Chapter 255: Lawyer Donovan
By the time Vivian Lowell and Julian Faulkner returned to the Faulkner villa, it was already past nine in the evening.
Vivian was exhausted. The moment she got home, she kicked off her shoes, slipped into her slippers, stretched, and let out a big yawn. Seeing Ms. Shaw tidying up in the kitchen, she asked softly, “Ms. Shaw, has Grandma gone to bed?”
“Madam Faulkner is resting.”
After answering politely, Ms. Shaw glanced in the direction of Grandma Faulkner’s room, suddenly looking a little hesitant.
This subtle shift in Ms. Shaw’s mood naturally couldn’t escape Julian’s eyes. Catching it immediately, he asked, “What is it, Ms. Shaw?”
“Well…” Ms. Shaw set down her work and walked over, whispering, “For the past few days, a lawyer has been coming around to see Madam Faulkner. He said it’s for… the young lady’s… I mean, for Rachel Faulkner’s case.”
Ms. Shaw was still having a little trouble changing how she addressed Rachel.
Rachel had already been kicked out of the Faulkner family. She wasn’t related to the Faulkners by blood anyway, and now they were simply leaving her to fend for herself.
𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
“A lawyer? What’s going on?”
Hearing that it was about this matter, Julian’s expression turned serious.
Rachel was a person who loved to stir up trouble. Her death sentence was almost set in stone, but because she refused to accept it, she had appealed and was simply waiting for the second trial!
After all, a miserable life was better than a good death.
Rachel was afraid of dying. She wanted to drag it out for as long as possible and buy herself more time!
Lawyer Donovan was the legal representative Rachel had hired. The two of them had known each other for a while; Vivian had once seen them going to a bar together.
As for their exact relationship, Vivian didn’t know. But seeing how Lawyer Donovan was now making special trips to the Faulkner villa to speak on Rachel’s behalf, it was clear he was going out of his way to help her.
“Ever since Rachel was sentenced to death, she refused to accept it. She had Lawyer Donovan come here, hoping to get Madam Faulkner’s forgiveness,” Ms. Shaw explained.
“I asked around and heard that if she can get a letter of forgiveness from the victim, there’s a chance to reduce her sentence from the death penalty to life imprisonment!
“Lawyer Donovan has been here several times already. He’s very sly—he mostly comes when I’m not around. He even bypassed the security guards. It’s despicable!
“When Madam Faulkner found out Rachel had been sentenced to death, she was very heartbroken. Fortunately, she’s still very clear-headed and hasn’t agreed to anything Lawyer Donovan said.
“But from what I can see, Madam Faulkner has been very unhappy because of all this.”
Ms. Shaw sighed. “Madam Faulkner originally forbade me from telling you and Mr. Faulkner. She said you finally had some time to relax in Cyrina.
“She didn’t want this matter to distract you or ruin your mood. She said she wouldn’t agree to Lawyer Donovan’s requests anyway. But I couldn’t bear to see her so upset, which is why…”
“You did the right thing, Ms. Shaw.”
Vivian looked at Ms. Shaw and said gently, “Don’t worry. I won’t go to the company tomorrow. I’ll stay home and keep Grandma company! If that Lawyer Donovan shows up, I’ll kick him out myself!”
Ms. Shaw’s eyes lit up, but after a moment’s thought, she added, “That Lawyer Donovan is very cunning. Someone in our household might still be in contact with Rachel!
“Lawyer Donovan might have coordinated with this person! That’s how he manages to come exactly when I’m not around! You must be prepared in advance, Mrs. Faulkner!”
Vivian understood what Ms. Shaw meant.
Someone in the Faulkner home had been bribed by Rachel, and this person was now in contact with Lawyer Donovan. There were spies for Lawyer Donovan inside the house, and they needed to be vigilant!
“I understand.”
Vivian blinked at Ms. Shaw and said with a smile, “Isn’t that simple? I’ll just pretend to leave, and then I’ll come right back!
“Anyway, Ms. Shaw, just leave tomorrow to me!”
“Yes, ma’am.” Ms. Shaw nodded. Then she glanced at Julian and asked, “By the way, Mr. Faulkner, Mrs. Faulkner, would you like some late-night snacks?”
“No need,” Julian shook his head. He took Vivian’s hand and led her upstairs.
Returning to the home she hadn’t seen in days and looking at the bed she was accustomed to sleeping in, Vivian broke into a satisfied smile.
She was actually the type of person who had trouble sleeping in unfamiliar beds.
