Sonny missed his mother so much but still did not want to stay with her during his winter break and went to FC Manor with his aunt instead. It was because Jensburg was too cold for him. He was fine with visiting for a few days, seeing the snow, and building a snowman, but living there long-term was simply something he could not get used to. Once he had seen the snow and had his fill, that was it."I’ve had my mint candy, so now I can enjoy the view here at Queen Manor. Let’s make a lap before heading back inside. The men are all huddled together endlessly discussing business."They were all big shots in their respective fields, with plenty of common topics. It was rare for them to meet, so even though they were gathered to deal with Belinda, they cherished this brief time together. Thus, what was initially a two-person stroll turned into a five-member walk. Still, they chatted happily.Belinda, on the other hand, was not having such a leisurely time. After returning from the Fisher
On the way back to the company, Belinda called her daughter.When Caroline answered the phone, Belinda asked, “Where are you now, Caroline?”“At home, resting,” Caroline answered. “Thanks to you, I was hospitalized for a few days and was only just discharged. You told me to stay home and continue resting, so I’m taking it easy.”Belinda choked and asked, “Have you done something behind my back again?”“What are you referring to, in particular?” Belinda almost spat out a mouthful of blood in anger. What was she referring to, in particular? That meant Caroline had done a lot of things to undermine her. This was her amazing biological daughter! Audrey said this was karma. Belinda did not believe it, but it was true that nothing was going well for her. On the surface, everything seemed splendid, but in reality, she was the only one holding it together. Her husband and sons were dependent on her for everything and could not help her in any way. Her daughter had the capability to hel
Darren was the one who had been doing the work, not her.“You knew about me going to the cemetery, didn’t you? Did you tell Liberty about it? And the police went to the office looking for me. Did you stab me in the back? How much do you know?”Caroline replied, “Thanks to you, I was hospitalized for a few days and didn’t even have the strength to get out of bed for the first two days. I even needed Darren to help me. What could I have done in such a weak state? If I told you I didn’t do anything in the past few days, would you believe me?“I did know about your visit to the cemetery, but you weren’t exactly low-key about it either. You went with a whole troop of bodyguards and the cemetery has caretakers too. How could anyone not know? Everyone in the family knew, not to mention me. What, did you go there to set fire to our ancestors instead of paying your respects or something?”Belinda was at a complete loss for words at this ungrateful daughter of hers! How did she end up with s
Caroline said, “Even if I leave Jensburg, I’m still your daughter and a Fisher. I don’t want to become a Clark.”She would rather take on her mother’s family name than her father’s.“Should I go to the company, Mom?”Caroline’s attitude softened. After all, they were still mother and daughter.Although she disliked Belinda’s methods and had betrayed her before, she was still willing to take on some of her mother’s responsibilities, such as the company. “No. I’ve already held a management meeting. I told everyone you were unwell and would recuperate at home instead of coming to the office.”The truth was that Belinda did not want Caroline to be involved in too many things. She wanted Caroline to leave Jensburg without any additional burden. Caroline and Darren could settle down in a place where nobody recognized them and start anew.Belinda had entrusted Caroline to Darren. Unfortunately, due to his blind loyalty, he told Caroline about the drug and everything she had said to
Adrian finally relaxed after reviewing what he had done and confirming that he did nothing wrong. “Adrian, there are many policemen at our office. You and your brothers didn’t do anything illegal in the company’s name behind my back, right?”Belinda questioned her eldest son right away with a serious expression. Although Adrian could not see her expression, he knew how stern she would look by hearing her tone. When he heard that the police were at their company, he was shocked. He said cautiously, “We’ve never done anything illegal using the company’s name, Mom.“We’ve been going out, securing business deals as usual. Even if we did steal someone else’s client, we did it by offering more money.“Why are the police there, Mom? There’s nothing wrong with our company’s taxes… right?”Belinda scolded, “The tax authority will be here if they want a tax inspection. It won’t just be the police.”Adrian replied, “I don’t know, Mom. I can guarantee that my brothers and I didn’t do an
Belinda was rendered speechless. “Please contact Mr. Gordon, Madam Fisher.”Belinda replied, “Okay. I’ll do it now.”She called Mr. Gordon and told him to come over right away. She mentioned that the police suspected he owned firearms and that he had to cooperate with the police in their investigation. Mr. Gordon was surprised when he received her call.Aside from the pistol Belinda kept, their other firearms were old rifles used for hunting. However, rifles were illegal as well. They would have to turn the rifles in and receive punishment if found out and reported.Mr. Gordon had the same thought as Belinda.They had the guns for a long time and had never told anyone else about it.Their plan was to set Fisher Manor on fire after Liberty and the rest were inside and eliminate everyone at once. Otherwise, they would kill Liberty, Audrey, and the rest with guns. Mr. Gordon had not taken the rifles as the plan had yet to be finalized. Therefore, the only people who knew about
“I’ll head to the company now, Madam Fisher,” replied Mr. Gordon respectfully. However, after the call ended, he rushed back to his home. Luckily, he had two houses. One was near Fisher Manor, just like Darren's house, and the other was just a drive of two to three minutes from Fisher Enterprise.Living nearby made it convenient whenever Belinda called for him.She compensated him well as he was loyal and had worked for her for decades. His two houses were villas with courtyards. Most of the work he did for Belinda was private and confidential. To keep their secrets secure, Mr. Gordon lived alone without maids and did all the cleaning alone. Aside from Belinda, no one else was allowed to enter his private villas. Those who worked for Mr. Gordon lived around his villa. The arrangement made it easy to carry out his orders and protect him. Even if he was skilled in martial arts, he was alone and required additional protection. Mr. Gordon’s rifles were kept in a secret ro
Belinda and Mr. Gordon returned to Fisher Enterprise late at night. Most of the employees were working overtime. Some had worked slower on purpose to see if both of them would be back. If they could return, it would mean that they had been framed for possessing firearms illegally. Maybe the police were not able to find the guns as well. The Clark brothers were nervous wrecks. They could not focus on work until the secretary informed them that Belinda and Mr. Gordon had returned. Upon hearing that, the brothers exchanged glances and let out a sigh of relief. Justin said, “I knew someone must’ve framed us. I’ve never seen a gun throughout my entire life of being Mom’s son. Even if I did, they were toy guns Mom had bought for me.”Adrian and Jason laughed. Similarly, Adrian had never seen his mother’s or Mr. Gordon’s guns. The Clark brothers quickly went downstairs to receive their mother. Belinda and Mr. Gordon entered the building with bodyguards escorting them.
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