CHAPTER 225: CHAPTER 225: CAN’T PAY BACK THE MONEY SO YOU’RE TRYING TO KILL YOUR CREDITOR?

The dappled light and shadow fell from the treetops, and Declan Pierce stood in the sunlight, lowering his eyes to gaze at her.

The superior brow bone cast a shadow over his eye sockets, framing her silhouette within, as if, in his eyes, he could see only her.

In that instant, Tanya Sinclair was suddenly reminded of Vincent Hawthorne.

He also had a pair of beautiful eyes, so mesmerizing that when they focused intently on you, one could easily mistake it for deep affection...

In an instant, Tanya returned to her senses and created some distance between them.

Declan naturally sensed her resistance. He wasn’t in a hurry, simply placing his hands in his pockets, making no attempt to press further.

"Weren’t you saying you wanted to see me?" Declan’s voice was gentle, "Now that you’ve seen me, what would you like to say?"

There were indeed many things she wanted to ask him, but this wasn’t the place to talk.

"Are you free later? Let me treat you to a meal." Tanya said seriously.

If it was Declan who had been taking care of her mother’s grave for these five years, then what she owed him was more than just a meal...

Declan pulled out his constantly ringing phone and glanced at it. Tanya was close, not intending to peek at his phone, but a glimpse caught her eye, displaying the caller ID as Wynn Winslow.

Declan didn’t answer; he hung up directly. He said to Tanya, "Find a cool place and wait for me."

After saying that, Declan left first, going to meet Old Master Kendall.

A pavilion was not far away. Tanya had initially planned to wait for Declan there, but before she could reach it, she received a call from Daisy Bell’s little assistant, Mia.

Worried something might have happened to Daisy Bell, Tanya answered immediately.

"Hey Mia, what’s up?"

Mia was almost in tears, "Ms. Tanya, you have to come quickly! Ms. Daisy lost the lead role in Director Langdon’s movie... Oh, dear, please stop drinking!"

"I can drink a thousand cups without getting drunk; what’s this little bit of alcohol?!"

Tanya heard Daisy Bell’s voice, clearly already drunk beyond reasoning.

Her heart tightened, "Mia, send me the location! I’m coming right now!"

"Okay!"

Tanya hurriedly walked out, sending a message to Declan: [I have an urgent matter to attend to, I have to leave first. I’ll make it up to you for the meal some other day.]

The address Mia sent her turned out to be a business-style bar. Tanya found her way to the private room on the third floor, and just as she was about to push the door open, someone inside opened it first.

Seeing who came out, Tanya was momentarily stunned, "Julian Poole?"

Julian wasn’t surprised to see Tanya appear because he was also present when Mia called.

"You’re right on time. Ms. Daisy’s drinking prowess is... quite something." Julian looked down helplessly at his expensive suit, now covered in vomit, "This is what I get for trying to support Ms. Daisy."

Tanya had witnessed Daisy Bell’s drunken antics as well.

Apologetically she said, "I’m sorry, I’ll compensate you for the suit. You’d better go clean up."

Saying that, Tanya no longer concerned herself with Julian, nor did she have any mind to question why he was here. She quickly entered the private room and at once saw Daisy Bell, standing on the sofa, wailing like a banshee.

Her eye makeup was smudged, crying and cursing, "What a lousy role, I don’t care! Boohoohooo..."

Tanya’s heart ached at the sight.

"Daisy..." she called out softly.

Originally crying and wailing, Daisy Bell suddenly quieted. Seeing Tanya, her eyes were still full of tears, and she suddenly lunged forward, tightly embracing Tanya, wailing even louder.

"Bonnie, my role was snatched by someone with a sugar daddy, boohoohooo... bastard!"

Daisy Bell had always been the one to loudly cover everything up; she had indeed suffered greatly, yet she never showed it, always laughing jovially in front of others, as if she could shoulder anything.

Years ago, her father was sentenced to life for illegal fundraising, and her stepmother immediately absconded with whatever assets she could take, fleeing abroad to escape her debts.

Only Daisy Bell, at sixteen, went from one family to another, apologizing and writing down the debts, swearing to repay them.

Father Bell was very fond of his sole daughter; before the financial disaster struck, he had already deposited enough money in a Swiss bank to keep Daisy Bell wealthy for life.

But Daisy Bell was determined to withdraw the money to pay off her debts. When it wasn’t enough, she wrote an IOU and continued to work to repay it.

She was beautiful, with a natural talent for acting, grasping roles quickly. So she later entered the quickest moneymaking industry—the entertainment industry—struggling her way through it.

