"My parents had lost their lives... How am I supposed to focus on living my own life before finding the murderer?" Adrienne argued. Everyone wanted her to put the past behind her because they weren't in her position. They had no idea what kind of torment she had suffered in the past two years. Adrienne wanted to live a relaxed and happy life, too. Yet, every time she closed her eyes and thought of the dismembered body parts that were scattered all over the ground, she would tell herself that she must ferret out the killer who murdered her parents, even if it meant that she had to give up her life for it. "Adrienne, don't get too worked up," Zelson reminded. "I'm not." Adrienne bit her lip and tried to control her emotions. "Mr. Zelson, even though you guys are hiding the clues you have at hand from me, I will still be able to find it out sooner or later. But please don't try to persuade me to move on anymore." "Adrienne..." Just as Zelson was thinking of
"Of course it's because of you. How long has it been since you visited Grandpa? He misses you so much that he hasn't been able to eat or sleep well, so he asked me to come to Chatterton Town to take you home." Sierra was being honest. She was only in Chatterton Town because Maxwell was missing Jefferson, and it just so happened that Johan had business to do here, too. Jefferson admitted he hadn't visited Maxwell in the capital in a while. The thought of it made him feel rather guilty. "I've been so occupied with work recently that I couldn't even make time to see him and I hardly give him any phone calls either. Alas, I admit that I should have done better as a grandson." Sierra added again, "Then you should go home and pack up. We'll go back tomorrow." Jefferson leaned back on his chair lazily. He tapped the teacup in front of him with his slender fingers and rejected her, "Not now." Sierra put on a dignified look and scolded him, "What do you mean 'not
Sierra told Jefferson everything she saw and heard the night before. "Jeff, I'm not kidding but I really thought that I saw a light shining on Adrienne when she refused to sign the papers; she was shining brilliantly and she had a determined look in her eyes. She really isn't the little girl we thought she was anymore. She's grown up now; she knows what she wants and what she's doing. If you really end up in some sort of sticky situation, I'm sure she'd want you to tell her so that you two could shoulder the burden together. It would be better than you hiding everything from her." Jefferson had heard all that from Adrienne before, but he didn't think too much about it. He had always felt like he was making the right choice for her, but now it seemed like he might have been mistaken. Jefferson got up and said, "Sierra, thank you for telling me this. I know what I should do now." "Yes," Sierra replied as she nodded with satisfaction. "You've matured quite a bit y
When Jefferson opened the door, he saw Britney, who had brought them a plate of sliced fruits. He stopped and said, "Mom, just take a proper look at the man you sleep beside every night. It's been decades, yet you still don't see what kind of man he truly is." Jefferson and Albert argued every time they met. However, they would usually keep things under wraps whenever Britney was around. This was the first time Jefferson had rebuked his father directly in front of his mother. Extremely unhappy with that, Britney told him, "Jefferson, do you know who you're addressing? Do you know what you're saying? He's your father. You are an adult, don't you have some basic respect for your elders?" "If he wants to gain my respect, he'll have to first set a good example himself. No one would disrespect someone else without reason." Jefferson looked back at the somber-looking Albert, then shifted his gaze back to Britney. "Mom, you should know best what kind of person I am. You sho
Upon hearing what Adrienne said, Jefferson's fury extinguished in an instant. He couldn't help but soften his voice as he said, "You've been working the whole day. You have to eat. Let's just grab a quick bite." "Let's go to Freddy and Fre..." Adrienne wanted to suggest eating at Freddy's restaurant. However, she remembered that Freya had a murder charge hanging over her head and was detained at the station. Adrienne's cheerfulness immediately drained away. Jefferson reached over to pat her shoulder and comforted her, "We'll be able to eat at Well Eaten Farm and Restaurant again in a few days." Adrienne cocked her head sideways and glanced at him. "Did you get your hands on new clues without telling me?" The hand Jefferson had on the steering wheel trembled slightly before he answered, "What are you talking about?" Adrienne continued, "You don't seem in a hurry to deal with Freya's case so I'm thinking that you must have found something." Jeff
After leaving the burger shop, Jefferson suggested they take a walk. Before Adrienne could agree, he was already dragging her along to the well-known Mangrove Bay in Chatterton Town. Mangrove Bay was near the sea; a vibrant area famous for its nightlife. Hence, although it was already pretty late at night, there were still tons of people coming and going along the path. Jefferson was the one who had forced Adrienne into that walk, but he was unusually quiet. He didn't say an entire word; he just held her hand tightly. Even someone as slow as Adrienne could tell that something was off with him. She asked, "Jefferson, what's the matter with you today?" Jefferson pulled her closer to him and asked, "Can't I take you out for a walk?" Adrienne looked up at him and all she saw was his chiseled jaw. She couldn't help but reach out to pinch him. "Jefferson, I feel like you're getting even more handsome nowadays." "Well, I always knew that I was handsome. Do
