There would be hope as long as Caroline lived. If Caroline was safe, Belinda’s bloodline could continue being in charge of the Fisher family. Belinda’s body swayed. Hunter pointed at Caroline, who was walking over, and told his wife, “Look! Isn’t that our daughter? The person behind her is Mr. Fletcher, the assistant you assigned to her.“The one inside the house is a fake. She doesn’t have Mr. Fletcher with her. I thought it was weird that I hadn’t seen him today.”It turned out the Caroline he had been seeing all day was an imposter. Even he was deceived. That imposter looked precisely like the real thing. As Caroline’s father, he did not even realize his daughter was fake. “Mom.”Caroline walked up the stairs and stood before Belinda. She said, “I’ve told you I’m your daughter. I’ll brave every hardship with you. No matter the outcome, I’ll stay by your side.“Stop thinking about how to send me away. I won’t go. The word ‘escape’ doesn’t exist in my dictionary.”B
Upon hearing the butler’s words, Caroline turned and walked toward the manor’s gates. Darren naturally followed her. Hunter suddenly found his daughter’s walk confident and dominating. Although the substitute looked like her, she was not as commanding as Caroline was in her strides. He was frustrated that he did not realize the Caroline in the house was a fake. If he had known that his wife was going for a plan that involved her death, he would have asked his sons to leave. If they were to leave at that moment…Caroline had told them to leave if they were scared. After waiting for Caroline and the butler to walk away, Hunter told the Clark brothers, “You must know by now that your mom is only protecting Caroline. She doesn’t care about your lives at all.“I’m the only one who truly cares for you three. I’ve told you to take cover in my hometown for the time being or not attend tonight’s banquet, but none of you heeded my advice.“You guys can’t even leave now. What will
Audrey and the rest exited their cars when Caroline appeared. As Patrick was old, he was slow to get off. Zachary and Clive stood by Patrick’s car door. When he opened the door, the two CEOs bent over to help him.“Be careful, Mr. Patrick. There’s no need to rush. Take it slow.”They did not have much sentiment toward Fisher Manor. To them, it was merely the house Belinda lived in. However, to Patrick, Fisher Manor was filled with memories. It was the place Tiara had lived all her life. Tiara was born and raised in Fisher Manor before she eventually became the head of the family and managed the manor. Although Patrick had never lived here throughout his decades of service, he was a frequent visitor. It felt as if he was returning home that day. “You don’t have to support me. I can help myself. I won’t rush.”Despite saying so, Patrick was excited. His limbs were trembling. However, it was due to his old age and not out of excitement, which was a common occurrence among
Patrick smiled. “I’ll try my best. I want to witness the birth of Seren’s baby and Elisa getting married and having children. I only had one wish in the past. I guess I’ve gotten greedy now.”After returning to Audrey’s side, he realized that the little girl he used to carry had grown old and was about to become a grandmother. He had also gotten to know many youngsters who respected him. If Patrick could continue living for a few more years and watch Tiara’s descendants lead a happy life, he could tell Tiara all about them once he met her in the afterlife.Darrell and Audrey stepped forward to take Zachary and Clive’s place. They stood beside the old man and helped him as he walked. The legendary masters were right behind them, followed by the younger ones. “Good evening, Audrey.”Caroline went over with Darren and Elaine. She greeted Audrey with a smile. Audrey and her group stopped. Patrick looked toward Caroline, who was also looking back at him. She smiled and sa
Looking at Caroline’s gaze, it was evident that she was not as evil as Belinda. Belinda had been blessed with a good child. Since she did not raise her daughter, Caroline’s personality and principles were entirely different. If Belinda had raised Caroline, she probably might not have been alive. “Thank you, Mr. Foster,” said Caroline happily. Then, she greeted the people she knew and nodded at unfamiliar faces. Audrey did not look like she was going to introduce the rest of her group to Caroline. Caroline did not mind. Those people were probably Mr. Foster’s friends. Darren had told her that Belinda had sent assassins after Mr. Foster back then. With her mother’s brutality, he would have been long dead if someone had not rescued him.Mr. Foster had probably lived in seclusion after getting rescued, hence the lack of information on him for decades. Belinda thought he was dead after being unable to obtain any news about him for so many years. To her surprise, not only was he
“Nice to meet you, cousin.”The Clark brothers greeted Audrey. She only glanced at them briefly. Patrick guessed they were Belinda’s sons. He simply observed them and said nothing.Adrian, Justin, and Jason were not angry or surprised by the cold reception. After all, their statuses in Jensburg were awkward.They could not call themselves young masters of the Fishers because their last name was Clark. However, being part of the Clarks was nothing to be proud of. If the Clark family were strong, their father would not have married into the Fisher family. Everything the Clarks enjoyed was the benefits obtained from the Fishers. In other words, Hunter had gained those benefits by enduring the humiliation and faking smiles throughout his time with Belinda. Adrian and his brothers followed the crowd from behind after they had walked past them.Soon, Elaine came out again. She ushered the reporters into the manor grounds. However, they were not allowed to enter the main h
