The looks in everyone’s eyes shifted.“Stole a necklace and framed Miss North for it?” an onlooker asked.“Yeah, Mr. Sherman. What if she pulls the same trick again?” another asked.“I was wondering why she accused Miss North right away. She was trying to make her the scapegoat,” someone else added.Meanwhile, North smiled. “What do you think, Mr. Sherman?”Nicholas looked into her eyes and finally understood what she was trying to do. “I was there when it happened. Miss Lane stole a sapphire necklace that belonged to Melinda, then tried to frame you for it. Indeed, a person like her is not welcome at our gallery.”Everyone else believed him.After all, there was no reason for both North and Nicholas to frame Summer, right?Everyone could not get far enough away from Summer.Their disdainful gazes hurt Summer so badly that she got desperate. “What are you talking about, North?! It wasn’t me, it wasn’t! It was…”Melinda was the one who could not stand the sight of North. The w
North flinched. She thought she had heard him wrong. “T-There’s no way it’s that coincidental, right?”Nicholas shrugged and stepped aside to make way. “Go see for yourself if you don’t believe me. However, I should remind you that if you don’t come up with some excuse, Gerald will be coming in.”North gulped and fell silent.Then, she became visibly anxious. “Has he seen me yet?”Nicholas shook his head. “No, actually.”North suddenly had an idea. “Then pretend I was never here. I’ll leave through the back door!”She was about to take action and leave through the back door with her painting. However, by pure coincidence, Gerald was at the back door too!North could feel her scalp tingle. She sensed there was no escape and was thinking of an excuse when suddenly…“Gerald, I’m done shopping. Mom and Dad are asking if you want to come over and have dinner with us?” a woman asked gently from a spot nearby.North paused. That voice was just like the one she had heard on the phon
Howard immediately looked at North. “Shall we go home, Mrs. Howard?”North said nothing. Was she even allowed to refuse?Connor had just driven the woman back, so Gerald had to drive her himself. Naturally, this meant North had to sit in the passenger seat.As she did so, she kept thinking the entire time.How did Gerald recognize a Reuben painting on sight? Had he seen plenty of famous paintings as the South family heir?But why did Gerald say he had come specifically to look for her? He clearly had a woman with him.Also…North suddenly snapped out of her trance.Her fingers had just brushed something on the passenger seat. It was a tube of lipstick.“You’ve glanced at me almost ten times in the past three minutes, Mrs. Howard,” Gerald said casually without taking his eyes off the road. “If there’s something you want to ask, just shoot.”North felt like she just got busted, so she asked the burning question, “I… I saw that woman…? What’s her relation to you?”Screech!G
He had lied to North about one thing, actually.He had not known that she would be at MacGuffin Gallery before he headed there. He had simply heard that Nicholas knew Starlight, and wanted to find out Starlight’s true identity.He had not expected to bump into North or see that she had easily secured a Reuben painting, either.If a lot of coincidences were happening to the same person, then they were no longer coincidences.So, Gerald called Nicholas and said, “Mr. Sherman, there was something I forgot to ask you about.”“Ask away, Mr. Howard,” Nicholas said lazily.Leaning on his car, Gerald got straight to the point. “I heard you’ve spent some time in North Aurope. Have you heard of someone called Starlight?”Nicholas nearly choked. “... Ahem. Why do you ask?”“Nothing, I just got into a minor conflict with Starlight a few years ago, and I’ve been struggling to track her down since. That’s why I’m asking you.”Nicholas suddenly got the urge to pray for North. “... Then you’r
Sharon balked in response. “What are you talking about, Joe? Please don’t mind him, North. He’s always been a blunt person.”North raised an eyebrow. An outsider may have thought this was a joke, but she knew it was a challenge.She had also confirmed something. That afternoon, Sharon really had spotted her at the gallery, she just did not choose to say anything and leaned closer to Gerald on purpose.From that alone, North could tell that Sharon was no ordinary woman.Besides…Calling herself “one of Gerald’s boys” in front of his wife?… That was a bit weird.Joe jokingly lowered his voice, but it was as if he said this specifically for North to hear, because she could hear everything else he said. “I’m not joking, Sharon. In fact, I think you’re closer to Gerald than even she is.“You have your own room in Royal Sights Residences, and you were the only woman who could come and go as she pleased before he got married. Isn’t that special treatment?”If North still could not
After Joe was done talking, glee flashed in Sharon’s eyes, but she pretended to look worried.“Please don’t be mad, North. There’s nothing going on between Gerald and I. We grew up together so if we had a chance to date, we already would have gotten together. Please don’t think too much of this,” she said.North replied calmly, “Hmm, it’s alright. I’m not thinking too much. I trust Gerald’s taste. If he didn’t like you before, he definitely won’t like you now.”Sharon almost choked. What did she mean by that?! Who did this b*tch think she was?!However, she could only force herself to smile and say, “That’s… That’s good.”Colt could sense that things were going downhill, so he cleared his throat and started playing the mediator. “Please stop talking nonsense, Joe. Oh, right. Didn’t you say you had a gift for me, Sharon?”Sharon smiled. “Yep, everyone has one. I got Gerald to go shopping with me today for this exact reason.”Then, she took out the gifts. Everyone in Royal Sights
