Nellie pursed her lips and held her mother’s hand. “
Let’s go in.”
Only then did Bethan retract her thoughts, lifted her lips in a faint smile and entered the door holding
Nellie’s hand.
“Neil, Nellie! “
The moment everyone entered the house, the agitated voices of Adrian Morrison and Granny Morrison rang out in the living room.
“I heard the two of you would be returning home today, but I thought you would only come home at night, I didn’t expect you to be home at this hour! “
Granny Morrison pulled at both children agitatedly. “I miss the two of you so much! “
Neil frowned, smiling even though he was unhappy. “Hello, Great-Granny.”
Hearing her brother address their great- grandmother, Nellie had no choice but to smile and greet the old lady. “Great-Granny, you look even younger now! “
Hearing the two children’s sweet words, the old lady’s smile was so wide they could almost see down her throat.
Brettley took off his jacket and sat down on the couch. Looking on as the two old folk and the two children greeted each other happily, a sudden gush of warmth burst into his heart.
Back then when they just got married, Bethan Peterson said that she wished they could have children while Granny was still alive, to let her enjoy the happiness of having four generations of the family living together.
Back then, he was impressed with her kindness. After all, from the beginning, the Morrison family actually neither welcomed nor liked her. And yet, she treated every one of them as her own family.
At this thought, he raised his eyes and glanced at Alice, then waved at her with a smile. “Come here.”
Alice was surprised by his sudden display of affection, and hurried over.
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders gently and heaved out a long sigh, “Do you remember what you once said?”
Alice paused slightly. “Of… of course I remember.”
With that, she was afraid Brettley would bring up the past again, and hurriedly turned and looked at Bethan who was standing at the side. “Ms. Bethan, take a seat.”
Bethan stood in the distance and looked at the scene before her, the family she lost, and a sense of melancholy burst in her chest.
Alice’s words brought her harshly back to reality, instinctively looking in their direction. But the moment she turned her head, she saw Adrian’s furious face instead. He stalked toward her, infuriated. “How dare you come to our house again! “
“Slap — –!”
Before everyone could react, the sound of a loud slap echoed throughout the living room.
Bethan’s head was knocked to the side from the impact, the sweet, iron-like taste of blood filled her mouth, and blood dripped down the corners of her lips.
“Mommy! ” “Mommy —-!”
Sitting on both sides of the old lady, the two children instinctively jumped up from the couch and flew to Bethan’s side.
One of them held her hand carefully, stepping in front of her, trying to protect her, while the other calmly took some tissues from the table beside them and handed them to Bethan.
The sight of the two children protecting her made Brettley frown. Beside him, Alice snorted deep down in her chest, but on the surface, worry filled her expression, “Neil, quick, bring your sister here.”
Then, she glanced at the little gentleman who was handing Bethan tissues.
“This is between your Grandpa and Aunty Bethan. It’s a matter for adults, don’t poke your nose where it doesn’t belong.”
Neil glared at her coldly, then suddenly turned and started taking care of their mother together with Nellie.
Then, Alice acted like a calm, level-headed adult and said, “Adrian, what are you doing, you scared the children.”
Adrian snorted coldly, “What am I doing? Doesn’t she know what she did?”
Bethan took the tissues Neil offered her and wiped the blood from the corners of her lips, smiling coldly as she said, “Master Morrison, you’re an old man, and yet the way you vent your emotions is by hitting a woman? This is the first time I’m experiencing something like this! “
Adrian’s face was filled with fury. “Do you know why I slapped you?”
He glared at her viciously. “I’ve known Dennis Walter for more than 3o years! I know full well what kind of a man he is! If he had a choice, he would not act against a woman! “
He fixed his eyes on Bethan, so angry flames were about to burst out of his eyes. “Tell me, how did you kill Hailey?! “
Bethan paused. Then, she tugged at her lips, and laughed coldly, “So, you think I was the one who killed Hailey, that’s why Dennis Walter would do those things to me, and was finally captured?”
Adrian glared at her, his eyes almost popping out of his skull in fury. “Is that not the truth? You killed his only daughter, is that not the truth?”
Bethan looked at him coldly, her gaze as chilly as the ancient glaciers. “Oh? I killed Hailey Walter?”
She changed into a comfortable position and sat directly down on the couch. Neil and Nellie sat down too, one of her left and the other on her right.
The little girl held her arm out in front of her, fiercely keeping her gaze locked on Adrian as if she would not only use her body to block him if he decided to hurt Bethan again but also rush forward and bite him. Neil, on the other hand, adopted the same position as his mother, crossing his arms across his chest and looking at Adrian.
His gaze did not seem as if he was looking at his own grandfather, but instead as if he was looking at a long-lost enemy.
The scene in front of him further stoked the flames in Adrian’s chest. The blood of the Morrison family flowed through the veins of both of these children, but now, when he and Bethan were at loggerheads, not only did the two children take her side, they even looked at him as if he was their enemy?
