Chapter 272 Plotting
Ten minutes later, Natalie sat across from Stephen in his study, holding a cup of water.
Despite her efforts to appear calm, the trace of worry on her brow was evident, and Stephen easily picked up on it.
“Do you not want to talk about it?” he asked.
“Uncle…”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t you think everyone around here has been acting strangely lately?” Natalie pondered.
It seemed to have started when Cedric was released from Verde City prison. Both her uncle and Irwin had become peculiar.
The photos she had seen in this study felt like thorns piercing her heart. Regardless of Irwin’s past kindness, Natalie now felt an overwhelming sense of doubt.
“Nat, we’re talking about you now,” Stephen’s tone became more serious, causing a
momentary tightness in Natalie’s chest.
Before she could respond, Stephen continued, “Behaving like this will only make your aunt worry a lot.”
“I know,” she acknowledged.
She knew!
Yet, suddenly, the tranquility she had managed to restore in her life was disrupted by a massive stone which was creating so many ripples in the pond of her life!
Their eyes met, and Natalie felt her breath becoming suffocated at that moment.
Looking into her eyes, Stephen grew even more solemn. “Nat, there’s something fishy about the Verde City situation.”
“What do
you
mean?”
“I’ve found some inconsistencies in the conflicts between you and Cedric. Do you remember how it all began?”
Stephen’s sudden question made Natalie’s heart skip a beat.
The conflicts between her and Cedric?
The term kept echoing in her mind. It was undoubtedly the most unwelcome pain in her entire
Ten years…!
Ten years between one person and another.
No matter how many years had passed, the deepest scars in the heart were challenging to heal.
When not brought up, it felt like nothing. But once mentioned, the scab over the heart would be torn open fiercely, causing a pain only those who had experienced it could understand.
Two years had passed.
She had completely left Verde City for two years.
Despite the chaos in Simeria, one thing had to be acknowledged–emotionally, she was calm!
So, listening to Stephen mentioning Cedric was different than facing the man in person.
Of course, she tried to avoid facing Cedric personally!
Now, her uncle was forcing her to confront the pain in her heart.
“Conflict?” Natalie spoke, her tone carrying a heavy burden.
“Yes.”
What kind of conflicts?
“Because of Rebecca, Isabella, and Christina…!”
What else? There was too much…!
These three people ignited conflicts, and Natalie couldn’t remember just how man conflicts existed between them anymore.
There were just too many.
Stephen frowned. “But what’s the root cause? When did it all begin?”
When asked this way, Natalie’s heart felt as if someone had torn a big hole in it, and she closed
her eyes.
Flashes of Cedric’s kindness towards her crossed her mind.
Undoubtedly…!
When that man was good to her, it was as if he cherished her like a treasure.
But when exactly did their relationship turn bad? When did the atmosphere between them feel off? When did it all begin?
Natalle kept asking herself in her mind.
Finally, she recalled. “It probably started erupting completely when Isabella appeared.”
Yes, Isabella!
Before her arrival, whether it was because of Rebecca or Christina, whatever happened between them, Cedric would always give in to her in the end. He would soothe her and remain gentle.
But ever since Isabella appeared; everything changed completely. Isabella’s arrival triggered their conflicts, and they would stop talking and wage a cold war against each other.
The once warm connection between them froze. It was as if their entire relationship had been frozen by a bitter mountain, with no way to find any melting point.
When Natalie mentioned Isabella, Stephen’s eyes flashed with depth and sharpness.
“Yeah, that’s it!”
“What is“?” Natalie asked in confusion.
She noticed that Stephen had become unusually attentive to her in the past two years. He wouldn’t overlook any minor incidents involving her. His excessive attention put some pressure on Natalie, but she didn’t know how to express it.
Her uncle, who had been tense from the start, looked even more serious when he turned to Natalie.
He said, “Nat, that confrontation between you and him…
At this point, Stephen’s tone paused. Then, after taking a deep breath, he continued, “Isabella might have approached him with some ulterior motives.”
Π
Ulterior motives?!
When Stephen said this, an unprecedented relief appeared in her eyes.
Nodding, she said. “I know.”
“You do?”
“Yeah, she went to him for Ivan, and also… for me!” Natalie exclaimed.
Once, when she found out who Isabella really was, no one knew how deeply she was hurt Inside
In her heart, her father was a person she respected deeply. However, it was only many years after his death that she learned the truth about his demise, a pain that Natalie could never Jorger in her lifetime.
Then, there was hatred and resentment!
Even though her heart was in turmoil back then, there was no way to vent and no one to share the pain with.
“Perhaps, it’s not as simple as you’ve come to understand,” Stephen said, looking at her with seriousness
“What do you
mean?”
Could there be some remarkable conspiracy behind all this?
“Isabella is not a simple woman!” Stephen said gravely.
“I know she’s not a simple person.”
“You know, I’m not talking about her relationship with Cedric.”
Not about her relationship with Cedric?
Up to this point, Natalie still remembered that in her conflict with Isabella, Isabella revealed that she had no feelings for Cedric.
She got close to him only to leave Natalie with nothing.
Now, Stephen was saying it wasn’t that simple?
Not about her relationship with Cedric?
The things that should have ended long ago seemed, with her uncle’s words, as if everything hadn’t concluded yet.
Not only had it not ended, but was it also a new beginning?
“Uncle?”
“Everything is still uncertain for now. Don’t worry about it for the time being, okay?” Stephen took a deep breath.
“Alright. What did you find out?”
“Ltell you once I confirm some things on my end,” Stephen said.
Natalie looked at Stephen, and her heart kept tightening. She knew Stephen wasn’t someone to make baseless speculations. He wouldn’t speak with such gravity unless there were things he hadn’t figured out yet.
But those things didn’t really matter anymore to Natalie.
