Chapter 332 He Wants to Notarize a Will?
Rachel’s voice was not loud. On the other end of the phone, Frankie was completely stunned after she finished her sentence. He knew that she had changed greatly following her return. However, he never imagined that she hated Justin to this extent—she didn’t even show any concern for Justin’s life or death.
Before Frankie could react, she ended the call. Jolly suppressed her accusatory expression and looked at Rachel in worry. “Chris, are you okay?”
“Look at me. Do I look like I’m not okay?”
“Are you really not going to the hospital?”
“Many people will be fighting to visit him now that he has been admitted to the hospital. I am neither his family nor friend. Why should I visit him?” Rachel’s expression was cold. “Besides, it’s not the first time that he used this method of harming himself to trick me.”
Jolly hesitated for a long time. In the end, she swallowed the words that she wanted to say: What if he isn’t pretending this time?
Then, she found herself thinking, Even if he isn’t pretending, it serves him right. It’s his fault for making Rachel’s life so difficult in the first place. “Do we continue with the lawsuit?”
“Yes.” Rachel’s tone was firm. “Why not? It’s a good thing for us if he is not in good health. Hernandez can use Justin’s poor health to justify that he is not fit to take care of Charlotte.”
“You’ve thought that far?”
To that, Rachel said nothing, but her slightly clenched fist explained everything. Over the past few years, she had learned to seize all the opportunities in her best interests at any given time. After all, time did not repeat itself while opportunities did not wait for others. We’ve already severed all ties with each other; why bother pretending otherwise?
…
At the hospital the next day, it was already noon by the time Justin woke up.
“President Burton.” Frankie had stayed by Justin’s side all night long. He didn’t get a wink of sleep during that time and his eyes were red as a result. “You’re finally awake. Please don’t move about. I’ll go and get the doctor.”
Justin stared at the ceiling boards without moving and the back of his head felt slightly swollen.
He felt as though he had been dreaming all this time. It was a delusional dream where he had spent five years trying to escape his mistakes and live for the sake of living. Unfortunately, he should never have forgotten that what was bound to come would eventually come.
“The critical period has passed. You will need to remain in the hospital for half a month for observations. If your recovery is going well after half a month, you can go through the discharge procedures and return home for further recuperation.”
“Thank you, doctor.”
“No problem.”
After seeing the doctor off, Frankie breathed a sigh of relief. “How do you feel right now, President Burton? Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?”
Justin looked incredibly lost and depressed.
“President Burton?”
It took a long while for him to regain his senses, after which he spoke in a hoarse voice, “Frankie, please do something for me.”
“Please say.”
“Organize all the assets under my name and contact a lawyer. I want to make a notarization.”
As he was slightly startled by those words, Frankie glanced at Justin in surprise. Is he planning to write a will after his close brush with death?
After issuing the instructions regarding the lawyer, Justin continued to stare at the ceiling boards with a hazy vision.
…
A letter from the attorney arrived at the hospital later that afternoon.
“President Burton…” Frankie had originally planned to suppress the lawsuit, but he did not expect Justin to yank the attorney’s correspondence from the stack of documents. By the time he entered the room, Justin was already reading the letter.
“President Hudson’s attitude had gone overboard. You’re still in the hospital. It’s hard to say whether you can even attend the court hearing on the day of the trial…”
Justin lifted a hand and stopped Frankie from continuing before he asked, “Isn’t there the option of an out-of-court settlement before the court hearing?”
Frankie was surprised. “Are you thinking of resolving this issue out of court? Judging by President Hudson’s current attitude, she will not be willing to agree to an out-of-court settlement. Not unless you refuse to continue the lawsuit and hand over Charlotte’s custodial rights.”
“That’s impossible.” Justin’s voice might be weak, but it remained as firm as ever. Charlotte was his one and only connection left with Rachel, as well as his only hope.
“Then, what do you plan to discuss with President Hudson?”
“Just to get in touch with her. Hand me the phone.”
He did not explain much and only weakly uttered that sentence. One look at his pale complexion was enough to stop Frankie from saying anything else, for fear of agitating him. Therefore, Frankie could only hand the phone over to him.
Glancing at Rachel’s name on the phone screen, Justin dialed the number.
The call connected after ringing for a long time.
“Hello?” On the other end of the phone, Rachel was sitting in her office and reading the documents that Hernandez had organized for her. When she received the phone call from Justin, she didn’t even need to think that he had received the attorney’s letter. “What is it?”
“Are you free? I want to discuss Charlotte’s custodial rights with you in private.”
“If you’re planning to persuade me into giving up, then I don’t think that there’s anything to discuss. We might as well discuss it directly in court.”
“Rachel, do it for Charlotte. I wish to have a peaceful discussion with you. Do you think Charlotte will be happy when she learns that we are on such bad terms with each other?”
She frowned at those words. If not for the fact that she was worried about Charlotte’s feelings, she would not have taken so long to deal with him. She lifted her wrist and glanced at the time. “I have an appointment for dinner tonight, so I only have half an hour’s time to talk to you. If you don’t mind, I can give you the location. You can come over to talk.”
“Okay, no problem.” Justin agreed immediately.
Listening to his tone, Rachel frowned in suspicion. Why does it sound different from his usual manner of speech?
…
It was evening and the lights had just been turned on. He had already been there for some time by the time she arrived at the restaurant. As he was wearing a baseball cap with the brim pulled low over his eyes, she failed to recognize him at first glance.
Considering that he was a semi-public figure, she realized that he probably did not want to be recognized and did not ask any questions. “Have you been waiting long?”
“No, I just arrived.” When he saw her, he immediately rose to his feet and seemed a little embarrassed. “What do you want to drink? Is latte alright?”
“Anything is fine. I can’t stay for long.” Rachel casually hung her jacket over the back of the chair and explained, “I have an appointment with somebody else at this place tonight, so I only have half an hour. What did you want to discuss?”
Justin stared at the woman in front of him for some time, seeming a little entranced by her voice.
Under the warm lights of the restaurant, the little girl who secretly threw some bread into the dungeon more than twenty years ago gradually overlapped with the person in front of him before it merged into one.
A thin layer of mist surfaced in his eyes. Emotions such as self-blame, regret, and pain flooded him like a rising tide to crush every nerve in his body. For a long time, he could not make a sound.
“Justin?” Rachel repeatedly called his name with a slight frown. “Are you alright?”
Only then did Justin return to his senses and avoid her gaze. “I’m fine. I apologize. I’ve been a little distracted recently. What did you say?”
“I asked you what you wanted to discuss with me. I have to leave soon.”
“I wanted to apologize.”
“Huh?” The frown on her face deepened at those words. What’s the reason for this apology that came out of nowhere? “What are you talking about?”
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything I did in the past.”
Rachel became a little impatient. “You called me here just for this? Did you think that an apology would end this lawsuit?”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Justin, I will only accept your apology if you hand over Charlotte’s custodial rights.”
