But he also had fears. He was cautious and careful, all to protect Winifred from further harm. Winifred had no idea how much he cared about her.
Now, Winifred had changed completely, from head to toe.
Still, he had a feeling that if Winifred appeared in front of Leland, she would be recognized instantly.
He knew too well how deeply Leland was obsessed with Winifred. Even after eight or nine years, Leland had never given up on her. Although he had stopped actively searching for her, he always believed that she was not dead.
Moreover, Leland had become deranged. He even had two children who bore some resemblance to Winifred. If Winifred hadn’t undergone facial reconstruction, anyone seeing her with those children would know they were hers.
Garrison didn’t know how Leland had those children at first. Given their age, they couldn’t be Winifred’s biological children, but why did they look so much like her?
Garrison sent someone to investigate. The trail led abroad. Leland hadn’t hidden the existence of these children much, making it easy to find out. The clues pointed to a fertility clinic where information about the children was obtained.
About ten years ago, Leland had someone store fertilized eggs abroad. Four years ago, he went abroad again and returned after a few months. By the following June, the two children were born and were now three years old.
Undoubtedly, the stored fertilized eggs belonged to Winifred.
When Garrison learned this, he was furious and almost crushed his phone. After hanging up the call, he kicked over the coffee table in a fit of rage.
What was Leland trying to do? What exactly did he want?
Winifred had been gone for so many years, yet he still wouldn’t let her go. Did he have no remorse? No reflection? Did he not realize that he was the one who ruined her life? She couldn’t return home for ten years, was covered in scars inflicted by a stranger, lost her looks and all survival skills, and even her former pride as a lady was shattered.
And now he dared to use Winifred’s fertilized eggs to create two children. Was he planning to use these children to trap her?
What a diabolical plan!
Unfortunately for him, Winifred had lost all her memories and forgotten him completely. He could even make her believe that Leland was her enemy and make her hate him deeply.
Garrison couldn’t help but wonder how Winifred would feel if she knew about these two children connected to her. Would she soften for these unrelated children?
Thinking about this gave Garrison a headache. He suppressed the past firmly and dared not let Winifred remember it or let her go out, fearing that Leland would use the children to entangle her or that she might remember something and leave him.
“Garrison, what are you afraid of?”
I’m only afraid of losing you, afraid you’ll leave me. Despite being with you for so long, you can’t fully open your heart to me. If I had known this earlier, I would have preferred you remained the madwoman you were at the beginning. At least then you centered your world around me and depended on me completely as if you couldn’t live without me.
Now that you’ve recovered and become a normal person with an independent personality, it’s like a bird growing wings wanting to break free from its cage and fly into the sky. Once free, would a bird ever willingly return to its cage?
Even if it’s a golden cage that’s warm and sheltered with endless food, a bird still longs for the outside world and would rather face the elements than return.
“Winifred, will you marry me?”
Winifred froze, blinking dryly as her anger dissipated instantly. Her thoughts were disrupted; she looked at Garrison in disbelief.
Garrison placed his hand on her shoulder, closing the distance silently to prevent her from avoiding him.
“Winifred, will you marry me?” he repeated.
Winifred’s face flushed as her heart pounded like a deer trapped inside it. Her thoughts were chaotic as she stammered, “You… you’re changing the subject! We were talking about why you won’t let me go out…”
“If you want freedom, I’ll give it to you. If you want work, I’ll arrange it for you so you can become truly independent. This doesn’t conflict with marrying me; you know I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time. We’ve been together for so many years. Even when you lost your memory and saw me as a stranger, I slowly get you to know me again and accept me… Don’t you like me? Don’t you want me to be your husband?”
“I do want it, but I’m scared…”
“Scared of what?” Garrison pressed.
Winifred steadied herself and organized her thoughts before speaking from the heart. “I’m not good enough for you. I want to become truly strong. The woman standing beside you must be worthy of you. She can share your burdens rather than hide behind you seeking protection and dragging you down. I’m afraid of becoming your burden; that’s why I’m eager to go out and get my own job and become stronger. I don’t want to stay at home doing nothing while you’re busy and can’t come back; it makes me feel insecure.”
“You’re already good enough; it’s my fault for not understanding your thoughts sooner. Do you want to marry me?”
“Of course I do! But I need some time,” Winifred explained anxiously. “Garrison, it’s not that I don’t want to marry you; I just need some time to prepare.”
How long does she need? Haven’t these four years been enough? Years ago, he told her they were engaged, just one step away from becoming legally married.
Yet Winifred hesitated repeatedly for personal reasons, constantly saying she needed time to prepare.
How many more times would she reject him? Garrison couldn’t wait any longer; he wanted to take Winifred to his parents right now and get married as soon as possible so he’d no longer worry about losing her to Leland.
Winifred was his; he’d invested all his efforts and emotions into her.
Garrison forced a smile. “Come abroad with me this week.”
“What for?”