Chapter 364: Chapter 364: Willfully Degenerate
On the other side, Warren Prescott had gone to the Prescott Group headquarters, leaving Assistant Mark in charge of matters at Spectator Tower for the time being.
He was just about to check out the customer service department to see if there were any issues that needed attention when he saw the employee who had earlier asked him about the amulet knocking and entering.
Assistant Mark immediately said, "Don’t ask anymore, I really can’t get that peace charm."
The employee widened their eyes and said, "Who’s talking about that? Do you remember that woman who’s been coming here these past few days?"
Assistant Mark’s eyelid twitched, and he asked, "Rosalind Lynch?"
"Yes, yes, yes, you called her Miss Lynch."
Assistant Mark immediately became alert, "She’s back again?"
"She didn’t come back; she’s just been sitting on the steps outside the east gate. Imagine how many people come and go here? Since she’s here to see Mr. Prescott Jr., people downstairs have started talking, and some even deliberately walk to the door to look at her."
Assistant Mark was silent for a moment. He had just picked up his phone to report to Warren Prescott but then thought of a solution.
He asked, "Is the west gate already renovated?"
The Spectator Tower has two gates, one to the east and one to the west.
The west gate is a bit larger than the east gate, but it’s had some issues, so currently, all employees use the east gate.
Currently, Rosalind Lynch was sitting on the steps of the east gate.
The employee nodded upon hearing this and said, "Right, it was just finished yesterday afternoon, but the door hasn’t been opened yet."
"Open the west gate, close the east gate. And make it known that no one is allowed to go to the east gate."
"Got it." The employee responded, turning to leave and handle it.
Soon, the east gate was closed, and all security was shifted to the west gate.
The area quickly became empty and desolate.
With no people at the gate, it was as if Rosalind Lynch no longer had any audience.
Without an audience, no matter how long she sat there, it would be in vain.
Finally, after more than an hour, Rosalind Lynch couldn’t hold on any longer; the sun was getting hotter, and her throat was parched.
With no other option, she stood up, staggering as she walked away.
But when she went to hail a cab, she hesitated.
If she went back now, her father Gavin Lynch would definitely beat her half to death, but if she didn’t return, where else could she go?
All her cards were supplementary under Gavin Lynch’s name; if she didn’t go home, he could freeze them at any moment.
Returning wasn’t an option, but neither was not going back.
Having a home you can’t go back to described her situation perfectly.
Just when Rosalind Lynch didn’t know what else to do, a BMW stopped in front of her.
The window rolled down to reveal a face with a stubbly beard.
"Rosalind? Is that you?"
Rosalind Lynch looked up in surprise and immediately recognized the man.
It was Director Zeke Jennings.
She studied at the Aethelgard Acting Department, and although she was still a student, her father Gavin had pulled some strings for her, allowing her to film a low-budget movie last year.
Although it didn’t make a huge splash, it did earn her hundreds of thousands of followers online.
The middle-aged man in front of her, Zeke Jennings, was the director of that film.
Back on set, Zeke Jennings hadn’t known her identity at first and thought she was just an ordinary female college student, attempting to make unwanted advances towards her.
Later, once she revealed her identity as a sponsor’s daughter, Zeke was so frightened that he didn’t dare make any inappropriate moves again.
At that time, Rosalind Lynch had wanted to replace the director immediately, but since they were midway through filming, finding a new director could result in inconsistent styles, so she decided to keep Zeke.
Zeke was originally from Aethelgard, and she hadn’t expected to run into him here.
Just a short while ago, seeing Zeke Jennings would have made Rosalind Lynch not even want to spare him a glance.
But now...
Rosalind Lynch suddenly felt that Zeke Jennings might be her only salvation right now.
She didn’t want to go back to the Lynch Family!
Though Zeke was a bit unattractive, he was at least a talented director and had a villa in Krovia.
If she stayed with him...though distasteful, life wouldn’t be too hard.
With that thought, Rosalind Lynch made up her mind in an instant.
"Director Jennings." Rosalind Lynch tugged the corner of her mouth into a feeble, miserable smile.
Though the left side of her face was swollen and there was a bruise on her mouth, it wasn’t to an unseemly extent.
Besides, Zeke Jennings had always had a thing for her.
So with just one smile, Zeke’s mind began to scheme.
As a director, he frequently kept up with the news and knew that the Lynch Group was in trouble, having already declared bankruptcy.
Now that Rosalind Lynch was smiling at him, the "battle-hardened" Zeke could immediately see Rosalind’s intent.
He promptly opened the car door and got out, reaching to support Rosalind’s slender shoulder.
"What happened to you? Who bullied you? Tell me, and I will definitely stand up for you!"
Rosalind Lynch weakly shook her head.
"No one, I was just careless myself..."
"No matter what, I’ll take you to the hospital first."
"It’s not necessary; I can go myself."
"You’re just a young girl; how can you manage on your own? I’ll take you there!"
"Really, there’s no need, Director Jennings..."
Though Rosalind Lynch verbally refused, her body language showed she was neither fully resisting nor fully accepting.
Zeke Jennings was overjoyed inside, but outwardly he appeared to be a concerned friend.
Both of them set their sights on each other with ulterior motives as they went to the hospital.
Meanwhile, Ashley Shaw also left the Idyllic Countryside and returned to Ariana Grant’s home.
On the way, she gave Claire Xavier a call.
Even though Claire Xavier was busy, Ashley wanted to say goodbye before leaving.
The phone rang twice before it was answered.
"Ms. Grant..."
She had just begun to speak when Cillian Xavier’s voice came from the other end.
"It’s me, Archie."
Ashley Shaw was briefly startled and instinctively checked the number she dialed; it was indeed Claire Xavier’s, she hadn’t made a mistake.
In moments, Ashley understood and asked, "Is Ms. Xavier busy right now?"
"Not exactly busy, just comforting Ivy’s mom."
It was chaotic on his end.
Since yesterday, Ivy Bond had been unable to accept the reality of her serious illness, causing trouble for the nurses and family, until she was given a sedative recently to put her to sleep.
Soon after Ivy Bond fell asleep, the couple held each other and cried.
After finally calming down, Finn Bond called to inquire, making Mrs. Bond sob even more.
In short, it was a tangled mess.
Ashley Shaw had anticipated this situation and wasn’t surprised.
Ivy Bond’s personality was the kind that easily offended people, so it wasn’t the little nurse’s fault for telling the truth; even a rabbit will bite when cornered.
"Do you have something you need? If it’s urgent, I can hand the phone to her; she’s in the café opposite the hospital. It’ll take me about ten minutes to walk there."
"No need for the trouble," Ashley Shaw said. "Just let her know when she comes back."
"Sure, go ahead."
"I have a flight at five, going to Aethelgard. I wanted to say goodbye, but I couldn’t find her at Idyllic Countryside, so I guessed she was at the hospital. Since you’re quite busy over there, I won’t come to disturb you. But I’ve left a gift for her at the store, she can pick it up when she has time."
Cillian Xavier paused for two seconds, then asked vacantly, "You’re leaving?"