Chapter 346: The Marshalls Had No Opportunity to Commit the Crime
Adrian Lancaster returned home and walked into the living room, where warm, yellow sconces cast a soft glow.
Wren Sutton was wrapped in a light-colored, thin blanket, sitting quietly on the sofa.
"Honey, why aren’t you in bed yet?"
Hearing the sound, Wren Sutton immediately stood up and hurried over to him.
"With something this serious happening, I couldn’t sleep. How are things at the hospital? Is he okay?"
Adrian Lancaster looked at her with a gentle gaze and took her hand.
"He’s out of danger. He’s fine. He’s on an IV drip, and his uncle and aunt are with him in the room."
"The diagnosis is a stomach ulcer, physical exhaustion, and fainting from a high fever."
Once she confirmed that Sean Sterling’s life wasn’t in danger, the weight on Wren Sutton’s heart lifted slightly.
But immediately after, a strong sense of guilt and self-blame washed over her.
"His sudden collapse is my fault, too. I shouldn’t have said those things to provoke him."
"He was already in pain over Isla’s departure, and I just had to go and twist the knife, deliberately agitating him."
"If something had really happened to him, I’d be a sinner."
Hearing this, Adrian Lancaster quickly pulled Wren Sutton into his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head in a hug that was both gentle and firm.
"It has nothing to do with you. Don’t take the blame, and don’t beat yourself up over it."
"If anyone’s to blame, it’s me. What I said was the real gut punch, the final straw."
Wren Sutton still felt uneasy. "Are you sure it wasn’t because of me?"
Adrian Lancaster gently patted her back. "Of course not."
"The emotional distress was just one part of it. The main reason is that he’s barely rested these past two days, hasn’t been eating properly, and was suffering from severe physical exhaustion, which led to his collapse."
With a complicated mix of emotions, Wren Sutton nodded. She looked out the window, where raindrops tapped against the glass, their soft sounds making the room feel even more silent.
"I hope he gets better soon."
"He will," Adrian Lancaster said firmly.
He glanced at the time.
"It’s getting late. Let’s get some rest."
The two of them walked toward the bedroom together.
Once inside, Adrian Lancaster went to the nursery to check on the children first. Owen and Nina were sleeping soundly. He smiled, relieved, then took off his jacket and prepared to take a shower.
Just then, his phone rang. Not wanting to wake the children, Adrian Lancaster went to his study.
The call was from his assistant.
"President Lancaster, we’ve finished verifying the situation with the Marshall family."
"Report."
"Maya Marshall and her parents are currently abroad. There are no recent entry records for any of them. We’ve checked with the airport, customs, and the immigration system—it all matches up. Nothing unusual."
"Maya Marshall is in poor health. She’s in a wheelchair and has a dedicated caregiver. Her daily activities are very limited. We have covertly taken photos and videos, and there’s nothing to suggest anything is amiss."
Upon hearing this, a frosty look settled over Adrian Lancaster’s face, and a cold aura radiated from him.
It seemed, then, that the one stalking Wren Sutton wasn’t one of the Marshalls.
His prime suspect had just been completely ruled out.
Maya Marshall was far away, overseas. She hadn’t returned to Aston. She was disabled and in a wheelchair. She had no means to commit the crime...
But the more certain this became, the heavier Adrian Lancaster’s sense of unease grew.
’If it’s not Maya Marshall, then who could it be?’
An open attack is easy to dodge, but a hidden arrow is hard to defend against.
He could handle Maya Marshall’s revenge. He could deal with any overt hostility.
But now, the person lurking in the shadows, silently stalking Wren Sutton, was a complete mystery—identity unknown, motive unclear.
This person was like a dark figure hidden in the shadows, constantly watching his wife, watching the stable home he had worked so hard to build.
This unknown fear, this hidden danger, was far more terrifying than any known enemy.
"Send the photos and videos to me," Adrian Lancaster’s voice grew cold.
He was always used to being in control of everything, but this time, his opponent was hidden in the shadows, as elusive as a phantom. This feeling of losing control made the unease in his heart grow even stronger.
"Yes, President Lancaster."
Adrian Lancaster hung up the phone.
Soon, he received the files from his assistant.
He opened the photos and videos one by one, examining them carefully.
The person in them was indeed Maya Marshall; there was no mistaking it.
She was in a wheelchair, with limited mobility, and needed a caregiver to go anywhere.
In her condition, she couldn’t even protect herself, let alone stalk someone.
Adrian Lancaster put his phone away. A cold sensation lingered on his fingertips, and the frost in his eyes had not yet thawed. The unease in his heart spread like the boundless night.
He gazed out the window at the pitch-black night, hesitating over whether he should tell Wren Sutton about this.
She was already wracked with guilt and anxiety over Sean Sterling’s collapse. If he were to tell her now that someone had been secretly stalking her, and that the person’s identity was a complete mystery...
She was already a sensitive and delicate person. She had been through enough recently, worrying about the children and her friend.
Just the thought of the worried, frightened look on Wren Sutton’s face made Adrian Lancaster’s chest ache with a dense, sharp pain.
But if he kept it from her, Adrian Lancaster would be filled with apprehension.
He couldn’t be sure what this person’s next move would be, or if they would do something even more drastic. If his secrecy left Wren Sutton defenseless and she ended up in real danger, he would never be able to forgive himself.
The two possibilities tore at Adrian Lancaster, leaving him more conflicted than ever before.
He walked to the window, listening to the sound of the rain tapping against the glass, as if it were tapping against his heart.
After what felt like an eternity of careful consideration and weighing his options, Adrian Lancaster made up his mind.
He couldn’t tell Wren Sutton about this. At least, not now.
He couldn’t let her bear this unnecessary fear. He couldn’t let her live under this shadow. He couldn’t let this anxiety affect her peace of mind.
He would be the one to shoulder all the danger and uncertainty.
Since he had decided to keep this a secret, he couldn’t afford a single slip-up. More importantly, he couldn’t allow this hidden threat any chance of getting close to Wren Sutton.
In addition to assigning more bodyguards to protect Wren Sutton twenty-four hours a day, he had to find out who was behind this as quickly as possible.
He had to eliminate the threat completely before this person could make any move to harm his family.
He was Wren Sutton’s husband. It was his duty to stand in front of her and shield her from every storm and all darkness.
’Honey, I won’t let any harm come to you.’
Adrian Lancaster slowly closed his eyes, suppressing the storm of hostility and worry churning within him. When he opened them again, he was perfectly calm, his gaze resolute.
The rain was still falling. The study was silent. The resolute aura of a man vowing to protect everything he held dear silently filled the night.