Wayne then took Anna to a fancy Japanese restaurant.
The moment the waiter opened the booth, Anna froze. She noticed that the woman in the white sweater from the night before was sitting inside the booth.
Wayne told Anna, “This is Miss Sophia York, Anna. Sophia, this is Anna Gabriel, my fiancee.”’
Sophia approached them and smiled as she said, “How do you do, Miss Gabriel?”
Anna reluctantly smiled and said, “Hello.”
Wayne didn’t notice what Anna was thinking and simply pulled the chair for her so she could sit down.
Anna had watched them from a distance the night before. And she finally had a chance to look at Sophia closely.
Looking at her up and down, Anna found the woman very beautiful. She was wearing a plain white sweater with lace trim, and her long hair was tied in a ponytail.
Sensing Anna’s gaze on her, Sophia gave Anna a shy smile and said, “Oh, l once heard Mr. Wright say that his fiancee was a gorgeous woman. You are so pretty, Anna.”
Anna was not flattered but rather disgusted. She looked at the two men, waiting for them to respond.
However, the silence made them all uncomfortable. So, Wayne explained, “Oh, Sophia is a psychiatrist specializing in child psychology. So
I’d like to have her to check on Matthew to see what’s going on with him.”
Hearing that, Anna pressed her thighs together and said to Sophia, “Really? Wayne previously said he planned to take Matthew to a German doctor. Are you from Germany, Miss York?”
Wayne and Sophia both froze because Anna sounded aggressive.
After a while, Wayne frowned as realized that Anna might be irritated.
Anna asked, “So, Miss York, have you met Matthew?”
Sophia responded, looking relieved, “No, | haven’t yet. I just talked to Mr. Wright about him. He said you had spent much time with Matthew, so | wondered if you could tell me something about him.”
Anna had seen several child psychologists because she hoped someone could treat Matthew. After asking Sophia a few questions, she discovered that Sophia appeared to be a doctor.
So, Anna wondered if she had made a mistake. She remembered Peace saying that Wayne had seen Matthew’s mother, but she didn’t know the woman’s name. So, when she saw Wayne and Sophia together last night, she assumed that the woman that Peace referred to was Sophia.
Sophia appeared very professional and said seriously, “Actually, | don’t believe that Matthew’s reluctance to speak is related to his illness. Maybe it was because he had been threatened before that he’s unwilling to speak, | believe. You’ve probably heard about babysitters abusing children in the news.”’
“Many people assume that children know nothing, but this is not true. Kids are sensitive and they are like white paper, and the adults around them are like painters. They will be colored if you give them colored ink. | hope you get what I’m saying. So, | believe the reason why Matthew refuses to speak was most likely because he has been intimidated and threatened not to speak.”
Anna realized that what she said was most likely correct.
Ithad occurred to her that previously. Mary, Matthew’s nanny, had said that Ada frequently visited Matthew at the Wright house.
Only Ada, however, was capable to to silence Matthew. Everyone assumed it was because she and Matthew were close. Plus, that was why Peter allowed Ada to date Wayne.
When Anna and Ryan talked about it later, she felt very panicked. No one would think that Ada, an unknown actress, would have the nerve to threaten Matthew. But she might just happen to have the guts to do so.
And Anna realized that not only did Ada have the courage to do so, but she had someone to back her up.
Having pulled herself back to reality from her thoughts, Anna smiled at Sophia and asked, “So, what do you think we should do?”
“Oh, we can take our time. | believe it is best not to give Matthew his medication first. We can recreate the scenario if you remember what happened previously. | mean, if you want to. That way, we might be able to cure him step by step.”
Anna froze and then asked, “Really? Can we really do that?”
“Yes, I’m confident about it. And the sooner we get started, the better the result will be.”
“But the point is, no one knows exactly what he’s been through,” Wayne said guiltily.
The three of them were then quiet.
“Actually, | know what Matthew’s been through,” Anna said suddenly, breaking the silence.
Wayne froze, then looked at Anna curiously, He was taken aback because he had no idea that Anna managed to dig out the facts that he himself failed to find out.