With Jefferson's long legs, he quickly caught up to Adrienne and yanked her back. "Little idiot, what did you just say? I dare you to say it again." Adrienne laughed and said, "Idiot, I called you an idi..." Before she could finish saying the word 'idiot', Jefferson sealed her lips with a kiss. Adrienne was so taken aback that her body stiffened. They were in a park. There were many people coming and going, and soon some people were looking over at them. Adrienne wailed internally, "Mr. Hefner, can't you pay more attention to our surroundings before doing something like this?" Fortunately, Jefferson soon let her go, but he held her in his arms again. Adrienne could not break free; she was trapped like a bird in a cage. She acted like she couldn't see the people walking by. Yes, as long as she couldn't see them, they couldn't see her, right...? However, Adrienne soon heard Jefferson's arrogant voice, which shattered her fantasy. "What are you l
In fact, this was not the first time Jefferson had bitten Adrienne's face. However, he had never bitten her this hard before. It used to be just a joke and Adrienne never felt pain from it, so she had never gotten that angry. The reason she was angry right then was mainly because of Jefferson's tone. He told her that she was not allowed to do whatever he told her not to. Wasn't he just treating her like a pet by saying so? Nevertheless, Jefferson did not seem to realize how angry Adrienne was. He moved closer to her and rested his head against her face. He reminded her, "Baby, be good and listen to me! Don't be angry anymore." "If you want to bite me, then bite me, but don't expect me not to be mad after." Adrienne was so angry that she raised her fist at him. Yet, she retracted when she thought that her hand would be hurting instead. "Jefferson, do you think I'm your pet?" "Yes," Jefferson admitted as he nodded. Adrienne was about to explode at hi
...... Eight months later. Adrienne had given birth to a daughter, gathering the entire Yard family in Chatterton Town. Everyone was in high spirits but Jefferson had a sour expression on, as if that was the worst day of his life. Sierra found a moment and went over to Jefferson. "Hey, Jeff. Adrienne just gave birth but why do you have such a long face on? Did you want a son instead or something?" Jefferson responded rudely, "It doesn't matter to me whether it's a boy or a girl. That little girl is our daughter, and I'll love her no matter what." Sierra continued, "Why do you look so upset then?" "Must I have a reason for that?" Well, he was angry at himself. Adrienne had almost lost her life in the labor room earlier, but he hadn't been able to offer any help. Throughout Adrienne's pregnancy, Jefferson had done an enormous amount of research and found out that a C-section birth was relatively safer. Hence, he'd insisted that Adrienne und
...... Johan was still clamming up. Maxtor was so anxious that he couldn't stand still. "Johan, what happened between you and Sierra? Can't you at least explain the situation to me?" After a long silence, Johan looked up and out of the window. "There have been so many fights and misunderstandings between us in the past years and it seems that the past was a time that we can never go back to." Upon hearing this, Maxtor seemed to have put his finger on the crux of the problem. "Did Miranda make Sierra misunderstand you?" Maxtor said earnestly, "Johan, I've told you before that woman has a twisted psyche and you need to stay away from her. You pitied her for being an orphan, but look at what she has been up to." "It has nothing to do with Miranda. It's me. If I..." If he had explained everything to Sierra back then, she wouldn't have felt that insecure about their relationship. He knew everything, but he still got mad at her. Maxtor continued, "He
...... On the first day of school, Miranda was once again met with an unpredicted truth. She found out that Sierra was the top scorer in the entrance exam. She was the overachiever that every university was dying to recruit. Not only did Sierra come from a good family, but she was smart and beautiful to boot. Sierra possessed everything she could have in life. Miranda couldn't figure out why she had to take Johan away from her when she already had so much. What made Miranda even more disappointed was not her inferiority but Johan. On the first day of school, she was over the moon to see that Johan was at the gate to receive her. However, when Johan took her luggage from her and she was wallowing in her excitement to see him, He said to her, "Miranda, that is the girl I like, Sierra. She will be your sister-in-law in the future. You should get on well with her." She didn't want to be nice to her. Instead, she hated her. Mirand
