Chapter 112
Veronica was stunned at the hug that came out of nowhere. She then began to wail as she pushed Mathew away. “Waa… Matthew, you motherless scum! Why are you doing this to me?! Don‘t you realize how miserable I‘ve been lately? What did I do in my past life to bump into you? If it weren‘t for you, I‘wouldn‘t have come across so much sh*t! Waaa… B*stard, you knew how much trouble I‘m in and you‘re still trying to scare me! I hate you! Waa…”
Ever since Veronica met Matthew, her peaceful life had slowly turned into chaos. Thinking about the bumpy roads and being at the brink of death, she could pass out from the pressure. She got even more terrified when she was being over–analytical toward Matthew‘s swiftly changing emotions. Thus, when the man suddenly embraced her, she thought he was only teasing her. As her frustrations imploded, she broke down like a lost child.
As her crying was too sudden, Matthew hastily peered at her and only went up to her after a while. He grasped her shoulder and caressed her cheek with his right hand, attempting to wipe the tears off her cheek with his thumb: “You look ugly when you cry.” She‘s so dumb, so dumb that it hurts...
Veronica gazed at Matthew with her soaked, reddened eyes. As she whimpered, Matthew had no idea how to comfort her. “Who are you calling ugly?!” She was exasperated.
“Okay, okay. I‘m the ugly one.” He brushed the tears off her cheek and pushed her into his arms with his right hand. His left palm caressed the back of her head as it fondled her hair. “Shh… Don‘t cry anymore.” This never–before–seen tenderness and indulgence he was displaying were seemingly etched into his very soul right now.
He was devastated by her sorrowfulness. Patting her back, he comforted, “I was simply going to look for some berries for you to eat.”
Nevertheless, the woman in his arms continued to cry. She snuggled against his chest and felt the warmth within. Feeling her sense of security recovering, she slowly shut her eyes. “Let me be here for a little more, okay?”
When she was washed away by the flood, she felt absolutely hopeless, as if she had a glimpse at death. She used all of her energy to get out of the water, only to discover that her wounds were infected, and she could barely move with her high fever. After getting deserted by the masked man, she could only venture along the woods, barely walking as she dragged along her sick, hungry body. She even encountered a python that was ten feet long. If she was in her usual condition, she would have handled it in
seconds. Unfortunately, given her fragile body, she could only detour around it.
When she was finally far away from it, she took a rest on the tree in the middle of the nighi, only to, as luck would have it, be approached by a pack of wolves. As she was desperate, what were three days felt like a century to her, and every second was a trial of survival. After getting immensely tormented, she almost lost herself. Therefore, all she wanted now was to lie in Matthew‘s arm, seizing every trace of the comfort she could gel.
“Mhm…” He softly uttered, “For as long as you want.”
As she rested in his embrace, her terrible mood was lifted. Then, she opened her reddened eyes. “Thank you… brother.” Although she wanted to say his name instead of “brother,” she was touched by how his attitude toward her changed recently. “I know you‘re only keeping me alive to make Grandma happy. But still, I‘m grateful.”
Followingly, she crawled out of his arms and blinked her eyes to shake off the teardrops hanging on her lengthy lashes, assuring, “Don‘t worry. As long as I‘m alive, I‘ll give whatever I have to keep Grandma happy.” She then heaved a sigh before profoundly stating, “Grandma‘s lucky to have a grandson like you. How nice!”
A grandson like you? For some reason, the supposed compliment sounded odd coming out from her mouth. Upon the “praise,” Matthew‘s face that was overflowing with adoration instantaneously turned gloomy, so gloomy that mushrooms could grow on his face. The man‘s limited warmth was gradually ground away by her words. He slightly parted his lips and replied, “Then you better fulfill your role as ‘god granddaughter, or else…”
“Or else what?” Veronica pursed her lips. “Or else I‘ll make you a walking dead, isn‘t it? Fine, fine, I get it. I‘ll treat Grandma in the best way I can. Now go get me some berries. I‘m starving. Grandma‘s heart is gonna be crushed if I starve to death.” She waved her hand and rubbed her rumbling tummy as she gazed at him. As if I haven‘t seen through your mind, scum!
Having resided in Bloomstead for months, she had garnered a certain amount of information regarding the city, especially information pertaining to the Kings Family. She was aware of Matthew‘s seventh uncle, who was currently overseas, and his power as well as influence. Before she departed to Almeida County, she had heard news about this uncle of his returning to Bloomstead. And his existence would be the greatest obstacle to Matthew to inherit the Kings Family‘s properties. That was the reason why Matthew would do anything to come and rescue her. To him, she was merely a pawn on the chessboard to please his grandmother, which would, in return. help him secure said “properties.” In later days, he might even make her his “spy” to gather “intelligence” from his grandmother.
She wasn‘t a three–year–old, so she was determined how much of an opportunist Matthew was. To her, he would give anything to retain things or people that would benefit him. Sibling love? F*ck that!
Matthew, on the other hand, had no idea that in a span of seconds, the entire plot of a movie had played in her mind.
“Great that you know.” He glanced at Veronica with his deep eyes before walking away to swing a forceful punch at a nearby tree. Thump! His fist hardly embedded into the tree trunk. Despite its sturdiness, the tree shook a few times, and its leaves swished off the branches and fell onto the woman‘s head.
In response, Veronica wiped the tears off her cheeks and let out a scoff, muttering, “I merely figured out his plans. Must he be that mad? Pfft, scum!” Having taken in some meat and cried her heart out, she managed to organize her feelings, and now she was back to her former self.
Then, she turned around and caught the masked man, who was sitting by the tree, taking glimpses at her from time to time. She walked beside the fire and glared at the masked man not far from her. “F*ck you looking at? You‘re lucky Mommy here hasn‘t killed you! Remember that the next time we meet, only one of us will be walking out alive!”
The masked man was stunned and hastily lowered his head, continuing to consume the meat wordlessly. The less he spoke, the less significant his presence was.
Shortly after, Matthew returned with a number of pears in his hands.
At the sight of the pears, Veronica‘s eyes glistened as she was astounded. “Where did you get them from? Why didn‘t I see any pears earlier?”