Zachary said, “Don’t worry.”Liberty exchanged glances with him. She also saw Clive's gaze and nodded. Audrey chatted with the Fisher family members and introduced her fellow visitors, especially Liberty.They smiled. “We know Liberty very well.”Liberty smiled back.The Fishers were aware of her actions in Jensburg. Some of them even secretly expressed their interest in joining her side. “Since everyone’s here, why don’t we head inside? It’s a little cold out here.”Belinda’s voice rang. She and Hunter had been waiting for Audrey and the rest in the house. However, they did not come. After asking, they learned that Audrey and her group had been strolling in the garden. They even said they were afraid of her burying bombs or dousing the house with gasoline. They also mentioned it was safer and easier to escape if they were in the garden. Belinda was exasperated. She did think of burying bombs. However, Mr. Gordon said they could get caught easily if they used bom
“Let’s continue our walk, Uncle True.”Audrey left Belinda behind and went on ahead with Patrick. It was clear that she wanted to ignore Belinda. Although Audrey was born and had lived at Fisher Manor for seven or eight years, she had been absent for decades and had no recollection of the manor. Belinda followed them with a dark expression. No matter what, she had to accompany her guests as the matriarch of the Fisher family. “Why are you following us?” Audrey asked Belinda, unhappy. Belinda replied, “How can you talk to someone older than you like that, Audrey? I’m your aunt.”“While you may be my aunt, you’re also the culprit who killed my parents. Why should I speak to you politely?”“Audrey Fisher!”Belinda could no longer stand the provocation and mocking. Having been the matriarch for decades, she had a terrible temper. “You all are saying that I’ve caused my sister’s death, but do you have evidence? Show it if you do. Why are you speaking in riddles?“Let me
She did not expect him to be discharged that soon.“Let him in.”Mr. and Mrs. Doyle were not awake yet. They would not stop Dylan from entering. With Imogen’s orders, Wendy quickly called the security booth and told the security to let Dylan in. Imogen stood at her door a few minutes later and watched his car stop before her. “Why are you discharged?” Imogen asked as soon as Dylan got out of the car. He was still coughing.Imogen frowned. His body belonged to himself. Who would love him if he did not know how to care for himself?“I feel much better after spending two days in the hospital on IV drips. The doctor said I could be discharged and gave me three days’ supply of medication. If I’m not fully recovered after finishing the medicines, I can return to get more.“The doctor said I should be fine after this round of medication. He also said I’m generally healthy and that my condition only got that severe because I ate a lot of chili peppers in one sitting.“I have to e
Imogen smiled. “Stop teasing him, Layla. He doesn’t eat spicy food at all. Eating that much chili peppers can be deadly for him.“I’ll be heading back to work today. I can’t take care of him at the hospital every day. I don’t want to let him think that I’ve accepted him just because he ate chili peppers once.”Layla said, “That’s right. You can’t be tricked by his pity play.”“Dylan didn’t torture himself to gain my pity, Layla. He was hospitalized because he ate the chili peppers. His fever, cough, and sore throat are all real. His voice is still hoarse when he speaks.”Imogen could not help but defend Dylan.Layla replied, “Look at you. I only criticize him a little, yet you’re already defending him.“Jen, the person who falls first will always be at a disadvantage.“Listen to me. Don’t dedicate anything to this relationship before Dylan falls in love with you as who you are. Don’t be manipulated by him.“You’re usually sharp and capable, yet you seem to lose all rationality
“Why do you want to see me? Didn’t you see enough of me yesterday? Besides, I’m not your beloved Miss Fox. You said it yourself—no matter how you tried and put in the effort, you couldn’t love me.“I’m just a good friend to your sisters-in-law, and Grandma May specifically called me to ask me to look after you for a day. That’s the only reason I did it.“Dylan, I’m not going back to you.”It was he who said that he did not love her. She had fallen for him, but when he said he did not love her, she hid her feelings.Now, he had realized that she was Chameleon Fox and the person he truly loved had always been her. Imogen had been more or less jealous of her own self all this time.If he had not fallen for Imogen but proceeded to get together with her, then it would feel like he was treating her as a substitute. Fox was Imogen, and Imogen was Fox—but she had still stubbornly distinguished the two.“I know, Imogen,” Dylan said softly.He did not assume he had won her over just bec
The night passed peacefully.The next morning, Dylan woke up. He had been woken by the heat.The room was heated, and he had bundled himself up tightly before going to sleep. By midnight, he had started sweating, but he continued to sleep, so by morning, he was feeling too hot and woke up.“Imogen…” He instinctively called out her name.His voice was still hoarse, but it was much better than yesterday. When he received no answer, he remembered that Imogen had gone home last night. He was alone in the hospital.Late last night, his mother had called him, but only to laugh at him.Now, all alone, in a strange place, and sick, Dylan felt just a tiny bit homesick. It was much more comfortable at Wildridge Manor, after all. When all the York boys were home, it was lively and warm. There was his nana to fuss over him, and even though his parents liked to make jabs at him, they still cared deeply for him.It felt boring at home, but once he left, he realized how warm home really was.
