Chapter 332 - 319: Where Did You Get That File? (Part 1)

His handsome face was etched with exhaustion. His sharp eyes were bloodshot, and his face was covered in stubble, making him look ragged and gaunt.

"I’m fine!"

The first words out of his mouth were that he was fine. ’How could he possibly be fine!’

Georgia Thorne’s eyes instantly welled with heat as tears spilled from their corners. "You’re lying to me again!"

’How could a man accustomed to a life of privilege possibly be fine after suddenly being forced to live in such a filthy, unclean place?’

"Don’t cry. When you cry like this..." Elliot Sheridan started, wanting to grab Georgia Thorne’s wrist. Hearing the sharp CLINK of metal, he glanced at his restrained right hand and said helplessly, "I can’t even hug you."

With one exception, he could never bear to see Georgia Thorne cry.

’Every time he saw Georgia cry, his heart would just melt. He’d want to pull her into his arms, spoil her rotten, and give her the very best of everything in the world.’

’But now his hands were bound, and he couldn’t do a thing.’

"Elliot, you’re going to be okay, right?"

"How could anything happen to me?" Elliot Sheridan grasped Georgia Thorne’s hand with his free one. ’It’s already April, why are her hands still so cold?’ "I didn’t kill anyone, so nothing is going to happen to me. Don’t worry, I’ll be out soon!"

Georgia wiped her tears. "Really? Don’t you lie to me again!"

"I mean it. I’m not lying to you."

"Fine. But if you dare lie to me again, I’m really divorcing you!"

"Don’t you dare mention divorce!"

Visiting hours were limited, and since Elliot Sheridan was a key person of interest under close observation, their meeting was brief. They had barely exchanged a few words before the police officers led Elliot away.

Just before he left, Elliot Sheridan whispered softly in her ear, "Georgia Thorne, I love you!"

The tears she had just managed to hold back threatened to spill forth again. Georgia Thorne clutched Elliot Sheridan’s sleeve tightly. "I believe you. But this is the last time."

"Remember, have Sam Yates stay with you. And don’t get too close to Erin Irving."

Georgia Thorne only snapped out of it after Elliot Sheridan was led away by the officers.

She walked out of the police station, dejected, and saw Carter Sheridan standing by the entrance. "Carter."

"Let’s get you home. Elliot will be fine."

Georgia Thorne nodded and got into Carter Sheridan’s car. Suddenly, an important question struck her. "By the way, has Elliot hired a lawyer yet?"

"Not yet."

"I think I have the perfect person for the job. I’m sure he can help Elliot."

Carter Sheridan looked away, stepped on the accelerator, and drove off.

The perfect person Georgia Thorne had in mind was, of course, Byron Shaw.

Byron Shaw’s reputation in the legal world was formidable. He hadn’t lost a single case since his very first trial.

Georgia Thorne asked Carter Sheridan to drop her off at Byron Shaw’s law firm.

"Miss Thorne, please wait in Attorney Shaw’s office for a moment." Grace Wagner came in with a glass of water. Georgia Thorne thanked her. "Do you know how much longer he’ll be?"

"I’m not sure. Attorney Shaw is meeting with another client right now." Grace Wagner gave a noncommittal answer.

"Thank you."

Georgia Thorne’s timing was unfortunate; Byron Shaw was indeed meeting with another client.

She waited for nearly half an hour before Byron Shaw finally appeared.

"What can I do for you?" Byron Shaw asked as he took off his jacket and draped it over the back of his chair.

"I need to ask you for a favor. Elliot is at the police station, and I want to hire you as his defense attorney!" Georgia Thorne said urgently, her fingers clenched.

"Elliot Sheridan?" Byron Shaw frowned. "Georgia, I can’t take this case."

"Why not? You’re the only one who can help Elliot! You... Whatever you want, I’ll pay it!"

"It’s not about the money. I simply can’t take this case."

"Why not?" Georgia Thorne pressed him.

Byron Shaw slid a file across his desk toward Georgia Thorne. "Take a look at this first. Then we can talk."

Georgia looked down, picked up the black folder, and flipped through a few pages. "This can’t be!"

"He gave me this file a long time ago. I’d already accepted the case before you came. Therefore, I can’t be Elliot Sheridan’s defense attorney. You’ll have to find someone else."

"Is this all true?" Georgia Thorne stared at the document in disbelief, the dense lines of text stinging her eyes.

"I’ve already verified the evidence; there’s no mistake," Byron Shaw said gravely. "Georgia, when did you get your memories back?"

Georgia Thorne was speechless.

’The truth was, she had only lost her memory for a few days. In the days after she had accepted that Miles was Elliot’s son, once her emotions had settled, she remembered everything.’

