Fortunately, Michael did not voice his assumption just now, or John would have become vigilant.After John left Michaelâs office, he chewed over the matter along the way. He felt the need to investigate the issue as soon as possible to avoid the danger first. He had to keep the issue from being disclosed. Once he arrived home, he looked at Sophia with suspicion. His expression was filled with hostility. Throughout these years, Sophia was most capable of observing oneâs expression. From Johnâs gaze, she could sense that danger was near. Sophia then asked the chauffeur, Benny, about Johnâs itinerary only to find out that Bill had been arrested and that John had personally interrogated Bill in the police station.Sophia instantly panicked. If Bill confessed everything, she would be dead.She felt uneasy as she recalled the way John looked at her. Could John be suspecting her already?Luckily she never had direct contact with Bill. Now that Ninth Brother had gone abroad, she was
âDo I need to discuss with you if Iâve managed to persuade her? I wonder which b*stard exposed all your doings back then. Heather hates mistresses most for interfering with other peopleâs marriage. She got even more furious after knowing that you were friends with Molly. She said outright that she wonât accept the daughter of a mistress into the family.âWhat fuelled Winonaâs anger was that Heather even began to suspect her when she spoke up for Serena. After that, she was afraid to comment further. âHeather has always longed for a grandson. Now that Serena is pregnant with two children, how can she afford to give up on them? This is strange!ââI initially thought so too, but Heather said that Christina has already provided her a grandson and thereâs another one in Christinaâs belly. Two is enough for her, and whatâs more, Christina can still get pregnant in the future.âThe more Winona described, the more furious she became. âAnyway, Heather has taken to Christina now, and sheâs
âWhat? Did you say Bill was caught?âThis took Winona by shock. She knew the entire development of Billâs incident the last time. If John learned the truth from Bill and tracked it down to Sophia following the clues, then all of them would be in trouble.âJohn knows about the past?ââNot yet but his attitude has changed after seeing the man. Billâs involved with Hoover Lane, hence John must be suspicious of me because of that.âWinona knew the seriousness of the matter. Christina had never been in contact with people from Hoover Lane thus it seemed unlikely that she would be involved with them. John must be able to guess that Bill and Ninth Brother were under someone elseâs instruction.Fortunately, Bill did not know much of the details. He only carried out Ninth Brotherâs orders as told and had no direct contact with Sophia. However, if John continued with the investigation, the truth might come to light soon.âNinth Brother has already left the country. So even if Johnâs suspic
âRemind Judy to keep a close eye on the Larsons and report to you immediately if anything happens. We canât afford another mistake this time.ââDonât worry about that. Iâve got leverage on Judy so sheâll have to listen to me.âJust like the two of them discussed earlier, Heather did unexpectedly apologize in a low voice, which greatly shocked both Christina and Francis.There had not been much interaction between Francis and Heather. He did not have much contact with the members of Larson family even when Christina was married to them before. Even then, Heatherâs overbearing arrogance had already left a huge expression in him. Why would a tricky and malicious woman like her start to see things properly all of a sudden?It was Christina who broke Heatherâs leg hence the latter hated her to the core, always shouting about wanting to sue Christina and send her to jail. Why would Heather suddenly change her attitude? Not to mention she was willing to accept Christina, and she also re
Michael figured he had to take a different approach to the arrest of Ninth Brother, and that was when he thought of Matthew. The Henderson family had great connections with the police and gangs abroad. Seeking their help would definitely be more effective than depending on the police.He was thinking about this when Logan came to report that Matthewâs staff was also following Sophia. It seemed that Matthew had also figured that something was wrong.Loganâs words implicitly implied that it was better to squash enmity rather than keeping it alive. Michael and Matthew did not have any discord between them to begin with. They only ended up in this awkward situation because of Christina.Since Christinaâs happiness was their common goal, it would make things easier if they made peace with each other.Michael and Matthew were both proud and arrogant. In the past, it would be impossible for either of them to take a step back and initiate reconciliation. However, the situation was differ
There was no need to conceal this matter from Matthew. âThis person is Bill Huntâs superior. Heâs the person behind the scheme against Christina.â âOh?â Matthew was surprised.âThis person has no past grudges with Christina, so he mustâve done so at someone elseâs order.âMatthew understood what he meant. âDon't worry, you can leave this to me. However, allow me to ask one more question. President Larson, you probably already know who is behind the scheme. All you need is evidence, right?âMichael smiled. âSophia and Serena are the masterminds. Iâve been keeping a close watch on them but they are very careful. I can only find evidence from other places.ââI figure itâs them too.â Matthew asked, âWhy donât you tell John of your suspicion and let him take care of the two women?ââI donât trust him,â Michael expressed his thoughts bluntly. âHe came to me last time but I didn't tell him anything.âMatthew did not understand. âWhy can't you trust him? Are you afraid he is not sincer
