Chapter 300
After deleting the messages on her phone, Stella said quietly, “Maybe this is just the beginning.”
…
Sure enough, things unfolded exactly as Stella had expected.
They had barely finished dinner when Stella received a call from Mr. Burton, saying that his clinic had been trashed.
Stella and her friends didn’t waste a second-they hurried straight to the clinic.
The scene that greeted them was utter chaos. Every cabinet and chair lay toppled on the floor, with medicines and jars scattered everywhere. The windows had all been smashed, and the sign above the door was broken into several jagged pieces.
It looked like the clinic had survived a hurricane.
Stella pushed through the crowd that had gathered, spotting Mr. Burton slumped on the front steps, looking utterly defeated.
“Mr. Burton, are you alright?” Stella rushed over and helped Mr. Burton to his feet.
He shook his head, trying to insist he was fine-but as he took in the devastation around him, he couldn’t hold back a heavy sigh.
“I suppose there’s no choice now. Looks like I’ll have to head home earlier than planned.”
Stella’s eyes flickered with concern. “You’re leaving? Mr. Burton, are you closing the clinic for good?”
“That’s right. I’m done.”
“Mr. Burton, I can help you fix the place up-“
“There’s no need.” Mr. Burton waved her off. “I’m getting old, and my kids have been begging me to retire and come home. I was planning to head back next month anyway. With things like this… well, I guess I’ll just leave a little sooner.”
Stella lowered her head. “I’m sorry, Mr. Burton.”
He glanced at her. “Now, what are you apologizing to me for? This isn’t your fault.”
“If it weren’t for me, none of this would’ve happened…” Guilt washed over Stella’s face. “I’m sorry. This all started because of me.”
Mr. Burton seemed to realize what she meant. “It was that troublemaker Jasper, wasn’t it?”
Stella was silent for a few seconds, then nodded slightly.
Mr. Burton snorted. “I figured as much. Your ex-husband-he’s sly, but he’d never
do something so blatant. That Jasper kid, though, he’s the type to pull a stupid stunt like this.”
Stella didn’t argue.
On the way over, she’d messaged Foreman to ask what happened.
Foreman’s reply had been straightforward: “It was Jasper, but Haynes was there too. He didn’t stop it.”
Just to prove it, Foreman had even sent her the recording.
Stella had always known that, after the divorce, Haynes would turn against her. But she hadn’t expected him to stoop this low.
“Mr. Burton, I’ll take full responsibility for the damages—”
Before she could finish, Mr. Burton cut her off.
“This isn’t on you. Why should you pay? If anyone should cough up, it’s that little punk Jasper!”
“He’s… not likely to pay you back.”
Stella knew Jasper’s personality all too well. He’d been waiting for this-for her and Haynes to split, so he could exact his revenge. The odds of him compensating Mr. Burton were next to zero.
“I know.” Mr. Burton’s face reddened with anger. “But I’ll be damned if I just let this slide.”
He turned to Stella. “Do me a favor, will you? Call that little brat Jasper for me. I need to give him a piece of my mind I won’t feel right until I do!”
Abby, who’d been standing by, was fuming as well.
“This is outrageous! Jasper and his cronies are the worst-biting the hand that fed them! Mr. Burton saved Rachel’s life with his medicine, and this is how they repay him? Ungrateful jerks. If I’d known, I’d have slipped some crap into their prescription myself!”
Neville raised an eyebrow. “Crap?”
Abby didn’t bother to hide anything. She leaned in and quietly filled Neville in on the whole story behind the medicine.