chapter 41/ Painful Memories
“In that massive fire, I lost everything! Even conceiving became so difficult, yet you wanted me to send away the child I struggled so hard to bring into this world?!”
“I won’t send your child away. I won’t.” Cedric stepped forward, enveloping Natalie in his embrace. When Natalie felt the tremble in Cedric’s arms, she found its irony piercing.
“I won’t send her away,” Cedric repeated.
His arms around Natalie tightened subconsciously!
“Do you not find this situation ironic?”
“Nat.”
“We’ll never have a child of our own. So, why keep me by your side?”
“Nat…!”
“Isabella’s child and Caleb’s child… hah!”
“Stop! Just stop talking!”
Every word she uttered now felt painfully grating to Cedric’s ears, making even his breathing
difficult.
“You might be willing to play stepfather, but I won’t play stepmother,” Natalie said.
“Nat!!
On the matter of Isabella’s daughter, Natalie had always remained resolute.
She would never accept her.
Hearing her words, Cedric felt an overwhelming tightness in his chest.
“Can we discuss this later?”
He didn’t want to talk about it.
He couldn’t
Facing everything head–on felt so challenging!
He always pushed Natalie to accept everything. Yet, from her fragmented words, he discerned
her pain from their past life.
He knew she couldn’t forgive everything.
But regarding Isabella…!
“Nat, let’s not discuss this now, okay?”
It was too soon..
Perhaps he had pushed too hard before.
Those scars might still be fresh in Natalie’s hear so how could he force her to accept everything?
Feeling the tremble in Cedric’s embrace, Natalie remained cold.
She opened her mouth to speak, but ultimately, she remained silent.
+25 BONUS
Natalie had moved to Peach Garden.
Ever since Bianca got involved with Zane, she felt liberated!
From then on, she went wherever she wanted to go in Simeria.
At the back of Versant Villa, Natalie sat across from Bianca. She sipped the tea Bianca had brewed and wryly smiled.
“This actually tastes quite good!”
“Right? I think so too,” Bianca replied, her voice tinged with bitterness.
“If you’re not up for this, you don’t have to continue,” Natalie said.
After all, Bianca had learned all these skills while at Malcolm’s side. He was the one who had pushed her to master them!
During her time with Malcolm, Malcolm always found a way to pressure her into compliance. whenever there was something Bianca was reluctant to do.
Why would she want to learn any of these delicate arts? She was a high–ranking lawyer, not some wealthy housewife!
Yet, Malcolm seemed intent on keeping her grounded and serving him.
With a smirk growing more pronounced at the corner of Bianca’s l*ps, she declared, “No, I want to do this!”
“Bia.”
“This way, I can always remember him!”
Every word Bianca uttered carried immense weight. Even Natalie couldn’t help but feel a twinge of unease.
Remember Malcolm?!
+25 BONUS
Anyone familiar with Blanca understood the weight behind her words. Undoubtedly, she harbored deep resentment towards Malcolm.
When Natalie tried to persuade Bianca to let it go before this, she already knew the stakes. So, Natalie didn’t try to advise her again.
“So, you really moved to Peach Garden?” Bianca’s gaze sharpened as she looked at Natalie, clearly directing her piercing scrutiny towards Cedric
Natalie responded, “Yes”
“He really dares to do anything, huh?! It makes me wonder what his care for you all those years amounted to?”
Yes, his care!
All those years, Cedric’s actions had demonstrated his care for Natalie.
Yet, that very sentiment now seemed dripping with irony.
It was so ironic!
All that care seemed to have waned since Isabella’s arrival. It was as if everything had soured ever since she appeared.
Glancing at Bianca, Natalie remarked, “You’ve been quite visible in social circles lately.”
That was a fact.
Ever since marrying Zane, Bianca had rapidly risen to prominence in social circles. Natalie had even heard whispers about the conflicts between her and Jade.
With a hint of a smile playing on her l*ps, Bianca responded, “Yes.
“You used to dislike all this,” Natalie noted.
“I’ll grow to like it,” Bianca confidently declared.
Once, she had no interest in such matters, preoccupied with serious affairs and unable to comprehend such behavior.
But times had changed.
Now, she found herself becoming the very kind of person she once couldn’t understand, acting according to one’s position in society.
“Jade is in the hospital.” Natalie hesitated for a moment but eventually shared the news she was privy to with Bianca.
However, Bianca seemed to know already.
+25 BONUS
She nodded and said. “I know.”
After all, Jade’s hospitalization was intricately connected to Bianca’s affairs.
“You knew?” Natalie asked.
“Yes, of course.”
“What about Lord Malcolm?”
Natalie had keen instincts. If Bianca was aware, then Jade’s hospitalization might very well be
related to her.
Bianca laughed coldly when Malcolm’s name came up, seemingly dismissing him entirely.
“Nat, I know you’re concerned, but the confrontation between him and me… started the moment I married Zane!”
“No matter the circumstances, things between us have reached such a point. So, why should I hold back?”
Hold back?
Indeed!
Natalie had observed that ever since Bianca married Zane, she seemed unrestrained. She continually pushed Malcolm’s boundaries.
Even Jade had suffered more than once at Bianca’s hands by now.
“Alright, I understand,” Natalie conceded.
Even if Malcolm was not one to be trifled with, as Bianca said, it wasn’t as if he would grant her mercy if she endured his treatment silently.
If life was challenging, it was best to confront challenges head–on.
After exchanging a few more words with Bianca, Natalie departed. Their positions seemed firmly established, impervious to external influence.
No one could sway them. They stood their ground.
Soon after, Conrad arrived.
He looked at Bianca sternly and said, “Lady Bianca, Lord Malcolm awaits you at the hospital.”
While his tone was respectful, an underlying firmness was evident.
Silence filled the air, only disrupted by the faint sound of the tea cups on the ornate table. Conrad furrowed his brow when Blanca remained silent, and he met her gaze.
Bianca looked back at him with a smile, but it was an unsettling grin with a menacing
undertone.
“Lady Bianca…”
Before Conrad could finish his sentence, Bianca swiftly grabbed a cup of hot tea and threw it at
Conrad.
