Chapter 413: 410: Are You Alright?
The Thompson family and the Leaford family were intertwined, and Miss Thompson had a vast network of connections and led a good life, which could also help the Leaford family in the future.
As long as the Leaford family prospered, his treatment in the future would not be bad.
Seeing Molly relaxed, Alyssa Evans breathed a sigh of relief.
This was great; at least she could resolve Mr. Crane’s worries.
In the villa, the two Leaford elders had already gone to rest, and only James Leaford and Amanda Leaford were sitting beside her.
“Uncle, you should go rest. Mr. Crane is not a bad person, you don’t have to worry.” Molly looked at the expression on James’s face and found it amusing.
“I am not tired. How could this Stephen Crane be a good person? If he was a good person, he would not have sabotaged your ranking,” James said indignantly, sitting on the sofa with his eyes closed. “I’ll rest here, and I want to see what he’s really up to.”
Molly laughed and didn’t try to persuade him further.
Initially, she didn’t want to see Stephen Crane, but the housekeeper handed her a note from Phoebe Belmont, warning her: Mr. Crane’s property has nothing to do with you, so it’s best to back away early.
Property, and backing away?
Molly chuckled with interest.
Although she didn’t understand why Phoebe was so anxious, her curiosity was suddenly piqued.
She was curious about what Phoebe was actually worried about.
Thinking of the child in her belly, her eyes suddenly turned cold.
Just then, they heard Daniel Thompson shouting from outside the door.
“Amanda, Amanda, please, listen to me! The baby in that bitch Phoebe’s belly isn’t mine. I never even touched her!”
“Amanda…”
Listening to Daniel’s unrestrained voice, Amanda frowned.
There were so many servants in the Leaford family. Was he not ashamed of himself?
“Let him in.” Amanda closed her eyes for a moment, thinking about Joshua’s upcoming marriage, and ultimately decided to let it go.
She couldn’t control whose child Phoebe was carrying, but that illegitimate child must not threaten her own child’s inheritance rights.
With Daniel’s outburst, it was certain that the child in Phoebe’s belly indeed wasn’t his.
If it were truly his, he would not be so bold in complaining of his innocence.
After entering the room and noticing that everyone was looking at him, Daniel said with a laugh, “Don’t be fooled by that bitch Phoebe, everyone. The child in her belly is not mine, but Stephen Crane’s.”
Stephen Crane’s?
Molly furrowed her brow, and Amanda looked surprised.
Stephen Crane was eighty years old, right?
Phoebe, so young, had taken a shortcut.
“Amanda, I never touched her. I don’t know what’s wrong with that woman. She wants me to be happy to be a father… Amanda, you’ll believe me, right? I…”
“Shut up.” Amanda waved her hand, “I don’t have time to listen to this now. Whether I believe you or not is not important. There are some things you didn’t do, but there are some things you did do. How can I trust you?”
Daniel’s expression froze.
“What’s more, I let you in because I didn’t want everyone to be dragged down by you. We still have our pride even if you don’t. In a while, Ivy will talk to Mr. Crane. You’d better shut your unpleasant mouth.”
Mr. Crane? Stephen Crane?
When he heard this name, Daniel’s face turned strange, and he turned pale then flushed.
Although he had no interaction with this man, thanks to Phoebe, he understood the situation clearly.
He didn’t actually like Phoebe, but since he couldn’t feel warmth from Amanda, he was almost moved by her. But it was never love, and at most, it could be considered friendship or the bond of a subordinate.
He could allow himself not to like Phoebe, but he believed her when she confessed her love, saying that she had liked him for many years and had remained chaste for him.
But the final result left him speechless.
Phoebe was actually carrying that old man’s child and claimed it was his.
What did this mean? It meant Phoebe’s claim that she liked him wasn’t genuine, and perhaps she had secretly colluded with that old man a long time ago.
When Daniel thought about this, he couldn’t help but get angry.
