The eel that slipped back into the muddy water was not easy to catch again.
But for Leland Burns, this was no problem. He would drain the muddy water and expose it to the sun every day until that “eel” dried up. Eventually, he would get what he wanted.
Leland Burns did not believe Winifred Dawson would travel at this time. She was too delicate, like a flower in a greenhouse, unable to withstand wind, rain, or the scorching sun.
In such hot weather, Winifred Dawson feared the heat the most. Her fair skin would easily turn red under the sun.
During previous hot summers, Winifred Dawson stayed at home with the air conditioning set to around 25 degrees Celsius. She would paint, play the piano, and occasionally tease him.
When she went to school, it was Leland Burns who held an umbrella for her under the blazing sun. She had a car service for commuting, and the only inconvenience might have been summer gym classes. However, Gregory Dawson knew how delicate she was and donated a building to the school, asking the principal to take special care of her. So whenever she didn’t want to attend gym class, she just said she felt unwell and got excused.
Whenever she wanted to go somewhere under the sun, it was Leland Burns who held an umbrella for her.
Sometimes Leland Burns wondered how such pampering hadn’t ruined her. How did she manage when she left for America? How did she survive so long in the hospital?
Did she not feel any discomfort or unease after leaving him?
Now she had left again, escaping from him.
A sudden sense of defeat washed over Leland Burns. As he thought about it, he suddenly laughed with intense sarcasm.
“Why haven’t you learned your lesson yet? My dear.”
At Autumn Joy Estate.
Leland Burns stood under a camellia tree. The season for camellia blossoms was approaching. He looked up at the gaps between the leaves and thought about everything related to Winifred Dawson. His face twisted with extreme fervor as his long fingers gently caressed the tree trunk. He whispered, “Cut down this tree.”
Henry, standing in front of him, didn’t hear clearly and responded with a puzzled “Hmm?”
“I said, cut down this tree.”
Why cut down a perfectly good tree? Henry looked at Leland Burns’s somewhat gloomy expression and felt that he wasn’t just thinking about cutting down a tree but rather a person.
…
Winifred Dawson’s sudden departure didn’t seem unusual to Henry; he thought she just wanted to take a walk and clear her mind.
However, Wesley didn’t think so. Seeing Leland Burns’s expression and recalling what happened at the hospital when facing Winifred Dawson, along with her actions at that time…
After they left, Wesley said, “Winifred Dawson must have discovered that Mr. Burns is not dead.”
Henry was shocked. “How did she find out?”
“Rather than discovering it, it’s more accurate to say that Winifred Dawson suspected from the beginning that Mr. Burns wasn’t dead. Remember how she kept saying she didn’t believe it?”
“I thought we covered it up well.” After all, they had completed all formalities; everyone outside believed Leland Burns was dead. They even prepared “ashes” in front of Winifred Dawson and showed her the death certificate.
“Winifred Dawson probably confirmed it completely while in the hospital; she tested me,” Wesley said.
Winifred Dawson was smart enough and knew Leland Burns well enough that deceiving her wasn’t easy.
But since she knew, why didn’t she expose it? If certain people outside knew Leland Burns wasn’t dead, it would cause them many troubles-big or small. Since Leland Burns’s imprisonment, many had hoped for his death and tried to deal with him secretly.
If the Burkhart family had united with other family businesses from the start and made preparations early on, they might not have fallen so quickly and could have even retaliated against them.
What kind of feelings did Winifred Dawson have for Leland Burns? Or what did she lean towards more?
Upon learning that Leland Burns wasn’t dead, she chose to run away.
Didn’t she know that if Leland Burns survived this time and grew stronger, no matter how far she ran, he would bring her back? Her escape now was just futile resistance.
Henry couldn’t help but put himself in her shoes-if he were Winifred Dawson, he’d rather fight back.
Women’s thoughts are hard to guess; Henry voiced his doubts aloud.
Wesley pondered for a moment: “Winifred Dawson must be too afraid of Mr. Burns.”
Because of extreme fear of someone, one instinctively wants to avoid them. She hadn’t given up entirely; pretending and acting around Leland Burns had drained all her energy and courage. She didn’t dare gamble again and thus chose this desperate measure-to leave secretly now.
Henry chuckled: “I overthought; I even imagined she had other feelings for Mr. Burns and couldn’t bear…”
Wesley glanced at him indifferently before finally saying after a long pause: “Maybe.”
Feelings can’t be discerned in just a few words or glances; even if Winifred Dawson developed some unexpected emotions towards Leland Burns, he wouldn’t show mercy-once bitten by a snake, ten years afraid of ropes.
During Winifred Dawson’s absence, Mrs. Protich stayed at North Bankshire alone. Feeling bored by herself, she planted some vegetables in an empty plot in the yard.
She planted common vegetables like bok choy and radishes as well as cherry tomatoes. The plot wasn’t large but sufficient for these crops. She thought that by the time Winifred Dawson returned, they might be ready to eat; Winifred liked bok choy and tomatoes quite a bit-radishes could also be used for soup then.
After fertilizing the vegetables, Mrs. Protich went back inside to call her daughter and check on her recent situation.
Her eighteen-year-old daughter now had her own ideas and resented parental control; after a few words on the phone call ended impatiently from her side.
Mrs. Protich felt disappointed-at times like these; she missed Winifred Dawson more.
“I wonder when she’ll come back.” The house was too big; being alone felt too lonely and boring despite Winifred saying they could invite her daughter over here-but Mrs. Protich felt uneasy about it since this was still Winifred’s home where everything including tableware was very expensive-what if something got damaged?
Winifred asked her to take good care of this “home,” so she’d do exactly that-every blade of grass or brick wall couldn’t be harmed here.
Mrs. Protich turned on TV aimlessly pressing buttons hoping watching TV would distract herself from boredom-
Suddenly something flashed across screen making Mrs. Protich rewind quickly-
-Burkhart Group announced bankruptcy.