Chapter 388 Never Truly Even
The following afternoon, Rachel went to the Riverdale Penitentiary. However, the execution was over by the time she arrived. “A total of two prisoners were executed today. May I ask which one are you here to pick up?” “Jason Burton.”
After that, the person in charge glanced at the list in his hand and said, “Jason Burton has already been taken.” Rachel was slightly taken aback. “Who picked him up?
“His nephew. Look, here’s the signature.”
Rachel was startled again when she saw the signature on the list. Then, after a while, she regained her senses and said, “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
When did Justin come back?
A month ago, Arthur’s funeral and memorial service were held on the same day. After both events ended, the law redistributed the internal equity of Burton Group according to Arthur’s will. As a result, Julian became the largest shareholder of the Burton Group in a genuine sense, serving as the vice president. In contrast, Justin left Riverdale to go abroad before the shareholders’ meeting. Before he left, he only went to see Gloria. At that time, Charlotte was still at Gloria’s place. He went to say goodbye to Charlotte, but he did not say when he would be back. He only told Charlotte to be good. In a blink of an eye, a month has passed.
Rachel closed the car door, put her hand on the steering wheel, and she hesitated for a long time. Then, finally, she turned on her phone and swiped to contacts. Her slender fingertips lingered on the name ‘Justin Burton’ for a while. Eventually, she swiped down and called Frankie instead.
“Hello? Assistant Beckham? It’s me, Rachel.”
“President Hudson? Is something the matter?”
“It’s not a big deal. It’s just that there was a contract with Burton Group before, and President Burton signed it. But, unfortunately, there’s a problem with the contract.”
“Which contract? Why don’t you send me the contract?”
“I can’t explain it briefly over the phone. I would rather communicate with him face to face when he comes back. Is he back?”
“President Burton? Yeah, he’s back. Didn’t he contact you?”
“Where is he now?”
Since Rachel asked hastily, Frankie, who was on the other end of the call, was stunned for a moment.
What’s this situation right now?
Autumn was approaching, and the continuous rain in Riverdale for several days brought chills. The cemetery looked more and more desolate.
After Justin put the urn in the cemetery, the staff shut the graveyard.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“It is what we should do. This is our job. Not to mention that you also gave such a big commission.”
Justin said nothing as he held an umbrella; he looked at the tombstone in front of him. The name ‘Jason Burton’ was engraved precisely and clearly. Jason, you have lived this life shamelessly seeking personal gain. If there is truth to reincarnation, I hope you will live your next life more righteously.
“Then, we’ll get going first. It’s a bit cold today. Sir, please don’t stand for too long.”
Justin hummed in agreement.
The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and the staff was wearing raincoats to facilitate their work. They left in a hurry, but they saw a woman come in with an umbrella when they left the cemetery.
Several people were surprised. Not many people would come to the cemetery at this time and under such terrible weather conditions.
Justin stood in front of the tombstone for a long time.
Not far from Jason’s tomb was Arthur’s cemetery, and there was only a small path between the father and son. A little further away was the joint tomb of Justin’s parents.
I was only three years old when my parents died in a car accident, and I have no impression of my biological parents. So for me, Grandpa and Sue are my real relatives.
Justin sprinkled the wine on the tombstone as he thought of this, “Jason, a farewell toast for you.”
When he spilled half of the wine, he raised his head and drank the rest. After that, he stared at the tombstone as though in a trance for a long time.
“If you drink too much here, it will not be good for the security guarding the tomb.”
A familiar female voice rang out behind him, and it startled him out of his stupor.
This moment was like a dream to Justin. In astonishment, he turned around and saw Rachel standing behind him, holding an umbrella. She looked at him with her pair of quiet eyes, showing no emotion.
“What brings you here?”
“I thought no one would be there to take care of Jason’s funeral affairs since you’re not in Riverdale. So, I went there.”
Justin was slightly startled but not too surprised. He knew Rachel’s temperament. She has always been kind and attentive.
“Thank you. Jason treated your grandma terribly. How can you still treat him like this?”
“Everything between any two persons settles once the other party dies.”
Since Rachel did not want to talk too much about this matter, she changed the subject. “When did you come back? Why didn’t you inform me?”
After saying this, she suddenly realized that there was no need for Justin to share his itinerary with her. So, she explained again by saying, “Charlotte has been asking when you will come back.”
“I just came back. I wanted to organize some things at hand before contacting you.”
The rain was getting heavier. The crackling sound of the rain hitting the umbrella felt like it would eventually hurt the hand.
The biggest advantage of rainy days was that one only needed an umbrella to separate people from the world around them. It was as if there was only each other left in the world.
No one spoke for a moment. Hence, the atmosphere was a bit awkward.
People you have truly loved, even if it was a one-sided affair where only one party had poured in their love in the relationship, it was impossible for the so-called ‘even’ to exist. It was because the love and hatred had long been embedded deep in the bone and embedded in every single nerve. Both parties would still be affected whenever they met again, and there would never be a peaceful day for the rest of their lives.
“Hey!” A shout broke through the rain curtain and cut through the awkward atmosphere.
When both Rachel and Justin turned around, they saw the guard at the cemetery. He was wearing a raincoat as he shouted at them from a distance, “This place is about to close. When are you guys leaving?”
Rachel hurriedly responded, saying, “Sir, we are leaving now.”
It was the cemetery rule to be closed before dark.
“Let’s go.”
Rachel glanced at Justin, and the two left in tandem.
“I’m going to pick Charlotte up this Friday.”
“Friday? It might be impossible on Friday. Jolly had asked Leroy and the others to go out and have fun. We’ll bring the two children, and they all agreed.”
“In that case, it’s fine. I’ll pick her up next week.”
“Why don’t you join us?”
“No need.” Justin quickly rejected the offer without hesitation. “You guys can’t truly enjoy yourselves if I go.”
“How is that so?”
“Won’t Julian be there too?”
“He won’t mind,” Rachel vowed. “Julian said that he would want to have dinner together when you came back. No matter what the others say, he still regards you as his cousin.”
Justin’s eyes were disinterested, but he did not explain himself further.
Suddenly, she thought of something and abruptly felt that she had spoken too much.
Even if Julian doesn’t mind, maybe Justin himself does. After all, neither Julian nor I told him about Old Mr. Burton’s death in time.
There was a moment of silence before Justin asked, “Did you drive here?”
“Yeah, my car is right over there.”
As the awkwardness eased, she silently let out a sigh of relief.
In the parking lot at the cemetery entrance, there were two cars. One red and one black parked very close to one another.
Finally, he said, “Then, be careful on the road, and pay attention since it’s rainy. Tell me when you get home.”
“Okay.”
“Get in.” He opened the car door for her.
Just as she was about to get in the car, she suddenly turned her head and blurted out, “Are you free? If you’re free, why don’t we have dinner together later?”
He was stunned for a moment. Then, a trace of astonishment appeared in his cold eyes.