During her few days in Cyrina, she was lucky that the hotel was incredibly high-end. They had over a dozen different pillows of varying heights. She had to swap out quite a few before finally finding the most comfortable one.
Because of that, she had slept relatively well over the past few days.
But no matter what, there was no place like home. She still loved her own house the most!
“This is great. We’re finally back!”
Vivian immediately flopped onto the bed, spread-eagled to stretch out her body.
Julian sat down beside her and asked, “Since you’ll be at home tomorrow, do you need me to send Vance Wyatt over to help you?”
“No need.”
Vivian shook her head and closed her eyes to rest. “We have so many people in this house; are we really going to be afraid of Lawyer Donovan? Don’t worry, I’ve got it all figured out!
“This time, I’m going to make sure Lawyer Donovan regrets ever setting foot in here!”
Vivian spoke with the air of a valiant heroine.
Watching her act like this, Julian couldn’t help but shake his head with a chuckle. “Alright. Since you’re so confident, I’ll leave it to you.
“Remember to keep in touch. If you need any help, call me right away.”
“Mm-hmm!” Vivian agreed. She rolled over, hugged a pillow, and whined endearingly to Julian, “Julian, I’m so tired. Could you go draw a bath for me?
“Make it nice and warm, and add a few drops of rose essential oil. I want to have a good soak!”
“Okay,” Julian agreed softly, turning around to get to work.
The next morning, when Vivian and Julian went downstairs for breakfast, they saw Grandma Faulkner.
Grandma Faulkner seemed to be in good spirits. Over breakfast, Vivian took the opportunity to recount the interesting things that had happened during their time in Cyrina.
“Beachcombing was so much fun! Grandma, it’s such a pity you didn’t come with us this time! Oh, right, Julian said we’re going to Brettony next month!
“If you’re free then, why don’t you come with us? We might even have the chance to go to Provencia to see the lavender. I think lavender is in season right around now!
“Fields and hills covered in lavender—how lovely would that be!”
Vivian looked deeply yearning. Listening to Vivian talk about these things, Grandma Faulkner also found it fascinating and said, “Well… alright! As long as Julian doesn’t mind me being a third wheel and getting in the way of your couple’s trip, I have no problem with it!”
“I don’t mind, Grandma.”
Julian felt quite helpless. He had already invited Eleanor Rhodes, so he naturally wouldn’t stop Grandma Faulkner from joining them. What’s more…
Grandma Faulkner absolutely had to go with them to Brettony next month to witness what was going to happen then.
The three of them chatted for a while. It was getting late, and Julian had to head to the company. Ms. Shaw came out of the kitchen and asked Vivian, “Mrs. Faulkner, could you take me with you when you go out today?
“My car seems to be having some issues, and I just so happen to need to go out and buy a few things today. I’m afraid I have to trouble you, Mrs. Faulkner.”
“Shaw, your car broke down? Wasn’t it perfectly fine yesterday?” Grandma Faulkner, who was also getting ready to walk the dog, asked upon hearing this. “How about I lend you my car?
“Vivian is going to the company. Are you two even heading in the same direction?”
“We are, we are!” Vivian eagerly answered before Ms. Shaw could, saying, “Don’t worry, Grandma. Ms. Shaw already told me about this last night!
“I’ll just take her with me, and once she’s done shopping, she can take a cab back!”
Grandma Faulkner found it a little strange, but it wasn’t her place to say anything. Nodding, she said, “Alright, be safe. I’ll go walk the dog now.”
“Okay.”
Vivian agreed with a bright smile, and the three of them—Julian, Vivian, and Ms. Shaw—left the house together.
The three of them drove out in two cars. Julian, of course, was heading back to the Faulkner Group. He had been overwhelmingly busy lately, while Vivian was perfectly fine working from home.
With Leo holding down the fort at the company, Vivian was very much at ease. She only needed to attend meetings at crucial moments to lay out their recent objectives.
After they drove out, Ms. Shaw opened her iPad in the car. On the screen was the surveillance footage from the Faulkner villa; every single corner could be seen clearly.
“I was careless the last two times! I only bumped into Lawyer Donovan when I got home! And he ran away so fast! Even if I wanted to call the security guards, it was too late!
“This time, I need to see exactly who in the house is secretly in touch with him! This is infuriating!”
Ms. Shaw was furious about the fact that a “traitor” had emerged in their home!
Currently, the live-in maids and nannies had essentially all been handpicked by Ms. Shaw herself, and her primary requirement was loyalty to the Faulkner family!
Even if these people had taken care of Rachel for a period of time, they shouldn’t just treat Rachel as their true “master” because of it!
