Elisa did not know that Clive would return. After she entered the hotel café on the first floor with Remy, Remy ordered a glass of fruit juice for her, while he ordered a cup of coffee.“Won’t you have trouble sleeping if you drink coffee now?”Elisa ordered some pastry as well.“No. I have a huge workload to deal with. If I don’t drink coffee, I won’t be able to stay awake until late at night.”His work schedule was so packed that he had to work late hours every day. If one day he had the chance to hold one of the most important days of his life, he would definitely find time to relax.“Elisa.”Shortly after the two of them started chatting, Clive came in and saw them sitting by the window. While walking toward them, he shouted at his sister.Elisa turned her head, only to see her brother walking toward him. She felt as though she was caught by her parents.Wait. Just now, when she bumped into her brother at the hotel entrance, he was made aware that she was drinking coffee
Most importantly, Elisa and Remy could get along well.“I’m in charge of all the businesses of FC & Co. in Wiltspoon. I’ll be staying in Wiltspoon for a long time, so it’s equivalent to settling down here. I’ll return to FC Manor occasionally, but I’ll be more of a guest. My mom always says that I treat FC Manor like a hotel as I usually stay for only two nights.”Elisa placed her hand under the table and poked her brother. After that, she leaned forward and whispered to her brother, “Clive, it’s very abrupt of you to keep asking Remy those personal questions. You two aren’t even close.”Elisa only became familiar with Remy after meeting him several times.Clive’s eyes settled on his sister.Was she not interested in Remy at all?Clive was helping Elisa to fish for information in advance.He recalled that when Elisa pursued Zachary, she ended up feeling hurt and becoming an object of ridicule.Clive took pity on her and understood that she had no feelings for Remy. It was proba
At Wiltspoon School, a convoy of cars made a turn from the highway to the road in front of the school gate. After that, they stopped a few hundred feet away from the school gate.A bodyguard got out of the first car. He pulled open the rear door and said grimly, “Ms. Newman, we’ve arrived at Wiltspoon School.”Camryn silently grabbed the white cane beside her. Then, her hand landed on the several gifts on the seat.Mrs. Newman was the one who prepared the gifts. Camryn had no idea what those were.She was picked up by Mrs. Newman at the florist. The second car was Mrs. Newman’s exclusive car. She pressed down on the window button and signaled to the bodyguard. When the bodyguard approached her, she said, “Tell her to walk straight about a thousand feet from where she alighted, and the first store on her left is Serenity’s bookstore.”The bodyguard acknowledged her order courteously. Before he returned to the car, Camryn had already groped her way out of the car with the gifts. S
Mrs. Newman kept Camryn unwillingly, but she did not fulfill her duty as a mother. Even though Camryn was her biological daughter, she was unloving toward her. After Mrs. Newman’s previous husband died, Camryn was still an immature kid who clung to her mother. Whenever Camryn bawled and wanted a hug from Mrs. Newman, Mrs. Newman would turn a deaf ear to it. When Mrs. Newman was distressed, she would kick Camryn away.Even the nanny was deeply shocked at the situation.Mrs. Newman hated Camryn. Although she beat, scolded, and even kicked Camryn, the kid would still bawl and scream, “Mommy, hug me.”After Mrs. Newman’s previous husband died, she did not have to put on an act and stopped carrying Camryn anymore.She ordered the nanny to carry the kid away, never wanting the kid to appear in front of her. She hated the sight of her elder daughter’s face.Camryn took after her parents’ strengths. She resembled both her father and Mrs. Newman, but somehow, Mrs. Newman would not love h
Camryn had asked her store assistant to help measure her steps as she was visually impaired. Given her short steps, she needed four steps to travel about three feet. Although roughly a thousand feet was not an exact figure, she had to walk over a thousand steps.Deep down, Camryn was counting her steps as she walked slowly.Mrs. Newman was not bothered about Camryn’s pace.After winding up her window, Mrs. Newman called her husband. Once her husband picked up her call, she said, “Darling, I made Camryn meet Serenity.”Mr. Newman hummed in acknowledgment before he said, “You need to speak to Camryn nicely. That way, she’ll be willing to beg for mercy on behalf of Carrie.”“Does she dare reject my requests?” Mr. Newman choked, unable to reply.“Darling, try to pull some strings and see if you can save Carrie. She has been pampered since young. How can she endure the hardship there?“At the thought that she’s suffering there, my heart aches so much. It was all Camryn’s doing. If
Soon, Camryn heard someone running toward her.Based on the footsteps, it was probably a woman.“Ms. Newman.”Camryn heard a rather familiar voice, which seemed to belong to Serenity.“Ms. Newman.”Serenity scurried toward Camryn. She bent over and extended her hand to hold Camryn. “Ms. Newman, are you alright?”“I’m alright.”Sure enough, it was Serenity.Deep down, Camryn thought that what the bodyguard said was inaccurate. If the bookstore was a thousand feet or so away, Serenity could not have noticed her arrival so soon.Serenity’s bookstore was probably located nearby.Jasmine helped to pick up Camryn’s white cane and the gifts, which consisted of two boxes of dietary supplements and two sets of skin care products.Instead of asking Camryn why she came, Serenity and Jasmine first assisted her to the bookstore. After Camryn was seated, Serenity shot a look at the gifts and asked, “Was it Mrs. Newman who made you come here?”“Mm,” Camryn hummed softly.Jasmine poured a
