Ever since the passing of Christopher and his wife, Anthony had lived with George and Charlie. Growing up, Anthony had always been emotionally unavailable. Charlie knew one day, this young man would become even more impassive. He had finally witnessed that today.
Charlie looked at Anthony and froze. He lowered his head to avoid his glare. “Watch your manners, Anthony,” he said, “How do you expect to know everything about you? You must be tired. Go and take a rest in the guest room. We clean it every day, hoping that you’ll come and visit.”
He seemed a little absentminded as he spoke, even going as far as accidentally pruning some branches off a well-shaped shrub. However, the man soon snapped out of it, turning around and ordering the maid, “Carry their stuff into the house.”
The maid came up and carried our luggage. “Please come with me, Mr. and Mrs. Featherstone.”
Unlike Anthony, Charlie was not great at hiding his emotions. Based on his reaction, I believed Christopher must have approached him before.
We decided to come unannounced in the late evening because we did not want Charlie to avoid us. Now that we were face to face with him, we hoped he could tell us the truth.
After taking a shower, we set out to look for Charlie again.
The living hall was exceptionally quiet; Charlie was not around.
I got hold of a maid and asked, “Where’s Mr. Charlie?”
The maid lowered her head and answered, “He has gone to bed.”
Anthony tilted his head and took a sidelong glance at the rooms upstairs. Though he had moved out of the family home for many years, he still remembered the location of Charlie’s room very well.
We headed up and stood outside the room. Anthony knocked on the door and called, “Uncle Charlie?”
No one responded.
A corner of Anthony’s mouth quirked up. It was as if he had expected this. He held my hand and brought me back to the living hall.
After a short while, Charlie came down slowly with Helen.
“Did you call me?” The man asked, looking like he had just woken up. “I would have slept straight to the next day if the maid didn’t call me.” He let out a chuckle at that comment.
“You should rest early if you’re tired,” Anthony said calmly while shooting daggers at Helen.
I glanced at him, paying close attention to his expression. He waited for them to tell him the truth for twenty years. I’m sure he doesn’t mind waiting for another few hours and asking them about it tomorrow.
Charlie responded with a wry smile, “It’s all right.”
“Please take care of yourself,” Anthony said, “I didn’t get to take care of my parents since they passed away at a very young age. I hope I still get to repay your kindness after I’ve made a name for myself in K City.”
A line formed between Charlie’s brows, but before he could respond, Helen stepped in and said, “Thanks, but you don’t have to. George raised you, not us.”
I was well aware of the fact that Helen did not like Anthony through and through. She even often went around telling people he was good-for-nothing. Ever since my relationship with Anthony improved, he seldom talked to me about them anymore.
There was just something strange about the couple.
“You’re right,” Anthony began, “But I still hope you can come with me to K City. I can take good care of you that way. We’re the only Featherstones left in the family now. We should stay together, don’t you think?” He leaned against the couch and tapped his finger on the armrest absentmindedly as he spoke.
“We’ve thought about that possibility too, but since we’re so used to J City, I don’t think we’d be comfortable living in a big city,” Charlie explained.
No matter how hard Anthony tried to convince them, Charlie and Helen seemed to have all sorts of excuses to turn him down.
I had been observing the woman, and she seemed to be oddly courteous throughout the conversation. I also noticed her tendency to peep at me when she was talking to Anthony. Every time she saw me looking at her, she would offer me a rather awkward smile.
After Charlie had rejected the offer for the third time, Anthony kept silent for a long time. As tension began to build, everyone in the living hall grew nervous. Thankfully, Anthony broke his silence moments later. “There’s something I wish to ask you, Uncle Charlie.”
Upon hearing that, the other man shuddered while he was about to take a sip of tea. He quickly regained his composure and asked, “What is it?”
Anthony took out a few photos from his pocket. They were the photos of Christopher, whom he had secretly shot. Anthony didn’t think twice before he dumped them all on the coffee table.
Charlie took a glance at the photos, and his expression turned grim immediately.
