Charlotte’s heart was filled with a bitter smile. She had harbored a glimmer of hope that David might have some compassion left, but now, even that last hope was shattered.
“David, even a tiger doesn’t eat its own cubs. You’re not even worthy of being called an animal,” Charlotte said coldly.
“Charlotte, I’m upholding justice. If she broke the law, she should face the consequences,” David said firmly.
Upon hearing this, Charlotte burst out laughing. “That sounds very noble. Then I’d like to ask you, Deputy Mayor David, should you also face legal consequences if you break the law?”
“What nonsense are you talking about?” David’s face darkened as he glared at her.
Charlotte calmly sat down on the nearby sofa, leisurely pulled out her phone from her bag, and played two recordings.
The first recording was David’s somewhat hysterical voice, saying, “You’ve always looked down on me, despised my background. Everything I do is wrong in your eyes. Don’t blame me for being ruthless. If you were dead, we’d all be better off, so your precious daughter wouldn’t be torn between us…”
The second recording was David’s frightened voice, saying, “Don’t come looking for me. You died of your own illness, nothing to do with me. I just accidentally kicked your medicine away. Even if you took the medicine, you might not have survived…”
Before the second recording finished playing, David’s face had turned livid, and he lunged at her, trying to snatch the phone from her hand.
“If you want it, you can have it. I have as many backups as I need,” Charlotte casually threw the phone onto the coffee table in front of her, sneering. “If it weren’t for Eleanor marrying you, how could a penniless wretch like you have risen to such heights? Mr. Allen treated you with such kindness, but you, in order to seize the Allen family’s wealth, kicked away his medicine while he was ill, causing his death. Compared to you, what Victoria did is nothing. You talk so much about law and morality; surely you understand the principle of an eye for an eye.”
“Charlotte, you… how dare you threaten me! You scheming woman…” David’s anger rendered him somewhat incoherent.
“If I didn’t have a bit of cunning and means, back when you climbed up the Allen family’s ladder, you would’ve treated me like a rag and thrown me away after using me,” Charlotte continued with a cold smile. “Victoria was born of my womb. I can’t just watch her rot in prison. David, if you don’t help her, then I’ll post these two recordings online. We’ll die together in disgrace, neither of us will have any peace.”
“You… you’re insane,” David said, though he collapsed wearily onto the nearby sofa.
…
As summer arrived, the weather became increasingly beautiful.
In the small garden downstairs from the hospital, Andrew sat alone on a bench, basking in the sunshine. The afternoon sun was warm, casting a comforting glow over him.
Not far away, several children were playing and laughing.
Because swings and slides had been set up in the hospital garden, children from the nearby area often came to play.
A little girl with braids ran too fast and accidentally fell, sitting on the ground and crying.
Andrew instinctively stood up from his chair and hurried over to help the little girl up.
However, before he reached her, a man had already picked the little girl up from the ground, comforting her and wiping away her tears.
The little girl hugged the man’s neck, quickly turning her tears into laughter. The resemblance between the man and the little girl was striking; clearly, they were father and daughter.
Andrew stopped in his tracks, smiling softly.
Suddenly, he thought, it wouldn’t be bad to have another daughter with Isabella. He could dress her up beautifully, and when she grew up, if she called him “dad” in a tender voice, his heart would surely melt.
He was lost in thought when suddenly his arm was wrapped around. Isabella’s slightly urgent voice rang in his ear, “Andrew, why did you come here? I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
“Did you get the CT scan results?” Andrew asked.
“Yeah.” Isabella nodded, shaking the CT scan in her hand. “I’ve had Samuel look at it. He says everything looks normal now, and you can leave the hospital anytime. So, I’ve already taken care of your discharge procedures. We can go home right away.”
Andrew smiled warmly and nodded. He knew Isabella disliked hospitals, and he wasn’t fond of them either.
Isabella linked her arm with Andrew’s, and they walked out of the small garden together.
The Turner family car was already waiting at the hospital entrance. The driver opened the door respectfully for them.
Just as Andrew settled into the car, his phone rang. He answered the call, and his expression darkened.
“Andrew, what’s wrong?” Isabella asked, full of concern and confusion.
“Torin is dead,” Andrew said.
“Torin?” Isabella looked puzzled.
“The man who crashed into us with his car,” Andrew explained. “With his death, there’s no one left to prove that Victoria was responsible for the accident.”
“Torin’s death must be related to Victoria,” Isabella frowned.
She had underestimated Victoria. To evade legal consequences, she had caused another person’s death. It was a human life, but to her, it seemed as easy as crushing an ant.
“Victoria is truly terrifying,” Isabella said.
“It’s frightening that she might escape punishment,” Andrew’s blue eyes turned cold. Once Victoria was out, there was no telling what she might do to Isabella.
“I’ve already sent Ryan to investigate this matter. We should have answers soon,” Andrew assured her.
Isabella nodded and instructed the driver to proceed.
The car smoothly traveled towards the apartments, eventually stopping downstairs.
Amelia was playing with Asher in the small garden downstairs. Asher spotted his parents from afar, rushing towards them like a joyful little bird.
“Daddy, mommy!”
Andrew smiled and lifted Asher off the ground. “Asher, have you missed Daddy?”
“I missed Daddy and Mommy,” Asher said in his childish voice, hugging Andrew’s neck tightly and planting a big kiss on his cheek.
Andrew carried him into the elevator, and they all returned to their apartment together.
Amelia headed to the kitchen to prepare lunch.
Soon, a sumptuous lunch was served on the table.
Andrew had been avoiding certain foods recently, so there were no seafood or fish dishes on the table, but it was still a plentiful spread.
“Andrew, try this,” Isabella said, holding up a piece of braised pork rib with chopsticks and offering it to him. She watched him eagerly as he took a bite.
Andrew chewed thoughtfully, noting it wasn’t Amelia’s cooking. He squinted his blue eyes and gazed warmly at Isabella’s face.
“Isabella, did you make this?” he asked.
“Yes,” Isabella nodded, her expression hopeful. “How does it taste?”
Andrew smiled and replied, “Pretty good, you’re improving a lot.”
At least this time, she hadn’t hurt herself, and the dish actually turned out decent. As for the taste… for someone like Isabella, who was still learning to cook, expectations couldn’t be too high.