Colin gathered his thoughts. His lips trembled slightly as he began to speak. "Back when the company was just getting started, your mother volunteered to handle social engagements. Comment by Caitlyn Chin: This doesn't exceed four lines. It can still be one paragraph."I'm not sure which business partner she slept with, but one night, she came back pregnant with you."Jessamine clutched her skirt so tightly that her knuckles turned white.She then scolded, "You'reColin Quilton, you're still lying! My mother died because of you, and you still have the gallcourage to say such things to ruin her reputation? "She chose to turn her back on her family to be with you—a poor man. She, and she helped you build your business. How could you treat her like this?"Jessamine was agitatedvisibly emotional, her eyes red with anger. She shouted, "Mom would never betray you. Many people may betray their families, but not Mom! You are the one who betrayed our family, you disgusting man!"Jessami
Jessamine held back her intense heartache as she thought about Elizabeth. She truly felt it was unfair for Elizabeth. If it were not for the glass separating her and Colin, she would have gone over and slapped that scumbag on Elizabeth's behalf.Everything Colin mentioned was all he knew. He truly did not know what happened after that. That night, Elizabeth returned in a terrible state with her body covered in marks.Colin had felt uncomfortable and irritated on the inside, but he had to pretend to be nice and accommodating. He needed Elizabeth's support in his career. His company was not doing well. So, he would not easily kick her out.He had no idea whom Elizabeth had spent that night with, and neither did she know the identity of the person as well. She not only consumed some drugs given to her by Colin, but she also drank alcohol.At this moment, Jessamine was so overwhelmed with the heartbreaking truth she just heard that she could not think straight. She felt deeply sorry fo
Jessamine felt listless and had no appetite. She glanced out the window, noting that the nearby cemetery wasn't far away."Thaddeus, can you please drive me to the cemetery? It's been a while since I last visited my grandmother's grave.""Okay."Now, he agreed with everything she said.Thaddeus activated the GPS and headed to the cemetery located in the northern suburbs. As he stopped at a red light, he retrieved a lollipop from the glove box and gave it to Jessamine. Jessamine was momentarily taken aback."Why do you have a lollipop in your car?""The last time I bought toys for the children, they came with some treats. I'm concerned that they could be bad for their teeth, so you can have them instead."He simply wanted to bring a little joy to her at that moment; a piece of candy might not have made a huge difference, but it could help to alleviate some of the sadness.Jessamine wiped her nose, unwrapped the candy, and popped it into her mouth.Upon reaching the cemetery,
Jessamine slept right through lunchtime. As the afternoon sunlight streamed in, she rubbed her eyes which still felt sore. She might have cried too much.The surroundings gave her the illusion of traveling back in time. The familiar room, its familiar arrangements, and even the ornaments on the bedside table hadn't changed—it was still what she had picked up from a small trinket shop.Jessamine picked up a kitten figurine beside her. She had bought a pair, and there was one on Thaddeus' bedside table as well.When they were placed on the bedside table, Thaddeus was very annoyed. He said they were fragile and would take up too much space and that it made everything look messy. He was the kind of person who preferred things to be neat and didn't like having anything on his desk.Jessamine wanted to change his reserved nature, so she deliberately went against his preferences and insisted on placing things on the table. Although he didn't like it, he didn't do anything to stop her and
Thaddeus leaped out of bed to find the medical kit, then placed the thermometer under Jessamine's armpit. After a while, he took it out and saw it read 102.4 degrees Fahrenheit—a concerningly high temperature.He quickly dialed Erik's number again."Dr. Fisher, her temperature has risen to 102.4 degrees, and she has a sore throat and hoarse voice. Plus, she feels weak and has no appetite. Please come over right now."He felt that it was difficult to explain over the phone, so it would be better to have Erik come over."Mr. Holt, do you have any fever-reducing medicine at home? Take some ibuprofen first. I'll be there right away.""Dr. Fisher, we're at Jardin Estate.""Understood."After hanging up, Thaddeus quickly took out some ibuprofen from the medicine box. He squeezed out a pill into Jessamine's hand, handed her the prepared warm water, and watched her take the pill and lie down.After that, he started pacing back and forth, muttering nonstop. "Is Dr. Fisher taking a stage