Heather was genuinely remorseful and eager to compensate Christina. She felt that she ought to show her consideration now that the latter was expecting. Therefore, she bought a lot of baby clothes, toys, and maternity supplies and delivered them to Christina. The woman behaved as politely as the last time. Travis thought better of her after seeing the friendly smile on her face, not to mention the plenty of presents that she had brought along too. He did not run away this time when she showed up. Instead, he stayed by Christinaâs side as the two women spoke.Heather was liking the adorable boy more and more. Though because of his health condition, Travis was not as chubby as peers his age but he looked frail and pale instead. Heather felt sorry for her grandson. It was all her fault. If she had not treated Christina poorly in the past, the latter would not have to suffer and the boy might not be born with this sickness.She yearned to hug her grandson close and shower him with kiss
âHow do you know?ââBecause I received them too. I wonder if Aunty Heather treats us with equal kindness?â Serena said.She mentioned a list of maternity supplies, and Christina realized that they were exactly the same things that she had received too.Serena was smug. âAunty Heather asked me to not worry as she had bought you more toys because of Travis. Why would I? Weâre sisters and weâre not as calculative.ââShameless!â Christina was furious.âWhy are you getting upset?â Serena smirked.âAunty Heather said she would bring over some top-grade spinach soup tomorrow to nourish my body so I could give her two chubby grandchildren. She mentioned youâre included too. Well, why would she treat both of us with so much kindness? Is it possible she wants the both of us to be her daughter-in-law?ââShut your stinky mouth!ââI want to remind you to stop daydreaming about starting over with Michael. Iâve always been Aunty Heatherâs favorite. Sheâs never going to accept you into the fam
In fact, Matthew was the one who planned this entire thing. He had been keeping a close eye on Rachel since she returned.He could let bygones be bygones if she was willing to settle down. However, the woman did not learn from past mistakes and once again partnered up with Serena to plot against Christina.Matthew went along with their plan. He even found someone to set this up to lure them into the trap.Christinaâs due date was approaching after Rachel and Serena were taken care of. Michael began making preparations for Travisâ transplant operation.He hired the best hematologist and gynecologist before arranging for both Christina and Travisâ operation to take place in the same hospital.The delivery went smoothly. Christina gave birth to a baby girl, and Heather was over the moon.Everything had gone well, and it was about time to start on Travisâ operation. Christina was accompanied by Matthew and Rachel whereas Heather stayed close by the babyâs side. Michael comforted Chri
Besides, even if the plan failed, intentionally causing a pregnant woman to miscarry was not considered homicide by the countryâs criminal law. The punishment was less serious as the behavior would be categorized as an assault occasioning bodily harm.Assault and criminal homicide were two completely different crimes.Rachel agreed to the suggestion. Scarface was indeed a ruthless man. He came up with this vicious revenge that would put Christina in pain forever.Upon agreeing on the details of the plan, Scarface and his friends from the streets proceeded to kidnap Christina. Rachel and Serena were told to sit tight and wait for the good news.Scarface had a well-thought-out plan and got his hands on Christina before long. Her head was covered with a black cloth as they forcefully pushed her into the van.Serena and Rachel were already at the agreed-upon location when Scarface instructed Christina to step out of the vehicle. The latterâs belly was round, and both of her hands were
Serena lost everything. She had no choice but to work as a bargirl to survive.Scarface was the person in charge of the bar she worked at. The ruthless man had pretty much slept with every woman who worked at his place. Naturally, Serena could not escape from that fate either.Serena was different from other bargirls. She came from a prestigious family and was highly educated. Even in dire straits, she still maintained a certain grace that made her stand out from the crowd.Scarface spotted her on her first day at the bar. He ordered his men to drag her into the private room and tortured her the entire night.She resisted in the beginning. However, without anyone to depend on, she had no choice but to give into Scarfaceâs tyrannical abuse.Several times later, he found himself attracted to her. Every night, he would ask for her instead of other women.Serena, who could not escape from him, gave in eventually. She even ended up becoming his lover.By doing so, she found someone t
