By this time, Cormac had just arrived in White City with his two children, and as soon as he saw that it was Theresa calling him, he picked up.
“Do you want me to courier this package to the office or will you come over to pick it up?” Theresa asked. Even Theresa did not know why he wanted Armand to come to take the two kids. She also did not know that he had gone to White City.
“What is it?” Cormac looked outside the window. Based on the location that Mr. Forbis sent, it did not seem that there were any hospitals in that area.
“It’s a parcel for Loredana but there is no sender information. Ms. Flores saw it and asked me to give it to you. I don’t know what the package contains.” She quickly added, “Since you asked Armand to take the kids away, she had become somewhat cautious.”
Cormac knew that she would become apprehensive as soon as Armand went to her home. Boyce had messaged him that Jeffery’s case would be determined in the coming days. So he expected that Jeffery’s case would be determined once he returned from White City.
“Leave it with you. I’ll get it from you when I get back.” He came to White City to visit Jayden and would be back thereafter. He was not at B city and there was no point in sending the package to his office. “Okay then. Contact me when you’re back.”
“Is there a hospital around here?” Armand was driving the car, glanced rearwards, and said, “This place looks familiar.”
Theresa heard Armand’s voice, said goodbye, and ended the call.
Cormac kept his phone and he noticed that this place looked like the place where Loredana learned from Mr. Forbis how to create the Gambiered Canton Gauze.
“Just head towards the address.” He started to worry that Jayden was not at the hospital.
They drove along some dirt road for a while before coming to a sprawling courtyard with a grand mansion.
“What is this place?” Asked Armand curiously.
“This is Granny’s place,” Andrew said. He knew as Loredana once brought him and his sister here.
Armand looked at him and then towards Cormac. It was obvious that Andrew meant Victoria. So this was the Forbis residence?
Cormac suppressed his reactions and did not appear to be surprised by this. The car stopped and he opened the door. The kids were delighted to return to this place and jumped out of the car. “Is Grandpa here?” Amanda asked.
“Most likely.” If Jayden was at White City, then he would most probably be at the Forbis residence.
At this moment, Mr. Forbis walked out of the mansion and immediately quicken his pace when he saw the two kids and said, “Wow, you two are here too!”
“We’re here to see grandpa!” The two kids said in unison.
“Great, great.” Mr. Forbis said happily. Mr. Forbis was overjoyed now that the facts are revealed and Cormac personally brought the kids to the Forbis residence. Mr. Forbis looked at Cormac and noticed that Cormac did not seem to share his sentiments and maintained an indifferent expression. He was rather disappointed but continued to smile when he looked at the kids and remarked, “Let’s all go into the house.”
Armand was impressed when he entered the courtyard of the mansion. He could see from the architecture of the house that the Forbis family had a high social status in the past. Additionally, the house was very well maintained considering its age.
“Wow, my goose swing is still here.” Amanda released her father’s hand and ran towards the swing which was under the tree.
Cormac looked at Amanda and wondered that Loredana must have made the excuse to come over here and stayed here. That was why she managed to know all the secrets.
“Your father is in that room. He is waiting for you inside. He wanted to see you and was worried that you wouldn’t come. So he asked me to inform you that he was sick and was hospitalized.” Mr. Forbis explained.
Cormac had guessed the same because he did not notice any hospitals on the way here. He said to Armand, “Armand, please look after them.”
“Rest assured. I’m here.” Mr. Forbis quickly said. He had the responsibility to take care of the guests. However, Cormac trusted Armand more to look after the kids.
Armand nodded and replied, “Go ahead.”
Mr. Forbis was disappointed and sighed. Armand quickly added, “That’s him, don’t take it to heart.”
“Have a seat.” Mr. Forbis pointed to the chair under the tree. Mr. Forbis served Armand a cup of water and said, “You must be tired after the trip.”
Armand smiled and nodded.
Cormac entered the room. The room was decorated with a feminine flair. Jayden sat next to the window in a rocking chair and faced outside. He had a blanket over his legs and his hair was white as snow. The wrinkles on his face revealed his struggles through the years.
“You’re here.” Jayden did not turn around. Cormac did not answer but continued to walk towards him. Jayden must have something to tell Cormac for asking him to go over. He was willing to hear what he had to say.
Cormac stopped at the window and looked outside at the nearby forest. The forest was lush and green at this time of the year.