He could dislike Phoebe, but he couldn’t accept being played by her.
“Mr. Crane, Stephen Crane? Why are you meeting him?” Daniel’s face grew dark, and he clenched his fingers until they creaked.
Amanda didn’t seem to notice his expression and scoffed, “Why do you care why we’re meeting him? Are you upset because you met a rival in love?”
Daniel Thompson scorned, “He’s no love rival of mine!”
Soon, the so-called “love rival” Stephen Crane arrived.
Stephen Crane walked in, leaning on his crutch, wearing a black traditional tunic suit padded jacket, sporting gold-rimmed glasses, and sporting grayish-white hair.
At his side was Alyssa Evans, dressed in a black suit.
As soon as he came in, Stephen Crane’s gaze focused intently on Molly Walker in the room. His lips trembled, and he appeared emotional.
“Miss Walker…”
Leaning on his crutch, he moved closer, seemingly with tears glistening in his eyes.
“You… How is your grandmother?”
Grandmother?
Pain flashed in Molly’s eyes.
She didn’t know why the old man in front of her would ask about her grandmother, but as her memory turned, she compared his age to her grandmother’s and vaguely guessed something.
Once, she had asked her grandmother why she never married and stayed single her entire life.
Her grandmother said that she had been hurt by someone when she was young.
Could that “someone” be Mr. Crane?
Molly lowered her eyes, and in Mr. Crane’s expectant gaze, she whispered, “My grandmother passed away.”
“Gone?” Mr. Crane’s heart skipped a beat, cautiously asking, “Where did she go?”
As people age, they’re afraid to hear the word “gone.”
Stephen Crane was still fantasizing that this “gone” might not be the same gone.
Molly’s eyes reddened, “My grandmother… she passed away.”
“What did you say?” Mr. Crane was shocked, “She wrote in her letter that her illness could last half a year, and according to the timing, it wouldn’t be until next March, how could she…”
It felt as if someone hit Mr. Crane on the head, leaving him suddenly dizzy.
All his expectations and hopes were shattered at this moment.
Back then, he had hurt her. He had tried several times to make amends, but she sternly refused each time.
Later on, because of his longing for her, he had forced himself not to contact her.
And she, somehow, had managed to conceal her identity and hide from him for so many years.
So, when he received that letter, he was overjoyed.
She had finally forgiven him.
But now, he couldn’t even see her one last time.
Mr. Crane’s eyes reddened, leaning on his crutch as he stumbled to the side, and Alyssa Evans hurriedly supported him.
“Mr. Crane! Mr. Crane, please hold on!”
Mr. Crane closed his eyes, and tears fell from the corners of his eyes.
The meaning of his life these years was to see her once more.
Now, he couldn’t see her anymore…
She never forgave him while she was alive, and she probably wouldn’t forgive him now that she’s gone either.
“I regret it so much…” Mr. Crane struggled to open his eyes, staring intensely at the ceiling. “Why was I so foolish? When she said she would see me on her birthday, why couldn’t I find her earlier… ”
Seeing him like this, Molly’s nose began to sting, and her tears couldn’t help but fall.
Her grandmother had said she was hurt by someone and stayed single her entire life, but wasn’t she also waiting for that person?
It’s a pity one was stubborn, and the other held onto their promise, and their lives slipped away just like that.
Molly thought for a moment and revealed the truth of her grandmother’s death.
“My grandmother indeed still had a few months left to live. The doctor said that with good care, she could live for another year. However, she didn’t die of her illness; she was killed.”
With a choked voice, she thought about her enemy still in prison, and her heart ached as if pierced by needles.
She tried her best to send Isabelle Richardson to prison, but the law has its rules, and all she could do was wait for the court’s judgment.
If she could, she would love to kill Isabelle herself.
Even if she had a lot of power, she still couldn’t do whatever she wanted when it came to taking a life.
“Killed by someone?” The murkiness in Stephen Crane’s eyes cleared, “Who killed her?”