Sasha chimed in, “Exactly. It’s fine to laugh in front of us, but you laughed so loudly on the call too. Dylan is hurt both physically and emotionally, and no one is comforting him.”Rosella responded, “But Imogen is there to take care of him. She’ll comfort him.”Sasha sighed. “It’s so late now. Imogen needs to go back and rest, doesn’t she? Dylan hasn’t even won her over yet, so how could Imogen stay the entire night in the hospital with him?”Grandma May laughed, “You ladies know it’s late too, so why aren’t you three going back to your rooms to rest? Fortunately, the rooms are big enough that we can all chat here without disturbing anyone.“Remember, we’re guests. We mustn’t disturb the rest of the Johnsons just because we’ve come.”The three sisters-in-law glanced at the clock. It was almost midnight.As the eldest sister-in-law, Tania led the way. She stood up and said to Grandma May, “Mom, we’ll head back to rest now. Tomorrow, let’s go out and walk around.”The scenery a
“Mom, I’m your real son!”“If you weren’t, I wouldn’t even bother with you and don’t even want to make this call.”Rosella added, “Alright, now that I know you’re fine, I can relax. Be good to Imogen, she’s a really good girl. I like her a lot. I hope you can get together this year.“Once you’re finally not single anymore, it should be about time for your younger brother to start dating too. Once all three of you are out of the bachelor’s club, all I have to do is wait for my first grandchild to be born.“I’ve saved up a lot of money for both your weddings, though honestly, I don’t think you’ll need it. You all are capable enough to make your own money to get married, so the money I saved for you can go toward my granddaughter instead.“I don’t even know if I’ll be fortunate enough to have a granddaughter.” Rosella sighed. “After seeing little Clo-clo, I finally understand why your nana is so fixated on her and wants to kidnap her. “That kid is so cute. She’s pretty, adorable,
Imogen had been really worried that Dylan’s reaction to the chili peppers would leave him suffering for several days.“Okay,” Dylan hoarsely replied.Imogen let him eat the porridge by himself. There was nothing else to go with it, but the porridge had a little bit of salt sprinkled in, giving it some flavor.Dylan was hungry, so he quickly finished the bowl of oatmeal porridge. “Do you want more? There’s another bowl’s worth in the thermos.”Dylan shook his head. It was late, and he did not want to eat too much, afraid of gaining weight and ruining his good physique. He still had not won over his future wife, so he had to take care of his figure and maintain his handsome and charming look.Once Dylan finished the IV fluids and took his medicine, Imogen finally left the hospital around ten o’clock. Having slept twice in the day, Dylan was not able to fall asleep again, and Imogen did not let him accompany her downstairs, so he stood by the window and watched her walk out of th
A few minutes later, Imogen took the thermometer from under Dylan’s arm and looked at it. She said to him, “It’s 100.4. Your fever hasn’t completely gone down yet, but compared to when you were admitted at 103.64, it’s come down quite a bit.“What time did you take your medicine? It should be time for your next dose.”Dylan shook his head, indicating that he did not remember when he had taken the medicine.Imogen thought for a moment and said, “I think it’s about time. Take your medicine first, then sleep for a while. I’ll have dinner brought over for you. In your condition, you can only have something light, maybe some oatmeal porridge.”Considering Dylan’s sore throat, Imogen knew he would not be able to eat much, so she called home and asked the housekeeper to bring over dinner, specifically requesting a bowl of oatmeal porridge for Dylan.Dylan could only nod in response.After giving instructions to her housekeeper, Imogen looked at Dylan, who could only nod, and said, “The
Kade had once been so gentle and kind. Was he really that kind of person?Imogen did not believe so.It was possible that the Butcher elders were simply being too pragmatic. Seeing that Maria’s family was on the verge of decline, they thought that Maria was not worthy of Kade and tried to stop them from being together.But wait—Maria said that Kade had never told her he loved her or anything of the sort. Maria had basically been secretly in love with Kade, waiting for him to confess, but she had waited in vain all this time.Imogen internally sighed. What a mess. She could not understand what was the problem between them. She would just have to wait until Kade came back, and then she would find a chance to get some answers from him. “Imogen…” A hoarse voice called out from within the room. It was not very loud; he could not speak loudly. Though it was better than this morning when all he could get out were moans.He had received several bags of IV fluids, which had had some eff