“Human nature is just like that.”
Vivian, on the other hand, didn’t have much of a reaction to this. She said nonchalantly, “The world bustles for profit, and the world scrambles for profit.
“Most of them value the salaries we offer, so they choose to stay with the Faulkners. Naturally, if Rachel offers them even more money just to tip her off, there’s a chance they might agree.
“What’s more, from their perspective, merely ‘tipping someone off’ might not seem like a grave betrayal of their conscience.
“Since that’s the case, what’s wrong with earning money from both sides? Right?”
That was simply human nature.
When you can justify things to yourself, your moral bottom line lowers, and there are always people in this world whose moral compasses aren’t that strict to begin with.
There were many maids staying at the Faulkner villa, and there were even dedicated gardeners who came every day to tend to the flowers. It was impossible for every single one of these people to be wholly devoted to the Faulkner family.
The Faulkners paid well, so they naturally listened to the Faulkners. If someone else paid more, they would go elsewhere and work for someone else. This was all perfectly understandable.
Of course, if it involved morality and the law, like being asked to harm someone, they might not dare to do it. But for something as seemingly inconsequential as tipping someone off, they might just have the nerve.
Lawyer Donovan and Rachel were simply taking advantage of this very point.
“…”
Ms. Shaw looked a little disheartened after hearing Vivian’s words.
She was an upright person herself. She usually couldn’t bear to see poor people suffer, and occasionally she would even donate money to children in impoverished areas.
Now, hearing that something like this was happening right in their home and knowing she had no way to stop it, she could only let out a heavy sigh.
“It’s fine, Ms. Shaw.”
Seeing her sadness, Vivian comforted her gently, “Just keep a close eye on the surveillance footage for now. If anyone looks suspicious, just jot their name down.
“Once Lawyer Donovan’s matter is dealt with, we’ll fish this person out and fire them. Then, we’ll inform all the domestic service agencies that they have a black mark on their record.
“We’ll tell the agencies that they were secretly communicating with outsiders behind their employers’ backs, and warn them never to hire this person again.
“In this world, if someone wants to do things that betray their conscience, they must be mentally prepared to face the punishment when they are caught.
“Otherwise, if doing bad things didn’t come with a price, wouldn’t the whole world descend into chaos?”
Hearing Vivian say this, Ms. Shaw’s eyes instantly lit up. Even her monitoring of the surveillance footage became much more energized. “You’re absolutely right, Mrs. Faulkner!
“Doing bad things comes with a price! I’m going to watch this footage very carefully right now!”
“Mm-hmm!”
Vivian nodded, and the two exchanged a knowing smile.
After driving out, they pulled over on the side of the road near a shopping mall not far from the villa district. Vivian then asked, “By the way, Ms. Shaw, what did you need to buy again?”
Ms. Shaw paused for a second before answering, “Saying I needed to buy things was just a ruse. It was just an excuse to come out with you, Mrs. Faulkner, so that person would have the opportunity to tip him off!
“We have everything we need at home. There’s nothing to buy.”
So that was it.
Vivian nodded. After thinking for a moment, she said, “If there’s nothing to buy, I’ll still go in and walk around. Grandma usually takes an hour to walk the dog.
“Since she hasn’t returned yet, Lawyer Donovan definitely won’t show up. I’ll just browse around while you continue watching the footage. If there are any issues, call me right away.”
“Will do, Mrs. Faulkner,” Ms. Shaw agreed, continuing to stare intently at the surveillance screen.
Vivian quickly entered the supermarket.
The supermarket had just opened on a weekday morning, so it wasn’t crowded. There were only a few maids scattered around buying groceries, and Vivian actually recognized several of them.
They were all maids from their villa district. Because this place was so close to the district, it was the most convenient spot for them to drive to.
A few of them recognized Vivian as well. Seeing her browsing the supermarket, they were slightly surprised and hurried over to greet her. “Hello, Mrs. Faulkner. Buying things this early in the morning?
“Frances Shaw usually comes to do the shopping. Is she busy today?”
Frances Shaw was Ms. Shaw’s full name.
Hearing this, Vivian replied, “Ms. Shaw wasn’t feeling well today, so she didn’t come. I’m just looking around. Are there any good finds in the supermarket this early?”
Vivian then began chatting with the maids.
Stopping here and there, she strolled through the supermarket for a while. Looking at the dazzling array of goods on the shelves, Vivian actually found it quite stress-relieving.
Soon enough, Vivian had bought pretty much everything she wanted. While she was still at the checkout counter, Ms. Shaw called her.