As if she could perceive my desolation, Audrey leaned against me, mewling. She was as soft and forlorn as a newborn kitten.
My heart melted. Casting Gregory to the back of my mind, I reached out and gave Audrey a tight hug.
…
We soon arrived at the VIP lounge in the airport.
The Stanhope private jet was estimated to land in two hours. Concerned that Audrey would be hungry, John regarded the fast-food restaurants that lined the hallway with disapproval. He disappeared, then soon returned with a portion of fish and chips that looked entirely superior to the rest of the meager fare offered there.
Taking a leaf out of Gregory’s book, Audrey sulked, insisting on being fed before she would be willing to eat.
I was indefensible in the face of Audrey’s adorable self. I took extreme pains to coax and flatter her to eat. Fortunately, Audrey was easily won over. As John had promised, she was a lovely, innocent girl who had been pampered but was not yet spoilt.
As Audrey and I took bites in turn, John sat facing us, smiling. It was as if he derived gratification just from watching us.
“I’ve dreamed of this scene countless times. Alas, it has finally come true,” John muttered, half to himself. There was a slight choke in his voice, and I looked up, startled, to see his eyes shining with tears.
John swiftly wiped at his eyes, but he was overcome with emotion to compose himself immediately.
I felt a lump rise within my throat. I was both immensely moved by the depth of John’s feelings and frustrated by my inability to remember anything.
I put down my fork. When I’d caught John’s eye, I said gravely, “We’re going back to M Country and getting together with the rest of the family, right? What happens after that? What do you plan to do?”
“Isn’t that enough?” John broke into a wistful smile at the thought. “I’m no longer the devilish scoundrel I used to be. I’m managing both the Stanhope and Moore Corporations, both of which are profiting tremendously now. I’ve also hired the best mercenaries for you and Audrey. They’ll give you the best protection you could ever ask for. No one will ever be able to hurt either of you again.”
“What about Gregory?” I replied briefly.
John looked troubled. “There are still days ahead of us. I’ll definitely do my best to bring him over.”
“When will that be?” I persisted. “If you couldn’t manage it for the past six years, what makes you think you’ll be able to do that in the future?”
John’s face was stony. Grimly, he said, “None of us wanted that, but I was focusing all of my efforts on looking for you and had to give up the custody of Gregory. I’m a mere businessman, not God. I can’t perform miracles, much as I try. Gregory was given to the Hall family. That’s the only life he knows now. Even if I could take him by force, would he be able to get accustomed to the new environment?”
John’s face grew flushed as he spoke, his eyes taking on a feverish glaze. He paused to suppress his agitation, then continued in a strained voice, “Letty, it’s been six years. You can’t, and neither will I allow you to, continue contacting Anthony and his family. The next time, it may be fatal…”
John’s face blanched as he trailed off. I pressed him, however, saying, “Do you mean that what happened six years ago was the work of the Hall family? But the information I received from Anthony said that the person who wanted to destroy the entire island, including Anthony and me, was Armond. Wasn’t it?”
“You almost died, yet you’re still clinging onto Anthony’s words as if they were the gospel truth,” John noted disdainfully. “That was a lie spun by the Hall family to deflect blame. Without assistance from the Hall family, Armond would surely have been stopped and killed on sight in the open waters. How else could he have been able to successfully move all those explosives to the island?”
At John’s explanation, the last piece of the puzzle seemed to finally click into place. Armond’s ability to wreak such havoc no longer seemed that mythical after all.
A question still lingered at the back of my mind. Disturbed, I wondered, Why on earth would Anthony lie to me?”
Was it because Anthony already knew that I was Sienna and wanted to distract me from the truth?
John read the uneasiness on my face and remarked somewhat impatiently, “There’s no need to overthink things. I simply don’t understand how you’re willing to overlook the maniacal things that the Hall family has done on Anthony’s account. If I had known, I’d have ruined them on the stock market instead.”
“What makes you think I will?” I shot back, meeting John’s gaze steadily. “What right does someone who harmed me have to raise my children?”
John was taken aback. He leaned forward, spreading his hands on the smooth tabletop. Skeptically, he asked, “Didn’t you feel sorry for Anthony when I hurt him?”
“The one who harmed me was the Hall family, not Anthony. Why would you hurt him?” I asked quizzically. Besides, Anthony was the father of my child. I didn’t want to see Gregory disconsolate.