With a tall man with long limbs by Jessamine's side, it would be a waste if Thaddeus wasn't put to good use."Do you want me to carry you?""What else?"Thaddeus pretended to be deep in thought. "Shouldn't you at least try to coax me a bit before asking for my help?"Jessamine's ears felt warm, and she wondered what he wanted to do again. "How do you want me to coax you?"After speaking, she glanced at the large hand placed on her body and warned sternly, "Thaddeus, I'm sick right now, so you can't bully me!"Thaddeus gave a menacing smile. "What are you thinking? Do you really think so lowly of me?"Then, he leaned close to her ear and whispered a complaint, "I overdid it a couple of days ago, and now I'm drained because of you. I also need some time to recover."Jessamine felt a sense of joy in her heart. As long as he didn't want to cause her any trouble, she could handle it.Given what he had just said, Jessamine felt confident enough to tease, "I didn't expect even you wo
"Thaddeus?" Out of nowhere, Jessamine called out to Thaddeus.He looked down at her. "Hm?""Don't you have any other dirt on Colin? Why not reveal it all at once?"Thaddeus snapped back to reality and realized the movie had already ended. No wonder she had time to chat with him."There's not much else. Everything seems insignificant compared to him embezzling a huge amount of public funds. When I was in the visitation room, I was just trying to scare him."There was a hint of disappointment in Jessamine's eyes. "I thought you really had some dirt that could get Colin a heavier sentence. You sounded so convincing when you talked about it in the visiting room."Thaddeus paused for a moment. "I'm afraid he won't tell the truth, so I had to use this to scare him. In reality, my story has quite a few holes, and he was probably just stunned for a moment. Once he has time to think about it, he'll figure it out.""Do you know the people he mentioned at the dinner?"Thaddeus was recount
Thaddeus responded, "Mr. Hardy and Grandpa have a good relationship. He's a decent person."Based on his knowledge of Sabastian, Thaddeus believed that he wasn't the kind of person who would take advantage of someone in a vulnerable situation. He was certain that Sabastian wouldn't mistreat a drunk woman who had also been drugged.Their car stopped outside the Hardy residence.Thaddeus took the gift he had prepared to register themselves, holding Jessamine's hand as they went in.Beatrice was turning 80 that year and was throwing a grand birthday party. She invited all the elite and prominent figures in Zenville, making it a very lively event.Thaddeus was always the center of attention wherever he went. Since he brought Jessamine with him this time, the looks people cast their way were somewhat complicated.In Zenville's affluent circles, everyone was aware of the drama that surrounded this couple before.There was a messy divorce and a car accident, and they were all over the
Thaddeus was dumbfounded. Why hadn't he considered using blood types to eliminate the possibility first?"My dad has type O blood."Jessamine's stroked his Adam's apple softly and deliberately. "My mom has type B blood, and I have type AB blood. Do you think it's possible that we could be long-lost siblings?"Thaddeus thought for some time and couldn't help but burst out in hearty laughter. It was impossible for someone with type B blood and someone with type O blood to have a child with AB type blood. What was he worrying about?At that moment, he couldn't believe how foolish he'd been. Biology was his best subject in school, yet he didn't think about this until Jessamine reminded him. His biology teacher would be furious if they knew."Why didn't you say so earlier, Jessie?" He regretted not talking to her about it sooner and ended up suffering in prolonged silence by himself.After Jessamine got bored touching his Adam's apple, she started playing with his rough chin. "I just
Jessamine lay still for a long time, aware that Thaddeus was also awake, battling insomnia just like her.This visit to Zenville to solve one mystery ended up bringing her an even bigger one.The gathering took place years ago in the restaurant owned by Benji's family. She had even asked Benji about it. The surveillance footage from over 20 years ago wouldn't be around now, and even the staff had changed several times. The restaurant's manager from back then had left the job many years ago.It wasn't easy to uncover the truth from back then unless they found the people who were directly involved. The closer they got to the truth, the more pressure she felt.By investigating this matter now, she was essentially peeling back the layers that had been hiding a much deeper issue. As she confronted the dark side of human nature, the ultimate victim ended up being her beloved mother.If Jessamine didn't look into this matter, she felt like she would be letting Elizabeth down. She wanted
Thaddeus frowned immensely at his request. "Don't be ridiculous!""I'm serious. You could help me rent one too. You know, the kind that charges by the day. I'll fool my dad first. We'll deal with everything else once he gets better," Benji said.Thaddeus cursed inwardly, "Dude, don't drag me into this, especially with my wife watching. It sounds like you're implying I have ways to get or rent women."Thaddeus glanced back at Jessamine and said, "I don't know about this. You should ask someone else. If you're at your wits end, go ask one of the assistants in your company to help you out."Benji seemed to come to a realization. He said, "It's getting late. You all should go back and rest. There are doctors here. I'll stay and keep watch."Jessamine asked, "Can you handle this on your own, Mr. Moore?""Sure, thank you… all of you," Benji replied.After saying a few more words of comfort, Jessamine and Thaddeus went downstairs to the car. Thaddeus' phone started ringing again."Mr.
