Emily did not expect Sarah would take the initiative to find her just when she had begun to doubt the older woman.
“Second Eldest Young Master Jackson wants to see me?” Sarah went to Emily for that purpose, but Emily had not expected that.
“I know that I might be asking too much of you, but I really don’t know what to do.”
Sarah poured her a cup of tea and waited for the waiter to take their orders and left before she looked at Emily.
“Ever since my son knew that Hunter would take over as the president of Jackson Corporation, he had been drinking.
“At first, I thought that he drank because of envy and anger, but then I learned that he was miserable because of you.”
Emily did not say anything. Manson seemed to really like her. However, to Emily, he felt that way because he was a rich man who wanted to have fun with a woman. They would not know anything about true love.
“You are his angel, Emily, and he likes you. I have never seen him interested in a girl so much.”
Sarah wanted to hold Emily’s hand, but Emily dodged her.
Sarah was embarrassed, and she said, “Sorry, I won’t touch you. Don’t mind me, I’m just… a little anxious. Please understand, I am a mother who is anxious for her son, I…”
“The day Old Madam had an accident, you went to see her in the morning, didn’t you?” Emily interrupted her with that question.
Sarah froze, and her face changed. She hesitated, but eventually, she nodded.
“I thought no one would bring this up. Did Rupert tell you? Did you see her?”
“Why did you dismiss Rupert? Was it because you didn’t want her to mention that you saw the old lady that morning?”
Emily had a blank expression on her face. Sarah was not sure if she had asked those questions because she had doubts or a scheme in mind.
Sarah looked at her for a few seconds before she said, “That was part of the reason. I didn’t want her to tell anyone about that.”
Emily said nothing, so Sarah carried on. “It is not easy to live in a wealthy and complicated family. Occasionally, even small issues like that would bring your trouble.
“Naive people would doubt us, and the cunning ones would use that against us. It is best to keep things simple to ensure one’s survival in such a family.”
“Does Eldest Madam think that I am naive or a cunning person?” Emily asked with a grim expression.
Sarah smiled faintly as she looked at Emily. “It seems that you still have a grudge about this issue.”
She poured some tea for herself. It might look weird to drink tea at a coffee shop, but she did not like the coffee. The cafe was an excellent place to chat and relax. She was there to see Emily that day to talk to her.
“I did not harm the old madam, and I have no reason to harm her.”
Emily interrupted her. Do you also have no reason to harm me?”
“You?” Sarah was stunned as she met her gaze.
Two seconds later, she laughed aloud. “You thought I went to the old madam to fix you up.”
Emily said nothing, but she tightened her grip on her coffee cup.
Sarah finally put her smile away, but she still had a casual look on her face.
I may not have much affection for the old madam, but murder is a crime. I don’t hate you that much to take such a big risk just to frame you.”
Emily continued to keep her silence. She did not think there was such a significant resentment between her and Sarah, either. However, Amy’s words at the psychiatric hospital lingered in her mind. Amy, who was crazy at that time, said that Sarah was the person who gave her the news about her incident with Vincent at the Jackson’s mansion. At that time, she thought Amy had deliberately tried to slander someone to conceal the truth. She was not sure if she still felt the same way. Amy had been in the psychiatric hospital for a while, and her condition had not improved. If she only pretended to be sick, could she have stayed that long there? However, if Amy had been truthful, then what went wrong between Sarah and her?
“Emily, why are you so upset with me? Was it because of Nina?”
Sarah stared at her tea with a sad expression.
“Little Lei is my brother’s most cherished daughter, and I loved her very much since she was a child.”
The loss and helplessness on her face did not seem like a pretense.
“Put yourself in my shoes. If you had heard that the hand of your loved one was injured, you’d act the same way too. You’d want to vent your anger somewhere.
“However, after I have calmed down, I figured that Little Lei must have done something wrong because Hunter had always been a fair person. He would not penalize her unless she did something to provoke his anger.”
Sarah sighed as she picked up the cup and took a sip of her tea.
“I am only human, Emily, and sometimes I act on impulse.”
“You haven’t told me why you went to the old madam that day?”
Emily studied the other woman’s face with a blank look.
“It was about Wendy.” Sarah accepted Emily’s gaze candidly and exchanged looks with her.
“I know that Wendy stayed at the WongRiver Pavilion because of the old madam.”
Hunter had always disliked any closeness to women. He would not have agreed to let Wendy live in his place without someone’s intervention, but did the old madam know who Wendy really was?
“I’m not sure if you know about your sister’s previous relationship with Manson, but as a mother, I know something about it.
“I have always told Manson that he was not her target. She was just using him to get close to Hunter, but he wouldn’t listen.”
The waiter brought two cakes to the table. Emily picked up the small fork, but she barely had the appetite.
“Wendy and Manson had been together once, and now she is with Hunter. As Eldest Madam Jackson, I don’t think that it is a good thing.”
Sarah was not interested in desserts that only young girls liked, so she pushed those pastries away.
As she looked at Emily’s face, she said, “So, I went to the old madam and told her about Wendy and Manson.”
“What did the old madam say to you?”
“Do you really want to know?” Sarah smiled as she leaned on the back of the chair and looked at her.
“Emily, I have told you many things, but you have not promised me my request.”
“Since you don’t like the fact that Wendy had dated Manson and now she is with Eldest Young Master Jackson, why would you still want me to be with Manson?”
That was not what she should do if she were Eldest Madam Jackson. Why would she allow the same woman to hook up with two brothers? What was she thinking?
Sarah smiled. “That’s different. Wendy is a proactive woman, and you… you are doing it passively.”
She put down the cup and looked at Emily. “The most important thing is that I do not know how to deal with my son now.”