North’s expression turned ice-cold. The others may not have noticed, but she clearly saw Sharon let go of the bracelet on purpose!Sharon had destroyed her bracelet on purpose, then made herself look like the victim with only a few words.She was clearly challenging her!The whole mansion was dead silent as everyone looked in their direction.After a moment, Sharon took a deep breath and shook her head, still teary-eyed. “Don’t blame this on North, Joe. Just forget it.”Joe lost his temper immediately. “How can you just forget it?! That was a gift from your late grandmother!”A gift from the late Madam Lane, broken just like that…North would not be able to get out of this mess unless she compensated her.Colt was getting worried. What was North going to do?Sharon bit her lip and teared up. Then, she suddenly bowed. “I’m sorry to have ruined the mood. I’ll be leaving now…”“Sharon!” Joe could not take it anymore and grabbed Sharon’s arm before turning around with gritted tee
“I remember Mrs. Howard said she wanted to check the tapes. The cameras will show us who was right and who was wrong,” he said.Sharon froze.She quickly put on her forgiving act again and said, “Let’s forget about the footage, Gerald. There’s no need to make such a big deal out of this…”“I trust my wife unconditionally.” Gerald looked at North. “There is a need, actually.”Since North wanted to prove her innocence with the security footage, he believed her.Sharon turned pale instantly and her hands balled into fists. Why was he defending North?Wasn’t he supposed to be sympathetic to her? This was her grandmother’s heirloom they were talking about!Joe was furious. “What do you mean by that, Gerald? Don’t you believe me or Sharon? We saw with our own eyes that North—”As if on cue, Steward pulled up the living room’s security footage.Sharon suddenly began to panic. Oh no! What if the cameras really caught the evidence? What then?She needed to stop them!“Mr. Gerald, goo
He moved his wrists and frowned.Did North sleep for the entire day? Was she disoriented?North sat by the bed with nothing to do. She watched as time passed. Strange, why wasn’t she awake yet? Was she that sleepy? Could it be that the advanced exam questions were too difficult and she did not want to wake up?North could not help but think about the questions. Hmm… they did not seem very difficult. She had thought of a solution!Indeed, people had endless potential when they were dreaming. They could even come up with answers to such difficult questions!North was afraid that she would forget and wanted to wake up quickly, but no matter how hard she tried, she could not wake up. She closed her eyes and opened them again, but she was still in the room.North frowned and muttered to herself, “What’s going on…?”Gerald looked at her silently.He also wanted to ask what was going on.“North, do you need my help?”North hesitated. Even though it was a dream, she was still a littl
North exclaimed in surprise.It turned out that Gerald could be sarcastic too!Gerald did not give Patricia any time to react. He was just short of chasing the entire Bracken family out.While the Bracken family was leaving, Gerald heard Mike grumble, “Mom… If you knew this was going to happen, why didn’t you adjust your act earlier!”Patricia was furious. “I did all of this for you. How could you fall for Gerald’s tricks?!”“But Gerald was right. They suspect that I’m not Paige’s son because of you!”…Giselle’s smile became more and more sarcastic. When the Bracken family disappeared, he said, “Accompany me pay respects to Paige. Also, get someone to clean Glass Manor inside and out.”He wanted to get rid of the bad vibes the Bracken family had brought in.…A few days later, when they returned to Royal Sights Residences, the Bracken family actually stopped causing trouble.North was about to graduate, and she had one final exam. She saw the class group chat exchanging adva
“Why? Do you think that I’ve forgotten how Paige died?”Giselle never expected that this shameless family would have the audacity to make an issue out of Paige’s death.“You make it sound so simple. Even if Patricia dies today, you would never disregard her last wishes. Is everything you do for the good of the Bracken family?“Still, the only person the Bracken family has ever had to sacrifice was Paige!”Virgil snapped, “Nonsense! I’m Paige’s biological father, how could I…”Giselle sneered. “Stop putting on an act. You didn’t look for your daughter when she was missing. You didn’t feel sorry for your daughter when she returned. You kept asking her to tolerate the adopted daughter. When she was sick, you even stopped her treatment so that she would die and let your adopted daughter marry her husband.“Virgil, I’m sick. I’m not dead yet, and I haven’t lost my memory. If this happens again, I’ll destroy the entire Bracken family!”Giselle looked at the bodyguards she had brought
