Sarah crossed her arms. It was well-known that Samuel and Holden didn’t get along-they were practically enemies.
Learning about Holden from Samuel was like trying to understand Sarah through her stepmother-completely unreliable.
“You think I’d believe that?” Sarah chuckled. “Uncle, if anyone here seems crazy, it’s you.”
Samuel laughed, “You’re just a naive little girl. If you don’t believe me, ask Butler Ted. He’s watched Holden grow up and knows him best. Holden’s the type who’s cold-blooded and ruthless, like a venomous snake. It’s a shame you’re stuck with him.”
“Even if he’s a madman, he’s still my favorite.” Finding a “sugar daddy” like him was like winning the lottery. Anyone bad-mouthing Holden was, by extension, bad-mouthing Sarah.
As far as she was concerned, Holden, with his generous payments, easy work, and good looks, was practically a god.
Samuel was clearly irked by her words, his expression twisting with anger. “You’ve got some strange tastes.”
Sarah smiled sweetly, with a hint of sarcasm. “It’s not that I have strange tastes-it’s just that Holden is exceptional. Compared to you, he’s not only handsome but incredibly capable. Even if he goes crazy every day, I’d still love him.”
The thing Samuel hated most was being compared to Holden. Because he wasn’t as good as Holden, he had nothing to do with the Smith family’s billions, and all the top executives sided with Holden, treating him with respect.
Even though Samuel was older, the rest of the family was indifferent to him, while they fawned over Holden. Even this girl, as pure as moonlight, knew Holden was a madman but stuck by him regardless.
Saying Samuel wasn’t as good as Holden was the biggest insult to him.
His face darkened as he turned to leave, spitting out, “You little bitch, just wait-I’ll kill you next time!”
Sarah stood there, thinking, “…Do all villains like saying things like that? Am I going to end up saying those lines someday too?”
But to her, those threats were as empty as the wolf saying, “I’ll be back!”-completely meaningless.
By a nearby rock garden, Butler Ted frowned, “Mr. Samuel is so out of line. How could he make up such lies to slander you?”
Thankfully, the Lady had good sense and didn’t act like a fool by trusting Samuel and probing him for information.
Holden’s face remained calm and pleasant, with a faint smile. “Was he wrong?”
Butler Ted was startled by the cold, sharp look in Holden’s eyes.
Holden’s gaze fell on Sarah. He thought back to what she had just said–Even if he goes crazy every day, I’d still love him.
Maybe she’d said it out of spite, but words once spoken become like a spell-impossible to take back. The wind would remember, and so would the clouds.
Sarah, unaware of him watching, admired the roses nearby, tempted to pick one but worried she might get caught and labeled a thief.
“Damn it!” Samuel stomped on a blooming rose, crushing it under his foot. “That little bitch! Open your eyes and tell me-how am I not-”
“You’re not better than me in anything.”
Hearing that voice out of nowhere, Samuel jumped, looking up in panic.
Holden stood there in all black, tall and graceful, smiling at him.
To outsiders, Holden seemed like a gentleman, but to Samuel, he was terrifying, like a demon.
Samuel instinctively tried to back away. “I was just going to check on my dad-”
“He’s not awake yet.” Holden grabbed Samuel by the collar and effortlessly yanked him back, his voice calm and almost amused. “Don’t worry, he won’t see anything.”
Despite Samuel being over six feet tall, he was no match for Holden, who lifted him like he weighed nothing.
Holden slammed Samuel’s head against the rock garden, still smiling. “Who were you planning to kill just now?”
Blood poured down Samuel’s face as fear filled his eyes. He struggled desperately, but his attempts were laughable against Holden, who was skilled at combat.
Holden pushed him to the ground, grinding his shoe into Samuel’s wrist. “If you want to die, go ahead and try.”
The doctors and nurses here were used to taking care of the Smith family, so Samuel’s battered state wasn’t anything new to them. It wasn’t the first time these two brothers had ended up like this.