John had a grave look on his face. “Don’t you know that Anthony is the Hall family’s front man right now? Do you think I would have given Gregory up if it hadn’t been for Anthony’s continued resistance?”
I felt rather disconcerted. It appeared that we were caught between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, I couldn’t just abandon Gregory like that. However, Anthony remained a stubborn obstacle between us.
Just as I was fretting, an idea occurred to me. Turning towards John, I asked, “John, are the mercenaries you hired really the best?”
John looked bewildered by the abrupt shift in the conversation. He scratched his head, then nodded slowly. “What are you planning to do?”
I flashed a wicked grin at John, then said, “Can they help to kidnap two people for me? Wait, one will do.”
After all, once one had been kidnapped, the other would surely deliver himself.
“Who do you want to kidnap?” John probed.
Without hesitation, I announced, “Anthony!”
“You want to kidnap him?” John asked, raising an eyebrow. “What do you want to kidnap him for? To teach him a lesson? Have you forgotten when you hated him? Once the matter ended, you’ll fall back in love with him all over again, and the blame will fall squarely on me. I’m not taking the fall for this one again.” “Of course not!” I assured him, laughing a little at John’s panic. “Legal custody of Gregory belongs to the Hall family, but it’s under Anthony’s name. If we kidnap Anthony and bring Gregory over, we wouldn’t be contravening any laws, would we?”
John took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. “Are you serious about that?”
I rearranged my features into the sternest face I could put on, then challenged John, “Do I look like I’m joking?”
John examined me, then said doubtfully, “I can’t tell. Women change their minds more quickly than the wind changes.”
“Will you help me or not?” I pressed him.
“I’ll help,” John agreed at last. “It’s a huge task, though, so we should plan it well. The luster of the Hall family may have dimmed, but they’re not entirely incapable yet. It won’t be that easy to lay hands on their sole source of income. Perhaps we should return to M Country first, where the rest of our family is waiting. We shouldn’t disappoint them…”
John rambled on, but the rest of his words fell on deaf ears. I wiped my mouth and led Audrey away from the table. “Audrey, are you feeling tired yet? Let’s go find a place to sleep.”
John stretched out a hand to stop me but quickly withdrew it when I rolled my eyes contemptuously at him. “Letty, don’t be reckless. The plane is leaving soon. Let’s go home first. As for the kidnapping…”
I had strode to the entrance of the VIP lounge with Audrey with John doggedly tailing us. His words died away at the sight of the airport security. John then quickly corrected himself, “As for that matter, we’ll have to wait for a suitable moment.”
Audrey and I paid no heed to John. I raised a hand to wave a casual goodbye to him before sauntering away. “Got it! Remember to get the plane to turn back!” I reminded John helpfully.
My reluctance to leave K City actually stemmed from the fact that it was the only place I was familiar with. I hadn’t expected that John would let us go so easily. The belligerent man who had held his ground before Anthony had now buckled.
John drove us to the city’s finest hotel. We proceeded straight into the presidential suite.
We had barely sat down when John began video calling the rest of our relatives in M Country. He fixed his phone on the table, angling it such that both Audrey and I also appeared within the frame.
Our call was picked up almost instantly.
The moment Zachary and Cameron flickered into view, their eyes almost immediately glimmered with tears. They seemed so overcome with emotion that they were unable to speak for a while.
Louis had since retired and was in high spirits. He thus spoke first, nodding contentedly, “We are happy to see that you’re doing well.”
I felt rather embarrassed in the face of these supposedly dear family members that I had absolutely no recollection of. They had evidently missed me, however, and I was moved by their affection. After approximately half an hour of conversation that flowed naturally after a while, we ended the call as Audrey was complaining of sleepiness.
John left his phone lying on the table and immediately picked Audrey up, carrying her into the room. As John delicately held Audrey in one arm, he patted her gently on the back with the other. It was the model image of fatherliness.
John ensured that Audrey was tucked into bed and turned off the lights before heading back into the living room.
“Can you drive?” John asked as he took a seat beside me. He’d picked his phone up and was jabbing at it.
“I don’t know,” I admitted, shaking my head. After I’d regained consciousness, Marcus had been the one sending me everywhere. Afterward, Anthony too had arranged for a chauffeur for me. I’d thus not had the chance yet to even come into contact with a steering wheel. “I think I can try, though. Why don’t you buy me a car?” I ventured.
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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