Maya also knelt by the bed and started crying."Dad, don't speak for now. Please be okay."Benji zoned out. Seeing Carmen and Maya crying, his mind was in a mess. He realized that he couldn't continue to live aimlessly—his family needed him now."A girlfriend, a girlfriend..." he mumbled, not even sure of what he was saying.The doctor hurried to the room upon hearing the call, checked on Jonathan again, and then sent the family away."The patient needs rest and should avoid additional emotional stress. You all can wait outside for now. There's no need for everyone to be here, one would be enough. The room can be stuffy if there's too many people here, too."They then left the room. Benji was holding the X-ray images of Jonathan's brain, but he couldn't make any sense of it. He felt completely lost.Shane quietly slipped away from the crowd after watching from afar. He went to an empty hallway and called his father. "Dad, are you free to analyze some X-ray images? It's for a fri
Benji had always lived a smooth and pleasant life. It hit him hard after hearing what the doctor said, leaving him in a state of shock and bewilderment."Mom, hasn't Dad always been in good health? How did he suddenly..."Carmen's eyes were red and swollen from crying."He mentioned feeling dizzy a few times recently and said he'd go for a check-up but actually never did. Plus, he's been swamped with work lately and hasn't got any time. Today, he suddenly fainted at the office. His assistant called an ambulance right away and brought him to the hospital. By the time I got the call, he was already being examined inside."Benji's face turned pale. With Jonathan down, the burden of supporting his family fell on him. He had been free from responsibility for the past 20 years, and now, suddenly having to shoulder this heavy load, he felt completely lost.His father had been asking him to get familiar with the company's operations a long time ago. However, he was too lazy to bother abou
Benji never had any grand ambitions. From the day he was born, people always told him that he didn't need to worry about anything since most problems in this world could be solved with money, and his family had plenty of it. He just wanted to drift through life."I don't need to surpass him. As long as I can cover my daily expenses and not have to ask him for money, that's enough," Benji replied.As they were talking, Shane had prepared a table full of dishes. He set out four sets of plates and cutleries before calling everyone over to eat. "It's time to eat."The four of them hadn't seen each other in a long time, so they had to have a drink.Jessamine looked at the beautifully prepared dishes on the table and couldn't help but offer a compliment. "Shane, your cooking skills have gotten so good."Shane opened a bottle of red wine and poured some for everyone. "What can I do? There's a glutton at home."Benji was not happy with Shane's comment. What did he mean by saying there wa
"It's great that you came by today, Jessie. I'll pay you back the money. Friends who are willing to lend money these days are rare, so I want to thank you again," Benji said.He hadn't repaid the money he borrowed last time yet. Coincidentally, he received some money today, so he decided to settle the debt in person. With that, he picked up his phone to make the transfer.Jessamine's phone chimed, indicating that a payment had been received. The amount was a bit more than what she had lent out."Mr. Moore, I'm not here to ask you to settle your debt. You can keep it for now. I won't need the money for the time being," Jessamine said."If one borrows and returns promptly, borrowing again won't be difficult. You're much easier to talk to than Thaddeus. Despite knowing him for so many years, borrowing money from him is such a hassle. You saw it last time yourself. That scoundrel's attitude was terrible!" Benji complained.At this point in the conversation, Thaddeus happened to arrive
Thaddeus tightened his grip on Jessamine's slender waist. "What am I going to do with you, Jessie?"He thought to himself that if things really were just that coincidental, he would rather play the fool and pretend to know nothing at all. He just couldn't leave her.Jessamine asked softly, "How about you ask your dad?"Thaddeus paused for a moment and took out his phone to call Corey. He couldn't calm his mind at all.After a few seconds of hearing the dial tone, the call was answered."Dad," Thaddeus said.On the other end of the phone, Corey was about to go to sleep. He had been adjusting his routine lately, aiming to go to bed early and wake up early."What’s up?" Corey asked."Do you remember the gathering over 20 years ago with Mr. Hardy, Jacob Langston, Leon Lincoln, Paxton Loomis, and a few others?"After that, Thaddeus added, "That night, a beautiful woman came over. She drank some alcohol and was drugged."There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the ph
On the other side, Jessamine and Thaddeus got into the car.Jessamine and Beatrice were quite familiar with each other. However, it was Jessamine's first time meeting Sabastian. Surprisingly, she had a pretty good impression of him."Do the Hardy and Holt families have business dealings with each other?"Thaddeus drove as he answered her question, "We don't have much interaction. We would occasionally invest in small projects and conduct some charity work in Zenville together."Mr. Hardy is an upright and trustworthy person. He has a good relationship with Grandpa. Hayden would often come to my house with him when I was young."Jessamine paused for a moment and asked, "Does he have a wife?""Hayden's mother passed away from an amniotic fluid embolism during childbirth. Since then, Mr. Hardy has remained single and never remarried."Jessamine was deeply moved. In this era, who would remain loyal for a lifetime to their deceased wives? Most men like Sabastian, who had both power a