"To be honest, I was hoping you wouldn’t get your memory back. That way, your feelings for Elliot Sheridan might have faded, and you could have divorced him sooner. Even without this murder charge, he wouldn’t have escaped prison. This other case was bound to come to light eventually, and he’d have been ruined all the same. Georgia, I’m your family; I would never hurt you. I want you to divorce Elliot as quickly as possible. All the evidence is here. He can’t get out of this. I don’t want to see you suffer along with him!"

"But I don’t believe it! He had no motive to kill anyone, did he?" Georgia Thorne shot up from her chair. "I want to know where Justin Sullivan got this file!"

"Georgia, you don’t need to get involved in this!"

"How can I not be involved? Elliot is my husband! Are you asking me to just stand by and watch him go to prison?" Georgia Thorne retorted. "I trust him. He would never do anything illegal!"

Georgia Thorne stormed out angrily and called Justin Sullivan.

"Are you free right now? I need to see you! ...Okay, at that coffee shop, then."

After hanging up, Byron Shaw’s words still echoed in her ears. ’How could it be him!’

She glanced up at the sun. It was blindingly bright. The weather was getting warmer; it seemed summer was on its way.

Inside the coffee shop, Georgia Thorne had arrived over half an hour early. She sat in a corner, warming her hands on a cup of hot water.

It was a student cafe, and many of the tables were occupied by students, some reading and others working.

After about fifteen minutes, she saw Justin Sullivan get out of a car and hurry into the cafe.

The moment Justin Sullivan walked in, he spotted Georgia Thorne in the corner and strode toward her.

The excitement on his face was impossible to hide. "Nina! I can’t believe you wanted to see me!"

"Call me Georgia Thorne. Nina is in the past."

"Nina..."

"Georgia Thorne. I’d prefer it," Georgia Thorne corrected him again.

Justin Sullivan paused for a moment before compromising. "Georgia!"

"Why would you do that? Where did you get that file?" Georgia Thorne got straight to the point.

"Georgia, what are you talking about?"

"Do you not understand me? Or are you just pretending not to?" Georgia Thorne realized how agitated she was. She took a deep breath to calm herself, then addressed him by his full name. "Justin Sullivan, where did you get the file you gave to Byron Shaw?"

As she finished speaking, the smile completely vanished from Justin Sullivan’s face. "You called me here just to ask about this?"

"Do you have any idea? When you called, I was in the middle of a shareholders’ meeting. My entire position at the Sullivan Group was at stake, but to see you, I was ready to drop everything. That file... I gave it to Byron Shaw myself. Honestly, before I came, I considered whether you would ask me about it so bluntly, but I came anyway. I came for no other reason than to see you. Georgia, this is... this is truly heartbreaking. Is Elliot Sheridan the only one in your eyes? Is there no room for me at all? Georgia, divorce Elliot and come back to me. I promise I will treat you well for the rest of your life, better than Elliot ever has!" Justin Sullivan saw this as the perfect opportunity to bring down Elliot Sheridan and get Georgia Thorne to return to his side.

"Justin Sullivan, have you lost your mind?"

"I’m not crazy. He’s a murderer. The evidence is ironclad. He can run, but he can’t hide forever. He deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison to atone for his crimes!"

"No! I believe he didn’t kill anyone!"

"What you believe is useless. You have to present enough evidence to convince the judge and everyone else. Otherwise, he’s going to spend the rest of his life in a prison cell!"

"So you’re determined to see him prosecuted, no matter what?"

"..."

Justin Sullivan’s determined gaze said it all. Georgia Thorne understood his intentions perfectly.

"Justin Sullivan, even if he has to spend the rest of his life in prison, I will never divorce him. I will wait for him for the rest of my life."

"Oh, and one more thing I forgot to tell you. I’ve gotten my memory back. And I, Georgia Thorne, will never, ever get together with you in this lifetime!"

"Even if I hadn’t gotten my memory back, I don’t think I could have fallen for you again. Justin Sullivan, you’re so, so different from the sweet, innocent boy I used to know. How did you become like this?" Georgia Thorne frowned, still looking at him in disbelief.

Justin Sullivan gave a dry laugh. "In your heart, he’s the only one who’s perfect, isn’t he?"

"That’s right. Justin Sullivan, you aren’t even a fraction of the man Elliot Sheridan is!" Georgia Thorne grabbed her bag and stood up. "From now on, let’s pretend we don’t know each other. And let’s never meet again."

"I am so disappointed in you. I never want to see you again!"

Having finally vented her frustrations at Justin Sullivan, she strode out of the cafe.

She felt a great sense of release, but at the same time, fear began to creep in.