Helen did not seem to notice her husband’s reaction. She pursed her lips and grabbed the photos from the table. The moment she saw the photos, the color drained out of her face. She stuttered, “How… how.. how is this possible?”
Anthony shot Helen a cold stare. “Tell me, who’s the man in the photo?” He raised his voice. “When the world thought he had passed away, he’s still alive and well in M Country. So, explain to me how this is possible.”
Clearly, Anthony’s patience had worn thin.
From Charlie’s dark eyes, I could tell he was not surprised to see those photos. This confirmed Anthony’s prediction — Charlie had known Christopher was alive.
Anthony had once told me that even though Charlie treated him well, he often felt as if his uncle intentionally stayed away from him. Charlie’s behavior eventually caused Anthony to lose trust in him. It had got to a point where Anthony did not bother trying to figure out what went on in his uncle’s mind.
Ever since he took over the Featherstone Corporation, Anthony had finally learned that he could trust no one in this world.
He had always attributed the problem he had with Charlie to interpersonal difficulties. Never in his life had he questioned if he was really related to this family.
Everything that had happened recently had made the man question his identity.
“Am I really your nephew?” Anthony asked icily.
If Christopher could change his identity and forge his death, Anthony believed the man was capable of manipulating the paternity test results too.
Charlie took a deep breath to calm his nerves. “Why do you even bother to ask me such a question if you’ve already guessed it right? You’re right. We’re not related by blood. You might not be a Featherstone, but we’ve never treated you differently.”
Anthony let out a cold snort but kept mum. Upon seeing his reaction, Charlie shuddered.
Charlie let out a sigh, thinking Anthony did not buy his story. “Your grandpa adopted Christopher, your father. He was not only a hardworking person, but he also has strong business acumen. He did all he could to repay your grandpa’s kindness. The Featherstones have always had a close relationship with your mother’s family. Your grandpa decided to matchmake your mother with Christopher when the patriarch learned that she had fallen in love with him. Though your father was not pleased with the arrangement, we all still lived a rather peaceful life.”
“Unlike your grandpa, who didn’t know how to run a business since he was a soldier, Christopher turned the Featherstone Corporation into a successful establishment,” Charlie explained, ”Yet, one day, Christopher’s biological family came to J City to look for him. Your grandfather panicked and sent him off to another country. That family, who eventually took my DNA sample for the paternity test, gave up after obtaining the results.”
Anthony’s face continued to be stiffened with dismay. “And?”
He wanted to know why his own father detested him so much.
While Charlie was caught up reminiscing the past, a hard glint flashed through his eyes all of a sudden. He stood up impatiently and made a condescending remark. “That’s all. The Featherstone family has done Christopher wrong, but we’ve raised you well. Tell him he should consider all the old scores settled.”
Charlie shot Anthony a sullen glare before stalking back to his room upstairs.
“Uncle Charlie,” Anthony called out, but before he could say anything, Helen interrupted, “It’s getting late. He hasn’t been feeling well lately. Let’s talk about this some other time.”
Anthony and I stared at the couple’s backs as they made their way upstairs in a rather hurried manner.
We eventually went back to your room. Annoyance was written all over Anthony’s face as he went out to the balcony and took a puff at a cigarette.
I sighed. It must be devastating for him to find out he isn’t a Featherstone by blood, even though he lived with them for more than two decades. More importantly, he finally knows that Charlie had kept a distance from him because of Christopher.
Anthony was tired of dealing with all the lies; he was afraid to know the truth. However, the man knew he had to face them, no matter how hard and painful they may be.
Instead of piling all the pressure to spill the beans on Charlie in one night, Anthony decided to take things slow and spend the next couple of days in J City. He was determined to uncover more information. He wanted the truth.
Plans were bound to break when changes occurred. After Charlie and Helen saw through us and our intention, they packed up and left the house early in the morning. When Anthony and I headed downstairs in search of them, they were nowhere to be found.
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.
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