When There Is Nothing Left But Love
Chapter 348

Chapter 348

“No, Scarlett, you don't get it. You don’t know how much Ashton can drink. If he’s not drunk, he candrink all the way until the sun rises. He's causing harm to himself, but nothing Jared and I say candeter him. If anything happens to him because of this, we can’t bear the responsibility!”

Joe described Ashton’s situation so vividly. I could feel the anxiety manifested in his tone.

I stood on the balcony, allowing the wind to blow softly against my face. Irritated, I spoke on thephone, “If he can't bother to take care of himself, then let him drink to death!”

“Scarlett.”

“Scarlett, are you a woman at all?” Apparently, Joe's phone was snatched away by none other thanAshton. He spoke to me in a strong nasal voice, obviously drunk.

"What's that got to do with anything? Ashton, you go drinking at this hour and now you're throwingtantrums at me? How old do you think you are? Three?” The other side of the line might have beenput on speaker because Joe seemed to fly off the handle once I finished my rant.

He called out Ashton in a drawl, obviously in a teasing tone.

But Ashton probably shot him back an eerie look, thus the other end of the phone went quiet againI was really not in the mood to be dragged into this sort of nonsense, so I said, as casually as Icould, “Ashton if you're doing fine, don't call me! I'm hanging up!”

Before he could think of a comeback, I hung up right away and turned off the phone for goodmeasure.

That night, I could not sleep well, as per usual. I kept having nightmares. I finally managed to getsome sleep when dawn broke, and then Stacey called.

She could hear the exhaustion in my raspy voice. She asked, “Ms. Stovall, you didn't sleep well, didyou?”

I affirmed her query, and then said, “Give me the address. I'll be there soon!”

A throbbing headache assailed me. I got up and sat on the side of the bed for several momentsbefore regaining my senses.

After listening to the sound of my voice, Stacey paused and said, “Let's do it this way! I'll come topick you up in a while, so you can catch a little bit more sleep. I'll even bring you breakfast along theway!"

I wanted to reject her but she was faster. “Open the door for me later, okay? I'm hanging up. Seeyou!"

And that was what she did.

still in a daze, I checked my phone. Other than the bunch of missed calls from Ashton last night,there were no other messages or phone calls from anyone else.

When Stacey arrived, I was not in bed anymore but my head still hurt. It subsided after I swallowedsome pills.

She brought breakfast and, upon seeing the dark circles under my eyes, said, “How about you take arest for the day?”

I shook my head. “The Stovall family is throwing a banquet on Monday. John’s arranged a fittingsession for me but I kept ditching him. After we sort this out, I still have to get back to K City!"

She went quiet for a bit, her eyes darkened as she muttered a confusing choice of words, “I'm justafraid that... things won't go too well.”

And then she turned to me. “Come on, eat up!”

I nodded, my head still pounding terribly.

After leaving Glenwood Apartments, I experienced discomfort straight away. It was like beinghounded by a daunting aura, trapping me in an anxious state, on top of that pulsating headache.My mood was at an all-time low.

I realized she was driving towards the suburbs. That raised some questions. “Why are we going tothe suburbs?”

She pressed her lips before replying, “I'm taking you to someone you'd want to meet!”

Someone I'd want to meet?

I ran a lap in my head but nothing came up. I could not think of anyone I would want to meet whostayed in the suburbs.

Turning to her, I prompted, “Who, exactly?”

She did not answer. It was another half-hour drive before we came to a stop in the parking lot of acemetery.

I had been to this cemetery many times in the past. Grandma and George were buried here, so I wasquite familiar with this place.

She got down from the car, bought a bouquet of chrysanthemums from the entrance, and handed itto me. “Take this!"

Then, she dragged me into the cemetery.

My mind was still buzzing, not quite getting why she had brought me here, of all places. “Is it one ofyour friends, or someone in your family. After we pay our respects, where are we going next?"

She was walking in front of me. In a low voice, she said, “Probably Mr. Harrison, but they should behere today.”

"What for?” She led me a little more ways into the cemetery before stopping in front of atombstone in the back row.

I froze as my gaze fell on the tombstone. My thoughts came to an abrupt stop as an epiphanystruck. The chrysanthemums in my hand fell to the ground.

I stared at the black-and-white photo and epitaph on the tombstone in disbelief.

I shot a glance at Stacey, suppressing the pain and shock growing in my heart, my voice tremblingas I exclaimed, “Is this a prank?”

She pursed her lips and, when she spoke, her words bring no mercy, “Do you think this is a

prank?”

I looked at the tombstone again and examined the black-and-white photo. Here laid the one personI was most familiar with, the closest friend I had ever had!

I could clearly see that she was buried on September 28. It was around the time of my accident.How could she...

I shook my head, still unwilling to accept the matter of her death. Angrily, I confronted Stacey. “Idon't understand why you have to do this to me. But I'm quite certain I haven't done you wrong inany way. Don't you think this is too much, even for you?”