But they’d think by now, even an idiot would’ve learned to stay away from Holden-except Samuel never seemed to get the memo.
Linda rushed over when she saw Samuel with his head wrapped in bandages. “Are you okay?”
Samuel’s face was as pale as a ghost, drained of all color.
His pitiful state was almost comical, but neither Linda nor Nicola found anything funny about it.
Nicola gritted her teeth. “How many times have I told you? Stay away from Holden! Why did you provoke him?”
Samuel winced in pain, wishing the doctor would give him another shot of painkillers. Holden had scared him so badly that he hadn’t even noticed the pain at first. But now that the stitches were in and the anesthesia was wearing off, the headache was unbearable. Holden had crushed his wrist-he’d need months to heal.
“I didn’t provoke him,” Samuel groaned, tears welling up. “Mom, he’s a madman! He just attacked me out of nowhere! He wants to kill me!”
Nicola fumed, “That damned little bastard! Why didn’t he go to hell with his parents?”
Linda frowned. “Aunt, is there going to be a scar on his head?”
The doctor explained that there would definitely be a scar, considering how many stitches he’d needed. But with modern medical techniques, a scar removal procedure could make it nearly invisible.
Seeing her son in such a state, Nicola’s heart ached, and her hatred for Holden deepened. To the world, Holden might have appeared polite and well-mannered, but in reality, he was nothing short of a devil.
Outsiders assumed that because Old Mr. Smith had married a young wife, Nicola, and had two young sons, Holden, being an orphaned grandson, must have been neglected and unloved in the Smith family-mistreated by his harsh step-grandmother and bullied by his step-uncles.
But the truth was, while Holden wasn’t particularly loved or favored, he wasn’t bullied either.
Holden was the kind of person who, if he wasn’t bullying someone, that was already considered merciful-no way would he ever be the one getting bullied. He had a ruthless streak, vengeful and cruel, with a calm exterior that hid his true, demonic nature.
When Holden was a kid, Samuel and their cousin from the Lewis family were a couple of troublemakers. One time, they beat Holden up pretty badly, leaving him with a black eye and a busted lip.
But Holden didn’t let it slide. He went out and found a boxing champion to train him, and by the next year, he broke all ten of Samuel’s and the cousin’s fingers and fractured a dozen of their bones. The Smith family doctors had to work for hours to put them back together.
Holden was only nine years old at the time.
Nicola was chilled to the bone by how much hatred he held onto at such a young age.
And yet, Holden acted like nothing had happened. He still greeted Nicola politely and behaved perfectly normally around Old Mr. Smith.
Holden’s maternal family had cut ties with the Smith family after his mother passed away, but Holden was their only grandson. Even if Nicola wanted to get rid of him, she didn’t dare make a move. Holden’s maternal grandfather’s family was too powerful. If she dared to harm Holden, they’d make sure her two sons didn’t live to see another day.
Nicola couldn’t shake her anger. But with Old Mr. Smith still sick, she didn’t dare upset him by telling him what happened. He was their only support, and if anything happened to him, Holden would surely kick them all out.
“I told you before, never be alone with him in a place where no one’s around,” Nicola snapped. “Did you lose your mind?”
Samuel felt wronged. “I didn’t provoke him… I just ran into his wife and talked to her for a bit. How was I supposed to know he’d be so petty and beat me up like this?”
When Linda heard that, she couldn’t take it anymore and ran out, crying.
Linda had always been sensitive like that, so Nicola wasn’t surprised. Compared to Linda, her own son was far more important.
Nicola sat at the bedside, still fuming. Just then, there was a knock on the door. Thinking it was a nurse, she said, “Come in.”
Holden walked in.
As soon as Samuel saw Holden, he looked like he’d seen a ghost, quickly leaning back against the headboard.
Nicola’s face stiffened. “Holden, you’re here.”