Chapter 168: Teach Yaron a Lesson

Jonathan’s heart sank, and his eyes turned cold. Before he could adjust his emotions, Sierra said, “He’s special.” Not like family, but as important as family.

Jonathan’s heart skipped a beat. Nobody had made him feel this way before; it was an emotional rollercoaster. He suppressed his smile, making some noise to signal his presence before walking in, pretending he hadn’t heard anything.

Seeing him, Sierra recalled hearing his breathing and not daring to look at his face. Her current expression was an open book; he saw right through her. If Dickson weren’t here, Jonathan would tease her. Once again, he felt Dickson was an extra. Dickson seemed to realize this as well. After greeting Jonathan, he returned to his room, leaving only the two of them in the dining room.

The silence was laced with an unmistakable tension, so thick it was almost tangible. Sierra found the atmosphere unbearable. Things had been perfectly normal between her and Jonathan before, so why did it feel so different now? Desperate to break the awkwardness, she tried to find a topic. “Do I still need to cooperate with the investigation?”

Understanding her intent, Jonathan played along and replied, “No need.” The truth was, there was nothing for her to cooperate with.

“Oh, I received news that Evan, Sean, and Eleanor have been bailed,” she said. They did not directly get involved in Denise’s actions. At most, they were guilty of concealing the truth. The harshest consequence they would face was a verbal warning and disciplinary action.

“If you want, I can have them sent back in,” Jonathan said. Whether they were involved or not was just a matter of one word from him. If Sierra wished, he could make sure they stayed locked up. But she had previously said she would handle it herself, so he left the decision to her.

Sierra shook her head. “This is good enough.” If she took it any further, she would be no different from the Xander family. Jonathan had already anticipated her answer, so he wasn’t surprised.

Even if Evan and the others were released, their lives wouldn’t be easy going forward. After what Sierra had done yesterday, no one would remember Evan. If they did, it would only be as the guy who plagiarized someone else’s work.

Speaking of which, there was still one more person to deal with.

“How are you gonna handle that clown?”

“Clown?” Sierra thought for a moment before she understood who Jonathan was referring to. Right, Yaron! He was terrible, stealing her stuff to curry favor with Evan. He was more horrible than Evan. Although Evan wasn’t the best, he still had pride. Yaron had completely lost his moral compass. She was too blind to even have a shred of feelings for Yaron.

At that moment, Jonathan suddenly remembered that Sierra had once harbored feelings for Yaron. His gaze toward her turned a little… complicated. Sierra averted her eyes, sighing helplessly. “Don’t say anything! I know I had terrible taste back then.”

Jonathan was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter. That wasn’t what he was going to say. He was just a little…

“Call the police,” Sierra said after a moment of thought.

It was no lie to say that Yaron stole her research data, and with the punishment he was about to receive, he would not be able to survive in this industry anymore. Nobody would want such a horrible man with a bad reputation.

Jonathan was satisfied with Sierra’s decision. He liked that she was such a decisive person. As the two chatted over breakfast, the atmosphere was relaxed and comfortable. Meanwhile, the Xander family was far from having such an easy morning.

Eleanor, Evan, and Sean had been released, but in just one day, they had lost all their former glamour. Sean was slightly better. After all, he had been through this before and had some experience. But Eleanor and Evan looked utterly disheveled. Eleanor hadn’t stopped crying, while Evan remained silent the entire time.

Evan had been this way since yesterday. Apart from during interrogation, he was silent all the time. Sean was the youngest of the family and never needed to do anything. But now, with such a thing happening to the family, he could only stay strong and hold them together. He knew Evan’s turmoil; Evan was such a proud person but he was trampled upon this time.