girl nodded obediently.

Justin Holden watched the mother and daughter walk into the specialist’s office, and after they came out, he pushed the door open and went in.

"Lawyer Holden, what brings you to the hospital?"

The doctor recognized him, having previously engaged him in a lawsuit, so they were somewhat acquainted.

"Just passing by, nothing significant. The mother and daughter who came in just now, does the little girl have heart disease?"

Justin Holden remembered the doctor in front of him as a well-known pediatric cardiology expert in Kingswell City.

"Congenital heart disease."

"Such a wonderful child, suffering from this, has to come to the hospital for check-ups every month, waiting for surgery in a while."

"Luckily, the family is wealthy, hiring a medical team from the United States for the surgery, the surgery fees alone are over a million."

"Is the surgery completely foolproof?"

For some reason, Justin Holden felt a sudden heartache.

"Even so, there’s no absolute certainty, such a young child, heart surgery carries significant risks."

"But the surgery must be done. Any further delay, and the child won’t live past ten."

The doctor spoke the truth.

He suddenly asked again, "Lawyer Holden, do you know this family; are they related to you?"

"Just curious, just passing through, sorry for disturbing you."

Justin Holden turned and walked out, his face ashen, took out his phone, and dialed a number as he descended the stairs of the hospital.

"Lawyer Warner, before you took on the lawsuit, didn’t you understand the child’s situation?"

"Jean Ellison’s daughter has a severe heart condition and will undergo surgery soon, with surgery costs in the millions."

"Do you think in such a situation, the judge will grant custody to the biological mother, a woman just released from prison, penniless, struggling to even support herself?"

"We’re both aware of the child’s adoptive parents’ situation, Ian Jennings is a businessman in Kingswell City, from a wealthy lineage with family enterprises worldwide."

"His wife is a homemaker who can dedicate all her time to caring for the ailing Jesse, with a household full of servants and bodyguards."

"Winning this case, is it beneficial or harmful to the child, can you not judge?"

Jesse returning to Jean’s side might not even survive; one month of Jean’s salary isn’t enough for a heart check-up in a private hospital for Jesse.

Lawyer Warner on the other end of the line was silent for a moment, then said, "Sorry, I really wasn’t aware of these things."

She hadn’t had time to understand, saw Jean as pitiful, and out of empathy as a woman, she hastily took the case."

Unexpectedly, she was entangled in a complex case abroad the next day, couldn’t return to assist Jean in time, so she handed the case to Justin Holden."

"I don’t want this to happen a second time."

Justin Holden’s tone was severe, fully embodying a strict work attitude.

In Lawyer Warner’s eyes, he was a heartless individual concerned only with winning cases, professional yet rigid.

Justin Holden hung up the phone, turned around, and saw Jean Ellison not far off.

She stood very close, less than three meters away, able to hear whatever he said, though how much she could hear was another matter.

Jean held a microphone and interview script, wearing blue shoe covers, as if she just finished an interview inside the hospital.

Her face was frighteningly pale, staring at his face without blinking, and the knuckles of her right hand gripping the microphone were red from force.

Severe congenital heart disease...

How could this be, was it due to the fright while in her womb?

When she first went to prison, she had nightmares every night, dreaming of breaking up with Justin, dreaming of her father falling from a building, dreaming of her mother committing suicide in a sanatorium...

For months on end, she never had a peaceful night’s sleep, waking up drenched in sweat.

Justin Holden walked towards her with long strides, his expression cool, one hand in the pocket of his suit pants, his tone as indifferent as ever.

"Since we met here, I won’t have someone specifically notify you."

"I can’t handle your case; the law firm will compensate you triple the deposit according to the contract."