Serenity had reported the issue to the police. She would let the police handle it rather than privately asking for compensation from the Newmans.If the Newmans gave her a new car as compensation for her damaged car, she would accept it. However, she would only accept a new car of the same brand.Serenity bought the car in the fall of last year. She had driven it for less than half a year.Camryn silently shoved the card into her pocket.Serenity went quiet for a moment. Then, she asked Camryn in a more relaxed tone, “Ms. Newman, if I insist on pressing charges against Carrie, will you be able to survive in the Newmans’ house?”“I’ll have a rough time, but that’s how I’ve always been living in that house. Whether or not you press charges against Carrie, they’ll treat me with the same attitude.”Camryn added calmly, “Mrs. York, you can do whatever you want. You don’t have to take me into consideration. After all, the incident started all because of me. You did that to Carrie just
Camryn’s aunt heard that there was a specialist in Annenburg. She thought of begging the specialist to treat Camryn’s eyes. Her aunt said even if it was not possible to meet the said specialist, it would be good to have the specialist’s apprentice take a look at Camryn’s condition as well.The specialist’s apprentice was Camryn’s last hope.After a long period of treatment, Camryn could vaguely see. However, her vision was so unclear that she was no different from a blind person. Even so, she was elated and hopeful of regaining her sight.Nevertheless, she did not dare let anyone else know apart from her aunt.Anyhow, she was like a blind person right now, not able to see.“Ms. Newman, how do you know there are other people in my store when you’re visually impaired?”Camryn laughed and replied, “When I entered your store, I heard their footsteps. The steady footsteps belong to the men whom I guess are your bodyguards.”Serenity and Jasmine exchanged glances.It was said that th
Isabella’s bodyguard had only called out to her, not daring to touch her, so she had not woken up. However, when Austin gently patted her face and called her, she woke up almost immediately. When she opened her eyes and saw Austin’s handsome face, Isabella was momentarily dazed, thinking she was dreaming about him.She had actually dreamed about Austin. Had she developed feelings for him? If she had not, why would she dream about him? In all her life, this was the first time she had dreamed about a man. Isabella wanted to touch Austin’s face, but as she raised her hand, she realized she was not dreaming.Austin was real. She could smell the fresh scent on him because they were so close.He had showered.Isabella quietly lowered her hand, hoping Austin had not noticed her earlier intention, lest he misunderstood.“Ms. Isabella,” Austin’s warm and pleasant voice reached her ears, making her want to close her eyes and go back to sleep. With him around, she felt safe and secure.
Hunter had neither money nor power. What could he possibly use to save his sons?“Dad, go home. When the trial starts, we’ll send someone to pick you up so you can attend and observe.”Hunter stood up angrily and stormed off.After he left, Ellie asked Ava, “Are we really not going to do anything? My child is still young. Having a father in prison will always be a stain on their life.”“What can we do? Even if we wanted to save them, we don’t have the means. We know what Caroline is like. She’s not going to let this go lightly this time,” Ava replied. “Anyway, think about last year, when they were caught cheating. How did they treat us then?”Remembering the events from last year, Ellie said, “Let them serve a few years in prison, then. Ava, Caroline is in the hospital. Should we go visit her?”“We should. Let’s go tomorrow. We’ll call Emma and visit Caroline together. The Fisher family is full of terrible people, but Caroline still has some conscience. She’s always been kind t
Hunter was momentarily speechless. He did not have much money. When Belinda was alive, he never had more than five hundred dollars on him. After his children grew up, he secretly asked them for money. During that time, he had money to spend freely, living a lavish life outside.However, all that money had been spent. He had no savings, mainly because he was used to spending extravagantly.He had been unable to save money. He did not own any shops or properties either; Belinda had kept him on a tight leash.The house in their hometown had been built with Belinda’s money, but it was not under his name. It was under his three sons’ names.After Belinda’s death, his sons supported him. Each son gave him over a hundred thousand dollars a month for living expenses.Combined, that was several hundred thousand dollars a month, allowing him to live comfortably in Ashford. He had managed to save a little, but not much, just over a million dollars in total. Hiring the best lawyers for h
