Chapter 63: Chapter 63: Wyatt Shaw Had a Car Accident

She turned another page of the album and saw a photo of Wyatt Shaw. He was standing in the alley next to The Lucky Spoon Diner, wearing a white shirt and ripped jeans, his hair a mess as he stared warily at the camera.

"This was a year after we posted the missing person notice. A passerby took this picture of him and sent it to us. We rushed over immediately, and that’s how we finally found him."

In the corner of the photo was a little girl in denim overalls and a white shirt. She had a neat, short haircut and was holding a huge stick of cotton candy, her smile directed at Wyatt Shaw absolutely radiant.

"And she is?" Yvonne asked.

Daisy Shaw’s expression turned a little awkward. She quickly closed the album. "Just a passerby."

’Yvonne had almost forgotten what Hannah Abbott looked like, but judging by Daisy Shaw’s reaction, that little girl had to be her.’

’So, how could he possibly forget someone who had been with him through all that? He just didn’t want to bring her up with me.’

The two of them looked through the photo album until midnight. If Mr. Rhodes hadn’t refused to sleep alone, Daisy Shaw would have stayed to tell her more amusing stories from Wyatt Shaw’s childhood.

"So annoying! I haven’t even told Yvonne about the time Wyatt got into a fight in high school and the teacher called us," Daisy Shaw grumbled as she got out of bed, shouting toward the door.

"What’s there to talk about? It’s embarrassing," Mr. Rhodes yelled back from outside the room.

"Oh, but it was hilarious! His teacher was a fan of mine, and so were the parents of the kid he fought. What was supposed to be a serious incident ended up turning into a fan meet-and-greet."

Daisy Shaw chuckled as she walked to the door, telling Yvonne to get some rest. Then she continued the story as she walked towards the bedroom with Mr. Rhodes, her laughter filling the entire house.

Yvonne found Daisy Shaw’s laughter contagious. The faint, indescribable feeling—melancholy, perhaps—that had stirred within her at the mention of Hannah Abbott immediately vanished.

She tried to video call Wyatt Shaw, but he didn’t answer.

「The next day was Saturday.」

Yvonne had breakfast at the family estate, did some yoga with Daisy Shaw for a while, and then left.

At noon, they ate at Joshua Hale’s bistro to celebrate Claire Lawrence wrapping up filming for her first comeback role.

"I have an audition for a role tomorrow. Wish me luck!" Claire Lawrence said, raising her glass.

Yvonne and Joshua Hale raised their glasses as well, wishing her success in advance.

"Director Sherman recommended me to this production. Even though it’s a low-budget detective suspense series, the script is fantastic. The role I’m auditioning for has a lot of depth, and I really love it," Claire Lawrence said, growing more and more excited as she spoke.

"A detective series, huh? That should be interesting," Joshua Hale commented.

"And do you know who the screenwriter is?"

"Who?"

"Jean Bell! The queen of detective fiction!"

Yvonne’s hand, holding her wine glass, paused. "You’re auditioning for Jean Bell’s production team?"

Claire Lawrence nodded. "You know her?"

"I wouldn’t say I know her, but we played mahjong together last night. She even invited me to be the on-set doctor for her production."

"So, did you agree?" Claire Lawrence asked quickly.

Yvonne shook her head. "I said I’d consider it, but I don’t actually plan on going."

She was planning to renovate her old house and open a gynecology clinic there. There was a lot of paperwork to prepare beforehand, so she would be busy for a while and wouldn’t have time to be an on-set doctor.

’Of course, that was really just an excuse. The other reason was that Jean Bell gave her a strange feeling, one that made her reluctant to get too close.’

"That’s a shame," Claire Lawrence said with a shrug.

Yvonne had other plans for the evening, so she left the bistro first.

Joshua Hale walked her out, all the way to the street, looking as if he had something he wanted to say.

Yvonne stuck her hands in her pockets, an amused smile on her face. "Is it that hard to say?"

Joshua Hale scratched his head awkwardly. "Honestly, I just never expected you to marry Wyatt Shaw."

’Yvonne smiled with understanding. She had given them all quite a shock on her wedding day, and she still hadn’t explained the situation with her and Wyatt Shaw.’

"To be honest, I only found out who Wyatt Shaw really was a few days before the wedding. That’s when I learned you two actually knew each other."

"So you don’t know him that well, right?"

"You could say that."

Hearing this, a worried look appeared on Joshua Hale’s face.

"Then do you know if he... was he in a car accident?"

Yvonne was stunned for a moment, then shook her head. "No, I didn’t."

Joshua Hale looked at Yvonne, the worry in his eyes deepening. "Was it because of Vincent? Did you marry Wyatt Shaw on impulse because of him?"

Yvonne frowned, then said seriously, "No."

’The decision to marry Wyatt Shaw had been impulsive, but it wasn’t because of Vincent Reed.’

But Joshua Hale didn’t believe her and muttered, "Vincent has a lot to answer for."

On the subway, Yvonne kept thinking about what Joshua Hale had said: *Wyatt Shaw was in a car accident.*

’And then what? Joshua had obviously only told her half the story; the other half must be what was truly difficult to say. And that worried look... what was he so worried about?’

Yvonne took out her phone, wanting very much to call Wyatt Shaw right then and there. But as she stared at his name in her contacts, she ultimately decided against it.

He had a past, and so did she.

They seemed to have an unspoken agreement: neither would pry into the other’s past. They would just let the past be the past.

Yvonne sighed and finally put her phone back in her bag.

After getting off the subway, she went to a mall and bought a toy car, then took the subway again to a villa. She had made a call before she arrived, so Mrs. Adler was just coming out when she reached the gate.

"Yvonne!" Mrs. Adler said with a smile, coming forward to greet her.

"Mrs. Adler!" Yvonne replied, jogging the last couple of steps.

Mrs. Adler hugged Yvonne and then looked her up and down. "Marriage suits you. You’re even more beautiful."

"Thank you," Yvonne laughed.

Mrs. Adler took her by the arm and led her toward the house. "When I saw you at Cloudsea Castle that day, I realized you were also getting married. Why didn’t you tell us?"

"I knew you’d be going to Vincent Reed’s wedding anyway, so I figured you’d send your blessings my way from there."

"What do you mean, ’in passing’? If we had known you were getting married that day, we would have gone to your wedding, not his," Mrs. Adler huffed.

Yvonne smiled. "That wouldn’t have been appropriate. After all, Adler and he are business partners."

"They may be business partners, but you and I are much closer," Mrs. Adler said, squeezing Yvonne’s hand.

Back then, Vincent Reed had a falling out with his family and struck out on his own to start a business. Yvonne sold her old house to help him raise the startup capital. They developed an app, but to launch it, they still needed investors.

Vincent Reed wanted to get Mr. Adler to invest, but he couldn’t get a meeting despite trying many times.

Yvonne happened to find out that Mrs. Adler was undergoing treatment for infertility at the hospital. She deliberately approached her, and after understanding her condition, she took her to see an old traditional Chinese medicine doctor. Six months later, Mrs. Adler successfully conceived.

Because of this, Mr. and Mrs. Adler were extremely grateful to her and subsequently invested in Vincent Reed’s company.

The two of them were talking as they entered the house, just as Mr. Adler and Vincent Reed were smoking in the courtyard.

Mr. Adler sounded angry. "Vincent, I never would have imagined that you would betray Dr. Sutton. You’re worse than Simon Coleman! Do you have any idea what she did for you? To convince my company’s shareholders to invest in your little startup, she went in there alone and drank those old scoundrels under the table! She drank herself into the hospital!"