Days passed after that meeting, and Gray went back to doing his own thing as if nothing had happened. He didn’t waste time lingering on it.

He just informed Alistair’s lawyer about everything, including Carrence’s refusal to get involved with Alistair.

That was his end on that. After that... Gray doesn’t want to involve himself anymore and Alistair’s lawyer also stopped reaching out to him.

The problem was on his own end with his own hired lawyer and the witnesses they accumulated over the months. They were the ones handling the case.

He told his lawyer that it was not him that he would represent, but the victims of Alistair.

It was basically saying that he didn’t want to do anything with it anymore. That Chapter had already ended in his mind, but he still gotta put up with it.

The only connection left was through the occasional calls from his lawyer. But even those, Gray barely handled personally.

Most of the time, he gave it to Mara. Just like now, when his phone was ringing again.

"Mara."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it."

She would be the one to pick up the phone whenever they got a call from his lawyer, already knowing what it was about.

Gray didn’t even bother looking up from his documents anymore when Mara got up to answer the call. She pressed the phone against her ear, her expression slowly turning into a tight smile.

"Yes, hello," she said politely. "Yes, this is regarding Mr. Gray..."

She paused for a moment before her brows twitched slightly.

"I understand," she continued, her tone still professional. "We’ve already submitted that document two days ago..."

She paused for another time while Gray just flipped a page calmly, completely unaffected by it.

"Yes. I’m aware," she said, forcing patience into her voice. "No, there’s no need to repeat that..."

Gray could almost feel the irritation building up from where he was sitting. It amused him to see her like that.

"Yes," Mara exhaled slowly. "We’ll review it again."

And just like that, the call ended.

For a few seconds, Mara just stood there in silence. Then he turned to Gray and glared at him.

"You’re unbelievable." She muttered to him.

"Hmm?"

"You’re making me deal with all of that," she said, narrowing her eyes slightly. "Do you know how annoying those calls are.

"You’re doing great," he teasingly smiled at her.

"I swear," Mara muttered under her breath, rubbing her temple slightly.

But even so, she didn’t complain further. Because she knew it was her work.

Gray finally set his pen down at that. He leaned back slightly in his chair and looked at Mara.

"So what’s the problem?" he asked.

Mara let out a breath, still clearly annoyed from the call.

"They want additional documents," she said, crossing her arms. "For the trial."

"Like what?" Gray frowned slightly.

Mara walked back to her desk and grabbed a small notepad where she had jotted things down during the call.

"They’re asking for updated witness affidavits," she started. "Apparently, they want them re-signed and notarized closer to the hearing date."

"We already submitted those." Gray clicked his tongue softly.

"Yeah, we did," Mara replied. "But they said it’s because they want to make sure no statements have changed."

"I see..."

"They’re also asking for a more detailed transaction history regarding Alistair’s accounts," she added. "Bank records, transfer logs, anything that can further support the money trail."

"We already gave them all what I found, especially the financial records." Gray’s brows furrowed slightly at that.

"I told them that already," Mara said with a small shrug. "But they want it organized differently this time. Categorized per incident, not just compiled."

"This is so fucking complicated," Gray muttered under his breath.

The both of them let out a small sigh at the same time with that.

"Fine," Gray muttered. "Just give them what they want."

"Yeah," Mara agreed.

"Oh, right," Mara suddenly straightened slightly as if she remembered something. "The store’s 5th anniversary is just around the corner. Joel reminded me to tell you that."

Gray’s eyes widened at that. He quickly turned his gaze toward her.

"Already?" he muttered in surprise.

"Yeah," Mara nodded as a small smile formed on her lips. "Time flies, doesn’t it?"

"So," she tilted her head slightly, "what are you planning to do?"

Gray didn’t answer immediately. He was still surprised at it. His thoughts were filled with problems for the past few months, and he had completely forgotten about them!

His fingers tapped lightly against the armrest of his chair as he thought about it.

"I haven’t thought about it yet," he admitted after a moment.

Mara raised a brow at him.

"Seriously?" she said. "That’s a big thing, you know. Even the employees were expecting something from it!

"I know," Gray replied calmly. "I’ll think about it now, okay?"

Gray sighed at that. "But I promise you. We will do somethinng grand. It’s my first even with this store."

Mara smiled slightly at that.

"Good answer," she said. "Everyone is definitely going to expect something."

"Yeah... I know." Gray chuckled at that.

Mara leaned forward slightly. Her irritation was already gone as a new kind of energy replaced it. He was also excited for the event!

"Well," she started, tapping her fingers lightly against the desk, "we should definitely prepare a party for the event."

Gray raised a brow and listened to her carefully.

"And not just something simple!" she continued. "I mean an actual event where there’s dcorations, food, and a small program!"

Gray nodded slowly, following her train of thought.

"And," Mara added, her tone picking up even more, "we should run promotions for the whole week. Discounts on selected items, bundle deals, and a raffle draw for the community."

A faint smile formed on his lips as he watched her.

"The anniversary isn’t just for celebration, you know," she went on, now lecturing him. "It’s also a good chance to boost sales and build stronger customer loyalty."

"Mhm..." Gray hummed, clearly impressed at her sudden enthusiasm.

Mara crossed her arms, looking quite satisfied with herself.

"And we can also highlight the staff," she added. "Like, give recognition to the employees who’ve been there the longest. That will make them appreciate the event!!"

"Alright, we’ll do everything you said," Gray chuckled at that.

"R-Really?"

"Yes. You can plan it. I leave it to you."

Mara’s eyes immediately lit up.

"Yayyy!" she blurted out without holding back.