Despite this, lying in bed and enduring the pain, Caroline could not help but start to cry, feeling deeply wronged.When Darren came in and saw her crying, he walked over, sat on the edge of the bed, and gently wiped her tears with a tissue.“They’re not worth your tears,” he said, his heart aching for her.Caroline sat up and buried herself in his arms. “Darren, you’re all I have now.”Darren held her tightly, his voice filled with tenderness. “I’ll always be by your side, no matter what happens, Ms. Caroline. Even if the sky falls, I’ll hold it up for you.“If you’re really hurting and need to cry, then cry. Let it all out.”It would also help her sever ties with the past and the family bonds that had caused her so much pain.Caroline did cry—a long, cathartic cry. It would be the last time. From now on, she and the Clarks would go their separate ways.Meanwhile, Hunter went to Justin’s house and called Jason’s wife, Ellie, over. He said to his two daughters-in-law, “By no
After a moment of silence, Hunter repeated the same line. “But you didn’t die, did you? You only got a little hurt, and it’s not even serious.”Caroline almost laughed in anger at this.Sure, she had not died. She had only been injured. Did that erase the fact that her brothers had tried to kill her, though?She retorted, “Dad, if I had tried to kill your three sons, but they didn’t die and only got a little hurt, would you say the same thing to them? Would you tell them it’s just a family dispute, ask them to forgive me, not to sue me, and not to send me to jail?”Hunter instinctively replied, "If you had the intent to kill, how could I let you continue down that path? Of course, I’d have to let you serve a few years in prison…“Carol, I’m old, really old. I only have the boys to rely on in my old age. Are you trying to leave me with no one to depend on in my later years?”Caroline said coldly, “I’ll provide for your living expenses. I’ll make sure you don’t starve. You can even
Darren did not let go even after being struck.Seeing Darren get hit, Caroline’s expression darkened. She coldly said to her father, “Dad, if you really want to kneel, go kneel at the hospital entrance and shout at the top of your lungs that your daughter is unfilial.“Tell everyone that your sons tried to kill your daughter, and your daughter refuses to forgive them, so you’re kneeling there to force her to forgive your sons.“Let’s see if I give in.”Hunter stopped struggling. After slapping Darren, he felt a pang of fear. He was afraid Caroline might retaliate by slapping him to avenge Darren. Fortunately, while Caroline was furious, she did not lay a hand on him.He began to cry. “Carol…” He wept bitterly.Darren released him, and Hunter sat on the sofa, sobbing, “Carol, I’m old. I have no income, my parents are long gone, and your mother is no longer here. I only have your three brothers to rely on.“If you send all three of them to prison, what will happen to me? Who w
Caroline hummed. “I do plan to visit Wiltspoon to see her sometime soon. I just don’t know if I’ll be kicked out when I get there.”“And I should visit Mr. Foster too. How is he, by the way?" Patrick was the longest-living person she had ever met. Back when she lived with her adoptive family in the countryside, the oldest people in town usually lived into their eighties, and few made it to ninety. Patrick was nearly a hundred years old. What was more, he could walk without support and even travel long distances with his old friends.Liberty replied, “He’s doing quite well. Aunt Audrey accompanies him on walks every day. When they don’t go out, he sits by the cradle and watches baby Elias for hours on end.”The bond between generations was strong. When Patrick looked at Clive’s son, Elias, he felt like he was looking at his great-grandson. As Tiara’s great-grandson, Elias was naturally like his own great-grandson, too.“Dr. Carden comes by periodically to check on him and adjus
Liberty had already called Audrey to inform her about what had happened and also mentioned it to Serenity.Knowing the Clark brothers had all been captured, Serenity felt thoroughly relieved and stopped worrying that her sister would run into trouble in Jensburg.She told Zachary that Caroline never let people down.Zachary did not comment.Caroline’s fever had completely subsided, but her coughing had worsened. The doctor had changed her prescription, but the effects were not immediate.When Liberty entered, Caroline was out of bed and walking around, supported by Darren.“Caroline, why are you out of bed?”Liberty scolded her, “Get back in bed and lie down. You’re injured. If you don’t rest properly and keep moving around, you’ll aggravate your wounds, and you’ll regret it.”She did not blame Darren, though. She knew Caroline always came first to him. He always followed her lead and was unable to influence her decisions.“I’ve been lying down all day. My back is sore, and I’m
The housekeeper replied, “Yes, sir.”They did not have much work in the first place, so they did not need to slack off. Once they were done with their work, they had tons of time to entertain themselves.Hunter rushed out the door with his car keys. Despite being over seventy years old, his driving skills were still quite good. Not needing to hire a driver, he drove himself straight to Jensburg.Upon arriving at the city, Hunter did not immediately go looking for Caroline. He was unaware that she had been injured.Instead, he went to meet his old friends to ask them to help him find out if anything had happened in relation to the Fisher family last night.After he finished speaking, one of his friends said, “We were about to ask you the same thing. Your three sons attacked your daughter with knives and even kidnapped her, intending to chop her up and feed her to the fish.“Luckily, that Mr. Fletcher, who works for your daughter, arrived with the police and rescued her, but she wa