Chapter 174
"Ava, those two crazy women dug up your mom's grave."
After Jack finished speaking, he immediately tried to comfort her,
"Don't panic, the cemetery staff are already fixing it."
With a thud, Ava's phone slipped from her hand. She didn't hear anything Jack said after that−her brain instantly lost the ability to think.
Her heart was now filled with hatred; she even wanted to strangle those two and drag them to her mother's grave to atone but she didn't dare do anything illegal.
They still couldn't find evidence for Nancy's car accident, but those two vicious women desecrating her mother's grave were witnessed by others−she couldn't let this go.
Only people who know you well know how to stab you where it hurts most.
Sarah and Nola knew that Nancy was what Ava cared about most. Even though Nancy was dead, they could still use a grave to make her suffer.
Ava couldn't care less now whether going out was dangerous. Thinking about how her mother had to endure such humiliation even in death, her heart felt like it was pierced by ten thousand arrows—the pain was suffocating.
What she needed to do now was fix her mother's grave first.
Ava rushed out without even changing out of her pajamas, like a madwoman. She flagged down a car on the street and headed straight to the cemetery in the suburbs.
Nancy's grave was in that prime location, not close to the entrance.
As darkness fell, she walked through that burial ground without any fear. At this moment, only one belief supported her—she had to protect her mother.
When her mother passed away, she was still young and couldn't be her support. This had always been a regret in her heart. Now she was an adult and wouldn't allow anyone to disrespect her mother anymore. She had to seek justice for her.
tumbling along the way, Ava's mind was unusually clear.
When she reached Nancy's grave, she saw that the photo on the tombstone was scratched, and next to it were several large red words: "Bitch, homewrecker."
At this moment, Ava finally broke down and cried out loud. She tore a piece of cloth from her own clothes and scrubbed hard at those words, but couldn't wipe them off.
The words were written with a brush dipped in paint and had already dried.
She saw fresh soil piled on the grave behind the tombstone, with glimpses of red paint underneath. She was going crazy, crawling over on her knees to clean the red paint bit by bit, but couldn't get it clean no matter what.
Nancy had been such a dignified person in life−she couldn't stand even a speck of dust or dirt on her clothes. Now her grave was splattered with paint.
Thinking about this, Ava wondered how devastated her mother must be underground, and how arrogantly that pair of vicious women must have done these evil things at her grave, surely hurling every insult at her mother.
The entire cemetery was now completely shrouded in darkness. In the empty suburbs, there wasn't a sound except her own crying, echoing miserably through the burial ground.
"Mom, I'm sorry, I'm useless."
She was someone who feared the dark most, but at this moment, she had no time to think about things that scared her. Her heartache was so intense she could barely breathe.
The sky was overcast without a single star visible, and now a light rain began to fall. Her body and hands were covered in muddy water, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't clean the dirt from her mother's grave.
Finally, someone noticed the commotion.
Two security guards came over with flashlights and found Ava passed out on the grave, her clothes soaked through, still clutching a handful of paint-stained soil.
Shewas carried into the security office. When she came came around, the office's surveillance had been destroyed.
The guard used her phone to call Jack, whose number was in her recent contacts. Jack was now sitting beside her.
Ava lay on the temporary bed in the security office, staring blankly at the ceiling, her expression wooden, like her soul had been sucked out. The desecration of Nancy's grave had dealt her too heavy a blow.
A person shouldn't be bullied like this.
Jack didn't know how to comfort people, so he just stayed with her silently, afraid something else might happen to her.
Ava's voice was hoarse from crying. She spoke with difficulty,
"Jack, do you know anyone in the underworld?"
Jack glanced alertly at the two dozing guards,
"Ava, let's talk about this when we get back."
Ava's clothes were still wet. Jack covered her with a jacket.
She supported herself on the bed and slowly sat up,
"Help me find some people. Name your price."
Jack's expression grew serious,
"Ava, we can't do anything illegal."
Ava's eyes were as red as a rabbit's, her fingers were injured from digging in the soil, stained with either paint or blood−Jack felt pain just looking at them.
"Ava, let me take you to the hospital first."
Most people couldn't handle this kind of blow, let alone a pregnant woman.
Jack coaxed and persuaded until he finally got her into the car, left the cemetery, and headed straight for the hospital, checking into emergency.
After a round of examinations and bandaging, it was already dawn.
Looking at her shocking hands, the doctor sighed,
"Remember, absolutely no water. If you don't take care of these hands, you'll have trouble doing delicate work in the future."
She was a designer−how precious those hands were, cannot be over-emphasized. If these hands were ruined, her career would be over, too.
Ava changed into hospital clothes and warmed up a bit.
She was pregnant, and the baby wasn't stable. The doctor recommended staying in the hospital for observation for twenty-four hours. The baby was important, so Ava listened to the doctor and settled in for now.
She transferred a substantial amount of money to Jack,
"Jack, thanks for last night. I can't do anything now and need your help. First, go find a professional place to make a new tombstone, get people to clean my mother's grave properly, and then find some people who are good with their hands. I'll have arrangements."
Jack agreed,
"Ava, I took your money, so I'll definitely do the work. Whatever you need, just tell me. But one thing—I hope you won't do something stupid, like murder."
Jack reminded her. Looking at Ava's expression now, he worried she might hire someone to kill that mother and daughter out of hatred. She had really suffered too many injustices.
Ava forced a smile,
"Don't worry, I wouldn't dare kill anyone."
She had to do something, or she'd never forgive herself for being so weak.
The morning sunlight streamed in. Ava sat on the bed staring blankly at the sky.
Lucas had tried to meet her for dinner yesterday but couldn't. Today, when he called and found out what happened, he rushed to the hospital. Seeing her hands wrapped in bandages, he panicked,
"Ava, what happened to your hands?"
She was an internationally renowned designer, the kind of design genius that appears once in billions of people. Her hands were so precious—seeing them injured like this was naturally alarming.
Ava said flatly, "I dug too hard in the soil and hurt the tendons a bit. The doctor said that with good care, they can recover."
Her tone was calm, but she was holding all her grievances inside, waiting for a chance to let them out.
Lucas sighed,
"You can't do anything like this now. Let me find you a caregiver to take good care of you."
With that, he left the room.
Ava quickly got out of bed and took a few quick steps to catch up,
"No need, I'm checking out tomorrow."
Then she saw Lucas standing motionless at the door, looking ahead with unfriendly eyes.
Ava followed his gaze and saw William walking toward them with James.
Seeing Ava in hospital clothes, William was also stunned.
Obviously, she only changed into these clothes if she needed to be hospitalized. He knew she'd had a cold a few days ago, but could a cold be serious enough to require hospitalization?
Why was she in the hospital?