He frowned and glared at Brettley. “Discipline your children! They belong to our family, the Morrison family, and not Bethan’s family! “
Brettley raised his teacup calmly, took a sip of the warm tea, and said, “I can’t. My relationship with these children is like the one I share with you. In the past six years of their lives, I had never once helped them or taken care of them, that’s why they won’t listen to me.”
He glanced at Adrian with faint, emotionless eyes. “
Just like how I refuse to listen to most of the things that you say.”
With that, he elegantly placed the now empty cup on the coffee table. “You said it too , they belong to the Morrison family.”
“Then you should know, Bethan raised them for six years. I would advise you to be nicer to Bethan, otherwise, the children might not acknowledge you as their grandfather anymore.”
Adrian’s face turned purple.
On this side, Bethan glanced at his expression with an elegant yet emotion less look, a careless smile lifting her lips. “Mr. Morrison, you said I killed Hailey, do you have any proof? Deciding whether someone killed someone else or not, don’t you need to speak based on the available evidence?”
She rested an ankle on her knee, her voice cold and distant, “Hailey committed suicide by jumping off a building. Did I point a knife a t her and force her to jump, or did I push her? If I remember correctly, when Hailey committed suicide, I was accompanying my friend as she visited her ex-husband in the hospital. There are CCTVs in the hallways and elevators in the hospital, I have a perfect alibi.”
Adrian snorted, “Don’t think I don’ t know, before she jumped because of you, she was forced to leave Sea City and move abroad! She grew up in wealth and luxury, with the good graces of God, and because of a woman like you, she was forcefully separated from her father, and had to leave the city she lived in since she was a child, how could she take it!”
Bethan laughed coldly, “Unreasonable, this word is used to describe people like you, am I right, Mr. Morrison?”
She sucked in a deep breath, and said faintly, “Then do you know why she was forced to leave Sea City? If you’ve never heard of the things she did to me, let me repeat them for you. I went to Sea City for work, however, at the welcoming banquet, Ms. Walter intentionally caused trouble for me. She gave me an invitation and yet purposely deleted my name from the guest list. When we visited the factories for survey purposes, she deliberately arranged for two wretched men to accompany me, harassing me orally throughout, even forcefully making physical contact with me, trying to take advantage of me time and time again. In the shop, an accident happened where it should not have happened, a huge mineral flew in my direction. If Mr. Morrison did not block them for me, I would be lying in a hospital bed right now. Of course, this is not the main incident.”
She sucked in a deep breath, raised her eyes, and looked at the purple-faced Adrian, “That night, Mrs. Morrison and Ms. Walter arranged for the other men to get me drunk. While I lay drunk in the hotel, she sent six or seven male escorts into my room, who tried to take advantage of me while I was drunk. Finally, she used my friend’s father’s life to threaten my friend, forcing her to publicly announce that I am the mistress who destroyed Mr. Brettley Morrison’s marriage.”
Saying all of this out in a single breath, Bethan raised her eyes and looked at Adrian with cold eyes. “Mr. Morrison, if Ms. Walter is not your friend’s daughter, if the person she harmed was a member of your family, tell me, would you still choose to let her off the hook? After all the things that she did, if I reported her to the police, she would definitely be handed a more severe punishment than merely being forced to leave Sea City.”
Bethan’s gaze was cold and stern. “Since the Walter family and you are family friends, Mr. Brettley Morrison asked me to compromise. In the end, little Ms. Walter couldn’t take it, and committed suicide. Do you think that is my fault?”
Adrian’s expression. His hands clenched into tight fists at his side.
“You’re lying! Hailey wouldn’t do things like that! “
He gritted his teeth harshly. “Hailey is a cute little girl, she’s docile and obedient, the only thing she insisted on was wanting to marry Brettley! She’s gentle and understanding, all these years, she would only lose her wits if the matter was related to Brettley. But she had long since lost interest in Brettley, even if she was still interested in him, the person she would want to deal with is definitely not you! I don’t believe she would do something like this, not at all! “
With that, he glanced at Brettley. “Brettley, what do you say?”
With a turn of his head, Adrian was stunned. Standing beside Brettley, Alice’s eyes were filled with tears of agitation. Her teary eyes…
Looked exactly the same as Hailey’s all those years ago!
Adria could hardly believe his own eyes.
He clearly remembered, a few years ago, he once visited the Walter family in Sea City. He got drunk and started to feel sorry for Hailey.
In his heart, Hailey was always the best candidate to be Brettley’s wife. As his father, he thought even if he never loved and cared about his son, he would listen to him, listen to their family, and marry Hailey who had been intended to him since they were children.
Instead, Adrian never expected Brettley to reject the marriage once and for all. He even married Bethan Peterson who also grew up in Sea City, just to rebel against his family.
In the end, even when Bethan Peterson went missing, he still rejected Hailey adamantly. To not be involved with Hailey in any possible manner, he was even willing to get engaged to Cynthal, Bethan’s younger sister.
Back then, he was drunk, scolding Brettley as he comforted Hailey, telling her she deserves someone better. That day, Hailey cried, touched by his words.
Her gaze that night left a deep impression on Adrian. Her eyes looked exactly the same as Alice who was standing right in front of him as if they were… one and the same…
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.