Initially, she was just an extra sitting on the ground eating cold lunchboxes, enduring disdainful looks. Later, she became a body double for a certain popular actress, covering her action scenes from afar and repeatedly getting hit by sticks, pushed into muddy ground...by the end of it, her body was covered in bruises, barely a piece of intact skin left.

Through this, Daisy Bell eventually acted her way to winning Best Actress at a film festival.

She truly loved acting. Director Langdon’s film was called "The Best Actress." Besides the paycheck, Daisy Bell genuinely wanted to act in this role as she saw her own reflection in the leading lady, Livia Hughes.

Daisy Bell had been preparing for a long time, and when Tanya Sinclair heard that Daisy Bell got the role, she was also very happy.

No one expected that even after signing the contract, she could be replaced by someone with a powerful benefactor!

Tanya Sinclair felt indignant on behalf of Daisy Bell upon hearing this.

She patted Daisy Bell on her sobbing back, softly comforting her. Not long after, Daisy Bell cried herself to sleep leaning against Tanya Sinclair.

Tanya Sinclair laid her down on the sofa and found a small blanket to cover her.

Only then did she ask Mia for details.

Through Mia, Tanya Sinclair pieced it all together.

The biggest investor in this film was a lecherous coal tycoon named Mr. Warner. Before filming started, all the investors, along with the director, producer, and main crew, had dinner together. Mr. Warner was already interested in Daisy Bell and became increasingly handsy.

Director Langdon couldn’t bear it and intervened, but since investors held the most power, he didn’t dare to fall out with them. Eventually, Daisy Bell found an excuse to go to the bathroom, intending to slip away quietly, but she was blocked by Mr. Warner.

The man, drunk, became even more excessive. Daisy Bell, with her fiery temper, gave him a kick that left him in a world of pain...

But due to pressure, Daisy Bell had no choice but to apologize. The other party then forced her to drink as a form of apology. Daisy Bell, to show her sincerity, drank until she vomited, only to realize she was being toyed with. Mr. Warner used the threat of pulling his investment and calling the police to coerce Director Langdon into replacing Daisy Bell’s role with his own favorite.

Tanya Sinclair was fuming after hearing this, "Didn’t Daisy’s management company do anything?"

Mia sighed, "This company’s corrupt, with terrible commissions. They keep signing Daisy up for bad jobs to make fast money. Daisy’s already decided not to renew her contract, so instead of helping, they released negative news saying she has a bad temper and causes trouble on set..."

The more Mia spoke, the more sympathetic and wronged she felt for Daisy Bell, "And then today, Boss Warner came here to meet someone, and Daisy, unconvinced, came looking for an explanation, only to be stopped at the door by security. If Mr. Poole hadn’t passed by and helped wrap things up, it would’ve been even more embarrassing..."

Tanya Sinclair took a deep breath, already at her limit.

She looked at the drunken and fuzzy Daisy Bell, "Let’s take her to my place first. If the paparazzi catch her here, it’ll be even more troublesome."

"Alright."

The two of them supported Daisy Bell from either side.

"Mmm...where are we going?" Daisy Bell, drunkenly dazed, looked at Tanya Sinclair and then closed her eyes with a smile, "Baby Tanya, I’ll protect you! There are so many bad guys!"

Yes, this world has many bad people...

The three of them had just left the private room and reached the elevator when a group approached from the opposite direction. Among them, in the center, was a man wearing a tailored high-end suit, exuding an exceptional aura like a magnificent tree. He wore gold-rimmed glasses, and even his shirt was buttoned all the way up to the top.

The entire demeanor seemed cold and abstinent.

Beside him, a slightly balding man was fawningly smiling, saying something to which the man only responded with a cold nod.

"That’s Boss Warner!" Mia glared fire at the bald man.

Tanya Sinclair furrowed her brows, just about to take some action, when Daisy Bell suddenly opened her drunken eyes, staring intently at the bald man.

"Oh, you scoundrel, here you are!" Somehow summoning her strength, Daisy Bell shook off Mia and Tanya Sinclair, swaying along an S path directly towards Boss Warner.

It was then that Tanya Sinclair noticed Daisy Bell was holding an empty wine bottle!

Daisy Bell had a clear target, raising the bottle to smash it on the bald man’s head.

But her vision was blurry, and the path seemed shaky. As she lifted the bottle, it aimed at the cold and abstinent man in the middle...

Of course, before she could strike, as she raised her hand, the man’s large hand intercepted her.

Jasper Monroe frowned, his tone cold, "What are you doing?"

Is she trying to kill him to eliminate her debt?

Daisy Bell opened her mouth to explain, but her expression suddenly changed, and she directly vomited all over Jasper Monroe’s suit...