Melissa naturally felt triumphant, behaving brazenly.
Carrying a child, she walked towards the living room. Finley glanced over and noticed it was the baby boy who had just undergone surgery and couldn’t be exposed to drafts. She quickly stepped forward to remind her.
“It’s fine for you to look after the other children, but you should let the nanny take care of this child. Please don’t take him outside,” Finley said, her voice softer as she observed the sleeping child.
“Why are you stopping me from caring for children and then not allowing me to hold one? What’s your intention?” Melissa disregarded Finley, knowing Patrick wasn’t around.
“I’m just kindly reminding you. You don’t seem to appreciate it! This child is different from the others. Even if Patrick returns, he wouldn’t allow you to do this,” Finley stood opposite her, reaching out to take the child, but Melissa tightly clung to the baby, refusing to let go.
“Give him to me.”
“Give him to me.”
Both tugged at the child. Finley, being gentle with the baby, while Melissa’s actions were rough, treating the child like an object.
The doorbell rang, but they continued to struggle. Melissa, upon hearing the doorbell, hurriedly attempted to hand the child to Finley, who failed to catch the baby, causing the child to fall to the ground, instantly waking up and wailing loudly.
Finley quickly picked up the child, cradling him gently in her arms, thankful that the child appeared unharmed despite the fall.
“How could you be so careless with the child, causing him to fall? Look, the child is crying,” Melissa deflected all blame onto her.
Entering the house was Beatrice, who upon hearing the commotion, also began scolding Finley. “You, an outsider, come here to meddle in our family affairs and end up dropping my grandson. If anything happens to my grandson, can you afford the consequences?”
Facing their accusations and insults, Finley couldn’t accept the unfair treatment. “How could you say such things? Clearly, it was her who mishandled the child and tried to pass him to me, leading to the child falling.”
Upon hearing this, Melissa began tearfully complaining, “I know my sister-in-law looks down on me, and you also have issues with me. Even if my cousin hasn’t said anything yet, what right do you, an outsider, have to interfere in our family matters?”
Beatrice and Melissa continued their accusations against Finley, while the nanny from upstairs quickly rushed down to comfort the crying child.
“Immediately take the child to the hospital,” Beatrice said gently, soothing the child.
Finley remained silent and got into the car with them.
“Why are you still following? Are you afraid the child isn’t tormented enough?” Beatrice’s words made Finley chuckle, as she followed them in her own car.
Watching them take the child into the hospital and have him examined by a specialist, Finley had already informed Patrick.
“The child is fine, just a bit startled. Thankfully, the child was dressed warmly and received timely attention, or there could have been serious consequences.”
With so many adults present, how could such a small child be dropped? It was fortunate that nothing major happened.
Beatrice thanked the doctor, expressing her relief. “As long as the child is okay, we were worried something might happen. That’s why we were so concerned.”
Patrick rushed over upon hearing about the child’s mishap, his heart pounding in his throat.
When he saw that the child was unharmed, he finally relaxed. “What happened? What’s going on?”
Melissa, with tears streaming down her face, pointed towards Finley at the door. “It’s all my fault, as I didn’t take good care of the child. She kept trying to snatch the baby from me.”
Finley was feeling wronged and didn’t know who to vent to. She had been wrongly accused for no reason.
“What are you talking about? Do you think I did it on purpose?” Finley protested.
Patrick didn’t say much. He took the child from Beatrice and didn’t exchange a single word with Finley as he headed straight back home with the child.
“From now on, only four nannies will be in charge of the children. They have all just had surgery and are very weak. Thank you for your hard work,” Patrick instructed again.
Finley, Melissa, and Beatrice sat quietly on the sofa, waiting for Patrick to come down.
“In my opinion, this is all your fault. If you hadn’t interfered, the child wouldn’t have had an accident,” Beatrice accused Finley directly.
“I never saw you show much concern for these children before. How come you suddenly appeared today? When Jane is here, you all hide away,” Finley had already seen through the true colors of this family, realizing Jane lived in such a difficult environment.
“We may have our differences, but we are still family. Why are you, an outsider, saying such things?” Melissa affectionately hugged Beatrice’s arm.
“I wonder, why is an outsider like you living in my son’s house? Don’t you know how to be discreet?” Beatrice once again criticized Finley’s character.
With Jane absent, she felt he could speak her mind.
“I am Jane’s friend, and naturally, she asked me to stay here to take care of the children. This is the first time you, as the children’s grandmother, have seen them, isn’t it?” Finley stood up for herself, unwilling to be unfairly treated.
“Now that Melissa is looking after the children, you should leave,” Beatrice spoke as if the house belonged to her, taking on an authoritative tone in Jane’s absence.
As the argument continued below, Patrick emerged from the room, his face darkening. “Enough, everyone, be quiet.”
Patrick looked at them silently and then gestured towards Finley. “You can go back now. I’ll call you if I need you.”
Upon hearing this, Finley felt disheartened. With a menacing tone, she said, “You just wait.”
Beatrice immediately complained to her son, “Why not bring the children to our house? Your grandfather and I can take care of the children and ensure nothing untoward happens.”
Patrick’s cold gaze swept over Beatrice, causing her to step back. “No one has ever come here before. How did you find your way here?”
He wasn’t naive. Today’s events were just a spark, and Patrick had long understood their intentions.