Let Me Go, Mr. Howard Chapter 134

In the dimly lit bedroom, Scarlett sat at the vanity table, deliberately maintaining her distance while Sebastian rose unhurriedly from the bed and walked toward her. 

Though his footsteps were light, they were impossible to ignore in the silent room.

Scarlett raised her eyes to the mirror. Sebastian now stood directly behind her, his gaze unnervingly calm—so calm it frightened her. 

She instinctively lowered her head but couldn't escape his penetrating stare.

"Are you trying to create boundaries between us?" Sebastian asked, his tone betraying no anger.

Scarlett remained silent, head bowed as she recalled Adeline's triumphant, mocking glance from earlier—a look that seemed to ridicule her for overreaching. 

Taking a deep breath, she couldn't help but invite more pain.

"Adeline was behind all this," she said, her voice clear but tinged with anguish.

Sebastian said nothing. Thinking he hadn't heard, she was about to repeat herself when she caught his reflection—furrowed brow and intense gaze. 

This rare display of emotion made Scarlett's breath catch. Could simply stating a fact provoke such a reaction from him?

"I don't want to hear that again." Sebastian's voice deepened, his warning unmistakable.

Scarlett's heart ached as she replied hoarsely, "Understood."

"Come downstairs for dinner," Sebastian said before walking out.

After he left, silence hung in the air before a sigh escaped—so heavy with suppressed emotion it could make one's heart ache.

---

The next day, Scarlett drove to Wright Manor intending to find Shawn, only to learn from the butler that he was at a meeting in a neighboring city and wouldn't return until tomorrow afternoon. 

Unable to meet him, she left disappointed.

Chris called shortly after. "I heard you went to Wright Manor?"

"Thank you for your help," Scarlett replied while watching television in her bedroom. "And please extend my thanks to Ethan and Shawn as well."

Chris laughed. "No need for such formality with me. As for my brother and Ethan, they were happy to help. Don't feel indebted."

"That won't do. I should at least treat you all to dinner," Scarlett insisted.

"I'm training in Pinecrest City, so I'll miss out," Chris sighed with exaggerated regret. "Ethan is also away—someone must have it out for him. He's been assigned to rural infrastructure development."

Scarlett paused. "But he was just here yesterday..."

"It was this morning's reassignment. He even confronted Orion about it, but there was nothing he could do," Chris explained with amusement.

Scarlett hesitated. "But isn't infrastructure development good for his career? He'll have achievements to show when he returns."

Chris laughed again. "He didn't join the government for promotions. He was there to slack off, but now he's been selected for actual work."

"If the Watson family pulled strings to get him the position, who assigned him this project?" Scarlett asked, finding it puzzling.

"Who knows? They say it was decided by random draw. The Watson family didn't even know about this project, so they couldn't intervene in time."

"So when will I be able to host that thank-you dinner?" Scarlett asked with a bitter smile.

With Chris's training lasting about half a year and Ethan unlikely to return for a year or two unless the Watson family intervened—which seemed unlikely given Orion's lack of action—Scarlett felt increasingly guilty about her role in Ethan's situation. 

She couldn't help wondering if Orion had deliberately arranged it to keep his second brother away from her.

"By the way, do you know the Barnett family? The chairman of Trueworth Group?" Chris suddenly asked.

Scarlett's tone cooled considerably. "Yes, what about them?" 

She definitely remembered them—it was after talking with Heidi that night that she'd experienced those symptoms.

"I heard Trueworth Group declared bankruptcy," Chris said calmly. "It's strange—their financial reports were decent. They shouldn't have gone bankrupt."

"Did this just happen?" Scarlett asked, her heartbeat slowing slightly.

"No, yesterday afternoon. I heard Mrs. Barnett is close with Adeline and tried to ask for her help."

Thinking of Sebastian's protectiveness toward Adeline, Scarlett felt anxious. "And then?"

"Nothing happened. What good would begging do?" Chris laughed flippantly. "Sebastian didn't get involved at all, and also..."

"And also what?" Scarlett pressed when he trailed off.

"Nothing," Chris decided against sharing. 

He found the situation suspicious—before approaching Adeline, the company could have lasted another two weeks, but afterward, they couldn't even hold on for half a day. 

Someone had clearly manipulated the situation. Even Adeline seemed to have received a warning from Sebastian—her scheduled tea party had been mysteriously canceled.

Chris suspected Sebastian was involved but chose not to tell Scarlett, fearing it might give her false hope. 

Better to let her give up on him completely than remain entangled with him.

"I need to start training now. We'll talk later," Chris made an excuse to end the call, but added, "You could invite my brother to dinner. He has plenty of free time."

Scarlett found this completely unbelievable. How could a district bureau chief possibly have time to spare for her?

Shortly after hanging up, her phone rang again. 

Thinking it was Chris calling back, she answered without looking. "Finished already? What were you going to say about 'also'?"

The person on the other end chuckled softly. "Just finished. What 'also' are you referring to?"