...... Johan's words frightened Miranda so much that her face turned pale. "Johan, Mrs. Silas adopted me. I would have died a long time ago if it weren't for her. How could I have nothing to do with the Silas family?" Johan's face was somber, and his voice chilled Miranda to her bones. "You know that my mother was the one who took you in, but look at what you've been up to all these years?" "Johan, what-what did I do?" Miranda said, trembling with fear. Miranda was an expert at feigning a pitiful appearance and reaping sympathy from others. She even managed to tear up and gazed heart-wrenchingly at Johan at that very moment. However, Johan did not buy into her ploy at all. Not only did his eyes demonstrate her no pity, there was also a trace of disdain that Miranda had never seen before. He loathed her. Upon realizing that, Miranda's heart was broken. Johan had been her dream for those past years. She had worked so hard to do so many things in
...... Sierra wasn't able to refute because what Miranda said was the truth. It was indeed true that many could never compare with her background. However, although she was born privileged, that didn't spare her from putting in effort for her own future. Prestigious universities wanted her because she was the top scorer in the entrance exam but not because of her family background and connections. All of a sudden, Miranda smirked sinisterly. "I know you like Johan, and you want to be with him. Sierra, I like him too, and I want to be with him. You have everything so why do you still want to take my man away from me?" "Excuse me? Who took your man?" Displeased, Sierra said, "Miranda, you were the one who told me that you two were siblings, and that there was nothing going on between you guys. And mind you, you were also the one who encouraged me to go after him." Miranda shouted in a low voice, "Sierra, if I hadn't told you that, would you have remained fri
...... Averting her gaze, Sierra turned around with difficulty. However, just as she had taken a step forward, Miranda's voice sounded from behind. "Sierra, I didn't expect you to come to the airport to pick me up. Imagine my delight to be able to see you on the first day of my return." "You've misunderstood, Miss Attwood. I'm not here to pick you up." Sierra did not conceal her hatred for Miranda as she could not even be bothered to dole out the niceties at her. Miranda chuckled. "I haven't seen you for so many years, but you're still so adorable." It seemed that Miranda couldn't sense the despise Sierra had for her. She approached Sierra with a smile and wanted to give her a hug. Sierra stared at Miranda's outstretched arms and quickly dodged her. A single glance at Miranda and her eyes would be sullied. Sierra thought that she would even throw up should her body come into contact with Miranda's. Miranda was never good at reading between the
...... Stopping her car, Sierra quickly got off to check the situation. No sooner had her feet been on the ground that four men got off from the car in front of her and surrounded her. One of them pointed at her and barked, "Don't you f*cking know how to drive? If you don't, then don't drive. Say it, how much are you going to pay for the damage!" Sierra was driving in accordance to normalcy, but the other party had, so suddenly, cut into her lane without a signal. As hard as she had stepped on her brake, she still collided with the car. They were supposed to be the ones held accountable for the collision. However, they got out of the car and shouted at her, extorting compensation. Sierra suspected that these men had done so deliberately to scam her. She took out her mobile phone and was ready to call the police. However, before she could even unlock her phone, one of the men had already wrenched the phone away from her. "We have something important t
...... In the middle of cleaning the table, Rosie said, "He doesn't only come here to have meals, but he would also get one to go every time. No jalapenos on the one to go. He says that you can't take spices because your stomach doesn't handle it well." Sierra did have a stomach problem, but it wasn't till the point that she couldn't take spicy food at all. Moreover, Johan had never brought any tacos back for her. Sierra figured that he was probably getting it for someone else so she asked, "What did he say to you when he asked you to pack it?" Rosie smiled and said, "He said that he was going to bring it for his girlfriend. He's obviously talking about you, isn't he?" "Oh, his girlfriend." Smiling, Sierra did not put forth any more questions as she knew that Johan had never regarded her as his girlfriend. For him, she was nothing more like a leech that he couldn't shake off. Rosie looked at Sierra and said earnestly, "I know you two fought tod
...... "My ability to act coy?" Sierra said inwardly. She had no idea from where did his temper sneak in again. However, she knew that somehow everything she had done seemed to piss him off. If he didn't like her, then why did he come looking for her? Did he have nothing else better to do? She smiled and said, "Mr. Silas, since you don't like being around me, then let's not meet anymore in the future, nor have any meals together. I'm afraid your appetite will take a nosedive when you see me." "You shouldn't say that, Sierra." Rosie handed one of the plates to Sierra and said, "Every couple gets into fights, but you must know your boundaries. Some words are too hurtful, and you shouldn't just say everything that comes to your mind." Sierra didn't make a sound. She wasn't a fan of others poking their noses in her affairs. Besides, she was not close to Rosie either so she found her rather meddlesome. Rosie didn't seem to register in her mind that Sierra was d