Too Late to Love Her: When She Divorced, He Fell Apart-Chapter 28: Any Progress on Jade Sutton?

Chapter 28: Chapter 28: Any Progress on Jade Sutton?
Claire was really surprised.
"So fast, your photo restoration skills might be more professional than your lawyering?"
"No way, my photo editing skills are just at the level of basic apps, definitely can’t handle this."
She was startled: "Did you give the photos to someone else?"
Tina perceptively poured her a glass of water, pulled up a chair, and sat across from her, saying, "Didn’t I get sent in earlier? There was a guard inside who’s really close to me, I asked him to help. Don’t worry, President Hale, I just borrowed some advanced tech from him; I handled the job myself."
As she spoke, she sent the photo to Claire.
In the photo, a woman elegantly wrapped in a white wool coat, with long black hair draped softly over her ear, her skin snowy white and lips full.
Claire was stunned, staring intently at the photo, for a full five minutes.
Tina sensed something was off in the atmosphere.
But she didn’t dare speak or interrupt, just waited silently as her boss examined the photo.
After about another five minutes, Claire found another photo and placed it next to the one of the Princess.
Tina looked over; in the photo was an Oriental beauty with striking blonde hair, her red lips vivid, and smiling with abandon.
Completely the opposite of the elegant Princess.
Claire stared at the two photos for over ten minutes.
Tina felt uneasy, eventually joining in the examination; as she looked, she too noticed something amiss.
"President Hale, how does this Princess look somewhat like the blonde woman next to her?"
Tina asked, truly unsure.
Just by looking at the eyebrows and eyes, the two indeed had some resemblance, but observing longer, their styles were so vastly different, it seemed impossible they could be the same person.
Besides, the Princess’s face was reconstructed, so it might not be entirely accurate, perhaps just a coincidence?
After a whole half hour, Claire finally closed the photo, not answering Tina’s question, only saying: "Act like you never saw these two photos today."
Tina nodded vigorously.
Claire might not have realized, but Tina clearly saw the disbelief written on her boss’s face.
This was an expression Tina had never seen on Claire before.
Who that blonde woman was, Tina didn’t know, but it was clear that if the woman was indeed the same as the Princess, it was a significant shock to Claire.
After Tina left the office, Claire brought out the two photos again, gazing at them for a long time.
Her porcelain-white fingers hovered over the Princess’s photo for a while, then she started a share and her finger tapped on Sean Lockwood’s icon.
Sean is Jade Sutton’s husband; he would definitely be able to confirm if this mysterious Princess is indeed Jade Sutton.
Once confirmed, having Sean find Jade would not only yield her a substantial fee but also remove Jade from Tristan Lockwood’s side.
Then what would happen to Tristan Lockwood?
At this moment, Claire felt no relief from solving clues; instead, it was almost suffocating.
If Tristan had known all along that his beloved Princess was the woman she was looking for, Jade Sutton, then his promise to help her find the person was simply a game, playing her like a fool.
He never intended for her to find Jade; that’s why he agreed to help.
No wonder he signed that agreement she gave to disgust him without hesitation.
In the end, it was all to protect Jade.
Ultimately, Claire still didn’t send the photo to Sean immediately.
She received an invitation to attend a legal summit in Seacliff next week, so she promptly got to work preparing for it.
Upon boarding the plane, she saw Tristan and Sean Lockwood in first class.
The two were seated apart, one in front of the other, but as Claire walked by, she heard Tristan call out, "Uncle."
Startled, she instinctively glanced back at Sean, only to lock eyes with Tristan.
Sean, who was about to speak with Tristan, turned around and saw Tristan staring at Claire.
Sean’s expression remained unchanged, and he politely nodded at Claire in greeting.
Claire curled her lips into a smile and returned the greeting before heading to the economy class.
After taking her seat, she received two messages, one from Tristan, with merely a question mark.
Claire ignored him.
The other was from Sean, asking why she wasn’t sitting with Tristan.
Claire felt Sean was asking knowingly.
When he had previously come to the firm to commission her services, he had clearly pointed out her spying on Tristan’s many flings, so why act like a concerned elder now?
However, Sean was nonetheless a major client, the type who paid well, someone she couldn’t afford to offend, so she politely replied: "I’m on a business trip, didn’t expect to run into you both."
Sean didn’t reply further.
Claire thought her chance encounter with the uncle and nephew ended there.
Unexpectedly, less than two minutes later, a flight attendant came over to her and softly said, "Miss Hale, Mr. Lockwood has upgraded you to first class, you can go over now."
Claire froze, looking down to send a message asking Tristan: Why upgrade my seat?
Tristan sent her another question mark in response.
Meanwhile, Sean sent her a two-word message: Come here.
The tone offered no room for negotiation.
When Claire reached first class, Sean pointed to the seat next to Tristan.
Without much expression, she sat down.
Tristan was deeply engrossed in reading a tablet filled with dense characters, unclear which language it was in.
Hearing her movement, he didn’t even look up, but while putting away the tablet, his elbow accidentally brushed against her.
Claire instinctively withdrew her hand, like avoiding a dangerous predator, barely stopping herself from saying, "Don’t touch me."
This small gesture didn’t escape Tristan’s notice.
Never a man of great magnanimity, especially not towards her, he grabbed her retreating hand and coldly asked, "Why are you avoiding me?"
The plane was relatively empty, with only the three of them and the attendant sitting up front in first class.
Tristan’s question boomed like a statement, practically audible to everyone.
Even the highly professional flight attendant couldn’t help but glance over.
Let alone Sean, seated ahead.
When Sean turned back, Claire hadn’t managed to pull her hand free from Tristan yet and heard Sean ask: "Any progress on the Jade Sutton matter?"
Almost instantly, the hand clasping her wrist tightened its grip.