“You should know where this place is.” Jayden still had his eyes closed as he exhaled a long breath and said, “I have a lot of regrets in this life. I hope that you do not follow my footsteps and regret after you lose it.” He had pondered about what he had done and although he did not harm anyone, many things happened because he was not decisive enough.
He had already known that Jolene loved someone else and if he had rejected that marriage, then many things would not have happened.
“She married me because of you. Although it looked like we were a loving couple all through these twenty over years, I never knew if she ever loved me.”
She was in love with Nathan and they were each other’s first love. Nathan never married and their love for each other never ended distinctly. Because he knew that Jolene still had feelings for Nathan, there was a wedge in their marriage through the years. Thus, even when he realized that he had feelings for Victoria, he never expressed his feelings for her. He only started to regret it after she left.
Jayden hoped that his son would not do anything that he would regret because of the previous generation’s baggage. He said with a heavy heart, “I think that based on her love for you, she would want you to be happy. She would not harm someone she loved because of revenge. You are an adult and should know clearly how you feel.”
“I once thought about stopping you and force you to marry Ms. Herbert. That would stop the truth from coming to light… but who could have thought that no matter how I tried, the truth could not be suppressed Perhaps that’s fate.”
Perhaps it was destiny and mortals could never influence it.
“Andrew and Amanda must be near to schooling age. Find her and spend your days with them.” The younger generation should not suffer for the sins of the elders.
Ever since Jayden knew that Loredana had left, he was constantly worried that Cormac would do something that he would regret for the rest of his life. He had already experienced how it felt to regret for life and did not want his son to suffer the same way.
“I’m not sure if she was angry with me. She had died for so long and never even visited me in my dreams.” He started to choke as he spoke and could not suppress his emotions.
Cormac did not respond and just stood by and listened.
The occasional breeze blew and the rustling of the leaves could be heard from afar.
Time ticked on and soon the sun set behind the hills which cast a long shadow over the valley. The day turned into night.
The father and son stayed in the room for the entire afternoon and no one entered the room to interrupt them. It was time for dinner when Cormac emerged from the room.
Mr. Forbis prepared dinner and the dishes were spread on the round table in the courtyard. Amanda ran over as soon as she saw Cormac and greeted, “Daddy!” Cormac gently stroked her head. “Let’s eat.” Amanda pulled him towards the dining table.
Buzz…
At this moment, his phone vibrated in his pocket. He made Amanda sit down for dinner before answering the call. The caller was Boyce who said, “Jeffery’s judgment is out.” The accident was serious and caused three deaths and one injury. The authorities made a detailed investigation and found out that it was related to a kidnapping incident that caused the accident. Jeffery surrendered to the police and pleaded guilty to the crime. He also showed sincere remorse for his crime and so the courts were lenient to him.
“He would be sentenced to two years,” Boyce said.
During the sentencing, the judge said, “Jeffery, you violated the law as a civil servant and caused severe damage to the reputation of civil servants in the eyes of the public. Therefore, you must be severely punished. The suspect had surrendered to the police, pleaded guilty, repented, and made a sincere public apology. You were sentenced to two years with suspension and banned from public office for life.” Cormac was not affected and did not feel any need for vengeance. He simply replied, “Okay.”
“The others had been similarly sentenced except that … Declan had not received the same sentence.”
Jeffery was looking for Declan but Jeffery was the mastermind. Declan did not look for the hooligan to hijack the car. It was his man who did it.
Initially, he wanted to frame Declan and took a picture of that man and the hooligan. He even tried to instigate the man to say that it was Declan who instructed him to do it. However, after that man was captured, he maintained his story that he was the only one who looked for the hooligan and had nothing to do with Declan. Furthermore, Old Mr. Bailey managed to find some connections to ensure that he was not charged. Someone who could operate a nightclub in that area must have very strong connections.
“After this incident, he must realize that we used him and lied to him. Would he seek revenge?” Boyce asked since Declan was not an honorable man and would bear a grudge against them. “Keep an eye on him. We’ll discuss this when I return.”
“Okay.”
New Book: Beginning with a Daring Encounter
Celsie was tired of being labeled as an introvert, workaholic, and dull virgin by her friends. Determined to prove them wrong, she made a bet that she would do something daring on her 25th birthday. Now that the day had arrived, it was time to fulfill her promise. On her daring to-do list, there was one task: a one-night stand with someone.