Zane Shaw casually flipped through and remained calm.
"Ms. Sinclair, I sympathize with your situation. But to put it bluntly, in today’s society, infidelity, especially among wealthy men, isn’t something new. To think you could leverage this to fight The Hawthorne Family for custody of the two children is a bit too..." Zane Shaw found a word that was less hurtful, "naive."
Tanya replied, "That’s why I came to see you."
"..." Zane Shaw twirled his pen, his eyes sharp and piercing behind the glasses, stared straight at Tanya, calculating silently, "You want to use my reputation to pressure Vincent Hawthorne, making them unsure about winning in court?"
"Yes." Tanya admitted frankly.
Zane Shaw had never lost a case in his many years in the field. Moreover, she had checked and found that a couple of years ago, when Zane Shaw handled a case involving cross-border mergers, he faced off against Zenith Group’s legal team, which was one of the few defeats for them.
She thought Vincent Hawthorne must be very clear about Zane Shaw’s capabilities.
Besides, she certainly had other chips for negotiating with Vincent Hawthorne.
But there was no need to reveal them to Zane Shaw just yet.
"Lawyer Shaw, I know since you switched to being a divorce lawyer, you haven’t taken on any major cases. If you manage my divorce case and help a Cinderella like me win a glorious battle against The Hawthorne Family, it would cement your place as a renowned divorce lawyer." Tanya encouraged.
Zane Shaw examined the woman sitting across the desk carefully.
To have such a beautiful face without makeup, dressed simply, and not at all intimidated sitting in front of him required immense inner strength.
He suddenly felt Tanya was far more complex than she appeared.
And somehow, this woman looked familiar...
His mind stirred slightly, and he nonchalantly picked up his phone to scroll.
Soon, he found the information he wanted.
—A message directly from Mr. Pierce.
Zane Shaw turned off the screen and casually placed the phone face-down on the desk.
Then, he stood up leisurely, adjusted his collar, and extended his hand to Tanya.
"Ms. Sinclair, I accept your divorce case." Zane Shaw smiled, "Pleasure working with you."
Tanya hadn’t expected Zane Shaw to agree so readily.
But she came with the mindset of trying her luck; it would be great if it worked, and she was prepared if it didn’t.
Yet Zane Shaw indeed agreed!
It was like a pie falling from the sky for Tanya, and she was somewhat excited, immediately shaking Zane Shaw’s hand.
"Thank you, Lawyer Shaw, pleasure working with you."
Zane Shaw had already planned the next steps: "I’ll draft the divorce agreement by tomorrow and send it to you for review. If all is well, on Monday, I’ll personally take the divorce agreement to Zenith Group to discuss with Vincent Hawthorne. Ms. Sinclair, you don’t need to be present."
For Tanya, Zane Shaw’s promptness was exactly what she hoped for.
She then asked, "About the legal fees..."
"No rush on that." Zane Shaw unusually agreeable, "Helping every lady escape the claws of marriage is my duty. So let’s sign the retainer contract later. You can first pay me a fifty-thousand deposit, and we’ll settle the remaining after the case concludes."
"Great!" Tanya was pleasantly surprised.
Zane Shaw’s proposal came as a timely relief for her.
She had sold the diamond necklace Vincent Hawthorne gave her, getting a total of 4.8 million, which still wasn’t enough to cover one of Zane Shaw’s level’s appearance fees.
In the corner, the assistant lawyer quietly taking notes during the meeting was stunned.
He could hardly recognize Zane Shaw.
The retainer contract was soon delivered, and Tanya quickly signed it after reviewing it twice. Fresh chapters posted on ⓝovelFire.net
"Lawyer Shaw, I leave it to you then."
"Ms. Sinclair, you’re being too polite. It’s what I should do." Zane Shaw maintained a gentle smile and even personally escorted Tanya out.
After Tanya had left, the assistant couldn’t hold back.
"Barrister Shaw, are you alright? Fifty-thousand deposit? Your consultation fee is fifty thousand an hour... umph!"
Zane Shaw clamped his mouth and stepped aside.
He walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, watching Tanya as she walked out of the law firm’s doors, pulled out his phone, and took a picture, then sent it directly to Declan Pierce.
Zane Shaw cleared his throat and sent a voice message to Declan Pierce.
"Mr. Pierce, here’s the thing, I need my legal fees settled in advance. Ms. Sinclair has paid a fifty-thousand deposit, which can be deducted. I’ll send you the detailed statement of my legal fees within half an hour for your review."
Though he wasn’t sure who this Tanya Sinclair was, if Declan Pierce was willing to get personally involved for her, then she must be a cash cow!
Declan Pierce and Vincent Hawthorne.
Zane Shaw’s lips curled playfully.
It seemed this divorce case would be quite interesting.
Not long after Tanya left the law firm, she received a call from Vincent Hawthorne.
She directly hung up and didn’t answer. After a few minutes, the phone rang again.
This time, it was from Old Lady Hawthorne.
"Grandma." Tanya answered.
Old Lady Hawthorne’s kind voice sounded in her ear, "Tanya, come over for dinner tonight. I’ve already told that brat Vincent to bring you back. But he said he couldn’t reach you, just nonsense, I called and got through immediately!"
Tanya was willing to visit the old lady, but thinking Vincent Hawthorne would also be there, she felt uneasy.
As she was about to find an excuse, the old lady started to moan painfully, "Oh dear, my head has been hurting a lot these days. Tanya, if you don’t come, I might just die from the pain."
"..." Even though she knew the old lady was exaggerating, Tanya couldn’t bear to expose her, "Alright, I know, Grandma. I’m coming right away."
The old lady instantly smiled wide, "Good, good, I’ll have the kitchen prepare your favorite dishes. Just come directly to me!"
"Okay." Tanya replied, then slowly said, "Grandma, I also have something to tell you tonight."
Since the divorce had been decided, it couldn’t be kept secret.
She planned to tell the old lady directly tonight.
"Alright, when you come, Grandma also has something to tell you." The old lady hung up the phone cheerfully.
She turned and urged Aunt Flora, "Hurry to the kitchen and check if the health-boosting soup for Vincent and Tanya is ready. The ingredients in it are precious; don’t spill or waste a drop!"
She had heard from Aunt Tawny that recently, the relationship between the two had been unstable. That brat Vincent had finally realized his wife’s worth and had people hang the wedding photos back up.
But it seemed Tanya had been hurt, having slept in the study all this time.
Young couples argue in bed and make up at the bed’s end; now they’re not even sleeping together! How can they reconcile?