âJust a little while ago.â Sean came closer. âChristina, we need to talk.âShe nodded and followed him to the garden. He helped her to get comfortable on the bench. âDo you believe in fate?âShe shook her head, unsure where this was leading. âI didnât either as Iâm a firm believer that hard work always pays off. But now I do.âHe looked her in the eye. âIâve been lost and struggled a lot since that incident, unsure how to face you. After considering this seriously for the past few days, Iâve finally mustered enough courage to meet you again.âA sigh escaped her lips. âSorry, Sean. Itâs all my fault.ââNo! It has nothing to do with you, Christina. Itâs my fault that my love is not strong enough. I discovered that Suzy is really great after spending the past few months with her. Sheâs just like you. Sheâs gentle, kind, pure, and adorable. I realized Iâve fallen in love with her.âThis was not what he really thought.He loved Christina since the beginning of time and believed he
âThatâs old history. We think Michael is actually pretty good.ââWe? Who do you mean?â Christina teased.Ariel and Matthew had been spending a lot of time together lately. Christina went through that herself and understood the passion in her friendâs eyes. This silly girl was actually in love. She could not be happier for her.âWho else? Matthew, of course!â Ariel glared at Christina.âI say whateverâs on my mind, unlike you, who always keep everything to yourself and get stuck in dilemmas. Every good opportunity slips past you because of your indecisiveness!â âHow can I not be? I promised to marry him but Iâm now trying to convince him to marry someone else. Is this really the best thing for him? Will he be happy?âAriel questioned after a brief silence, âChristina, let me ask you this. Who do you care for more? Michael or Sean?âChristina asked herself the same question too. She naturally cared more about Michael in the past, but she also started to develop a strong feeling f
The following morning, Serena hurried to the police station to file a report.The police treated this with high importance and warned her to be careful of Darren Cain as he was a vicious gang member who had served over a decade in prison.She became more frightened after hearing that. Immediately, she moved out of that house and rented a place somewhere quiet. As she was terrified, she stayed indoors for the next few days.Much of Christinaâs stress was relieved without having to deal with Serenaâs pestering.âChristina, John was at the last stage of cancer. It was lucky enough that he lasted until he did. This is his fate, so try not to get too upset.â Francis comforted the dispirited woman. It did not make any difference even though he was not the real Francis. He had long adapted to the identity after assuming it for so many years. Most importantly, Christina was still willing to treat him like a real uncle even after finding out the truth.âDonât worry, Uncle, Iâm fine.â
The harassment continued after the funeral. Serena went around spreading accusations and threatened Christina to give her money. Otherwise, she would report John to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission for private corruption.If reported, the antique art collection would be seized and no one could get it!Christina became more frustrated after hearing that.She never expected Johnâs leniency toward Serena would cause her such a big problem. Matthew was infuriated by Serenaâs unreasonable behavior. He suggested they could shut the woman up by teaching her a lesson. Sean shook his head. âThatâs not going to solve the problem. Serena mustâve come prepared if she dares to stir up trouble. This is a lawful society. We canât do as we wish.ââAre we actually going to pay her off then?â Ariel asked, âI think giving her money isnât going to put an end to this. Sheâs certainly going to keep threatening for more!âMichael scoffed. âWhy should we give her money? She can go
âI will, Dad, donât worry. Iâll listen to Sister,â Suzy replied.âChristina.â John grabbed Christinaâs hand in his own. âMy greatest regret in this life is failing to take good care of you and your mother. Iâm going to meet your mother soon. I hope sheâll forgive me!âTears rolled down Christinaâs cheeks. Men would speak kindly in the presence of death. She was unsure if Molly would forgive him, but she had long forgiven her father.He strained to pull Suzy and Christinaâs hands closer together as he looked at them with pleading eyes. âThe both of you must live peacefully together. Suzy, listen to your sister, and Christina, you must take good care of her on my behalf.âChristina looked at Suzy before nodding quietly. Then, John shifted his glance to Michael.âIâve done many wrongs in this life. I betrayed my wife and disappointed my daughter. I hope youâll do better than me. Iâll hand over Christina to you now. Iâll come back to haunt you as a stubborn ghost if you dare to wr
Suzy felt guilt-ridden and knew she was not in the position to demand anything from Christina. However, her mother had gone mad. She did not wish to see Christina continuing the fight with her mother.At a loss for what to do, she cried her heart out while in Christinaâs arms.Sean felt a heavy feeling in his chest. He knew Christina too well after all the years they spent together. She was a soft-hearted person behind her stubborn facade. Seeing others in sorrow was her greatest weakness.There was no doubt she would choose to forgive Suzy and accept her as her sister.If that was the case, then the marriage between them was destined to fail. Christina would reject him for the sake of the child in her sisterâs belly.At this moment, he was thinking of how everything was falling apart at this moment even after he had consistently pursued her all these years. He stood there in a daze for a long time before finally heaving a sigh.Perhaps this was their destiny. Suzy cried for a