Anna, on the other hand, decided to lie to them, trying to cover the fact that she and Ryan had a profound investigation about what had happened to Matthew before.
Having made sure what she was going to say made sense, Anna said after taking a deep breath, “Actually, Matthew had given me some hints. | deduced something from his words and the painting he showed me. So | believe someone had threatened him before to keep him from talking.”’
Wayne’s face darkened as he asked, “What? Who was it?”
Anna frowned as well. She paused for a moment before shaking her head. Then she answered, “I don’t know.”
Sophia then added, “Okay, then we can make that assumption. It is not difficult for me to recreate scenarios. So, | need you to make a choice.”’
Hearing that, Wayne and Anna exchanged glances. Anna wasn’t sure because she wasn’t sure if she should trust Sophia
“Please let us think about it for a moment,” she said.
Sophia seemed to understand why they hesitated. She picked up her jacket and bag and said, “No worries. If you make the decision, you can contact me at any time. I have to leave now; | won’t be able to join you for dinner.”
“Why? The meal will be ready soon,” Anna asked.
Sophia said with a bitter smile, “Thank you, but | must go. I’m going to the hospital because the nurses are only available until 8:00 p.m.. | must change shifts.”
Anna had no idea what she was supposed to say when she heard her words.
After Sophia left, she asked Wayne, “The hospital? What is she talking about?”
Wayne explained, “Oh, Sophia’s husband has cancer. The doctor says he only has six months to live. So he will always be in the hospital, and Sophia needs to be with him every night.”
Anna froze, regretting having been so hostile to Sophia before
Meanwhile, she didn’t notice that Wayne looked like he wanted to confess something to her.
“Is she really a psychologist? To be honest, | believe we still need to see a few more doctors.”
Anna had been considering the treatment plan Sophia had suggested. Anna knew she was being ridiculous, but Sophia was so young that Anna doubted whether she was competent enough.
Wayne blinked hesitantly, saying, “Don’t worry, she’ll never hurt Matthew. | swear to God she won’t.”
“Huh? Why? Have you known her for a long time?” Anna looked up at Wayne, stunned.
“Anna, there’s something I need to tell you about Sophia,” Wayne said.
Hearing that, Anna’s heart skipped a beat, and she asked anxiously, “What is it?”
“Sophia is Matthew’s biological mother,” Wayne said after another pause.
After saying this, Wayne looked into Anna’s eyes, curious to see how she would react.
Anna was taken aback when she heard Wayne say this “fact.” Her eardrums were vibrating like a drum being beaten.
After noticing Anna’s silence, Wayne explained, “I didn’t tell you earlier because | was afraid you’d misunderstand me. | had long planned to never see her again after asking her to be a surrogate mother. The reason why | helped her was that | knew she was in a difficult situation. And you just heard what she said?’
“You mean her husband has cancer?” Anna forced herself to calm down before asking Wayne.
Wayne frowned and said, “Yes, | asked Gabe to look into it earlier. She told me she didn’t want any money because treating her husband’s cancer costs a lot. She’ll be gone in a year to attend college in the United States, so she won’t be here long. And she said that all she wanted was to see Matthew before she leaves.”
Anna took a deep breath as she shivered. She realized that this liar was quite clever.
Sophia had made up a tragic story to gain Wayne’s sympathy. Most people, in fact, would be unable to refuse such a request, knowing that she was that “unfortunate”.
“Did you say yes to her then?” Anna asked.
Wayne had no idea what Anna was thinking, and he responded, “I only told you the truth because | didn’t want you to get the wrong impression. | can assure you that Matthew will never see her again after that.”
Anna approached him and asked again, “What exactly do you want me to do? Please tell me.”
Wayne seemed to become irritated as he stared at her.
“Anna, you don’t have to do anything,” he said.
When Anna noticed Wayne’s impatience, she clenched her fists so tightly that her knuckles turned pale.
Then she said angrily, “Yeah, you’re right. You did not request anything from me. You expected me to believe wholeheartedly that the woman who appeared out of nowhere was your son’s biological mother. And you’re expecting me to agree to let Matthew live with her for a while.
Wayne froze as if he didn’t understand why Anna was so emotional.
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.
Leave a Reply