The surroundings suddenly fell silent.Virgil found it hard to breathe. “Let go! Are you crazy?!”“I’m asking you a question. Where is Paige buried? Tell me!”Virgil’s brain was deprived of oxygen. Without thinking, he roared, “How would I know? Let go, you crazy woman!”Patricia screamed, “Madam Giselle, what are you doing? Let go of him. Do you want Dad to die?”Gerald’s second uncle also shouted, “Madam Giselle, why are you doing this to us? Don’t treat your husband like this!”“You don’t know? You don’t know at all, do you?” Giselle ignored everyone. She looked unremorseful. She scoffed.“You claim to be severely depressed about your daughter’s death,” Giselle retorted. “Despite that, you actually don’t know where your daughter’s grave is!”As soon as she finished speaking, the entire place fell silent.When Virgil realized what he had just said, his face turned pale and he stopped screaming. He trembled as he spoke to Giselle hatefully. “You did this on purpose…”That wa
Mike said weakly, “North, we paid our respects to my mother before we went out today. We didn’t say anything because we were afraid that Grandpa wouldn’t be able to accept it.”As expected, Virgil clutched his chest and looked like he was about to faint.Patricia cried out, “Gerald, are you satisfied now that your grandfather is trembling in anger? We’ve kept it a secret for so many years. Despite that…”Everyone sighed. So, that was how it was.It was indeed Ms. Paige’s death anniversary today. However, the old man had fallen into a state of depression from the intense guilt. He then mistakenly thought that his daughter had passed away in May.As his family, Patricia and Mike could not bear to make the old man feel more guilty. Thus, they maintained the facade.In fact, they would pay their respects to Paige every year.This made sense. After all, Virgil was old and could not stand such harsh emotions.The people from the Bracken family jumped on this chance to scold Gerald. “
Everyone was dumbfounded. North was really bold!North blinked. “What’s wrong, Mr. Virgil? Why are you so angry? Did I say something wrong?”“What nonsense! Paige is my daughter! How could I intentionally let her die?!”North widened her eyes. “I didn’t say that you intentionally let her die! It’s just that the Bracken family didn’t like her and looked down on her. The medical staff didn’t care about her either. In the end, they didn’t even treat her and let her die.“I know. It’s not your fault. After all, you were so busy. How could you have the time to take care of a daughter you don’t love?”Virgil clutched his chest. “What nonsense…! Shut up!”“North!” Patricia screamed. “Gerald, are you just going to watch her anger your grandfather? Your grandfather’s health isn’t good…”“What did I say wrong?”North sighed. “Look at what Mr. Virgil said. Ms. Paige passed away at the end of May, so why didn’t he treat her for two whole months from the end of March to the end of May?“Th
Mike knew that he had fallen into North’s trap and was speechless!He was so anxious that his expression changed. His forehead was covered in cold sweat, and huge beads of sweat dripped down. “Um… I…”“Mike!” Patricia saw that the situation was not good, so she hurriedly interrupted Mike and pulled him behind her.Then, she took a deep breath and pretended to be helpless and upset.“Gerald, what nonsense are you talking about?! We’re family. If you have anything you’re upset about, just tell me. There’s no need to cause trouble at the banquet and make an issue out of Paige’s death anniversary!“We’re all Paige’s family, and Dad is also Paige’s biological father. How can we not know when her death anniversary is?“Paige’s death anniversary is at the end of May. It’s not today at all. You… You’re too much!”Virgil looked aggrieved. He nodded and said, “That’s right. Paige’s death anniversary is in May. Gerald, I know you don’t want to give up her inheritance. Moreover, I didn’t fo
Everyone’s eyes fell on Gerald.Gerald looked up slowly and said calmly, “Ms. Patricia, why did you choose today to hold a banquet for Mike?”“It doesn’t matter what day I chose!” Patricia roared.“So, you did choose the date.”Gerald looked down at Patricia from above. His cold gaze made Patricia suddenly feel suffocated.Her “son” had a murderous look in his eyes. “Any other day would have been fine, but not today.”Patricia hated the look in Gerald’s eyes the most. Why was he so arrogant? Why was he looking down on her? Why was he like that b*tch?She screamed, “Gerald, I’m your mother! Mike is your brother! It’s fine if you don’t love me, but you keep finding fault with me. What right do you have—”“Today is the anniversary of Paige’s death.”Gerald interrupted her.Patricia’s face turned pale, and the words that she wanted to say were stuck in her throat. The scene instantly fell silent.What did Gerald say? What day was it today?Today was the anniversary of Paige’s d
Patricia felt a lump in her throat. “You…”“Connor, come out.” North interrupted her.Then, a group of people dressed in black walked out of nowhere and played mournful music. Connor walked in the middle and placed a memorial tablet on the table.Everyone looked at the memorial tablet curiously, wanting to know whose memorial tablet it was. When everyone saw the name “Paige”, they instantly fell silent.North and Gerald paid their respects. Then, they placed the bouquets beside the memorial tablet.Their actions stunned everyone.Had they come to pay respects to Paige?Patricia was trembling. She stared fixedly at Paige’s name on the memorial tablet. She clenched her fists.Paige!Gerald had paid his respects to Paige at a banquet for Mike. Was he crazy?! She was so unlucky! Paige was already dead, but she was still the center of attention at Mike’s banquet!After paying her respects, North turned around. “What are you waiting for? Aren’t you going to pay your respects?”