Chapter 47 Do You Remember?
The sky was already bright when Rachel regained consciousness. She didn’t know when the man next to her left, but the residual warmth of his body was still on the bed. When she tried to move, she could feel the soreness and pain all over her body as if she was crushed last night.
Rachel tried her best to sit up while she held her blanket. After a moment of dizziness, she stared at the light shining through the curtains and thought about what Justin had said to her last night.
“I want you to remember this. Once you’ve joined the Burton Family, only I can decide when you can leave.”
Rachel then tightly held the blanket. Am I destined to be under the control of someone for the rest of my life? No. For Grandma’s sake, I must change my current situation. I can’t let it continue.
As she thought about it, her phone suddenly rang. On the other side, Jefferey’s cold voice was heard. “I want you to come home immediately as I need to talk to you.”
As she looked at her phone, Rachel furrowed her brows. He’s definitely calling me over to ask about what happened that day at the banquet. It just so happens that I have something to ask him too.
When she arrived at the Hudson Residence, the housekeeper informed her that Jefferey was waiting for her in the backyard.
“I’ve told you before that I’m only having her by my side for a purpose other than placing someone near Justin.”
“What purpose does she have? That mute whom you raised for many years is always bullying Amber.”
When Rachel came to the entrance of the backyard, she could hear the voices of two men through a screen. One of whom was Amber’s uncle—Josh Steward.
Since Josh had doted on his niece, Amber, he was now infuriated with Jefferey’s decision. “Jefferey! Don’t forget that Amber’s mother suffered from depression then because of that mute! Do you want to see Amber going down the same path?”
“That won’t happen. Amber is my precious daughter; otherwise, I wouldn’t have allowed Rachel to marry Justin. Don’t you know what kind of a person Justin is?”
As she listened to their conversation, Rachel froze on the spot as she suddenly felt empty in her heart.
He’s right. Everyone knows what kind of a person Justin is. He knew that sending me over would be a torture, but he still did it. It is a fact that I was never well-liked in the Hudson Family.
Then, she heard Josh’s response. “Since she has married him, you should just sever your relations with her. Overall, I don’t want Amber to see her ever again. Even I feel infuriated whenever I see her.”
“I can’t do that. Even if she isn’t married to the Burton Family, I still can’t afford to cut off my relations with her.”
“Why?”
“Have you forgotten that she is our only clue to the formula?”
The formula? Rachel felt a thump in her heart. I’m sure that he mentioned that I’m the only clue to that formula.
However, she didn’t dare to continue eavesdropping on their conversation anymore, so she went to wait for him in the living room. At the same time, she carefully thought about their conversation and felt that something was wrong.
Not long after, Jefferey sent Josh off and saw her in the living room. “When did you return?” Jefferey’s expression looked strange.
Rachel calmly explained, I’ve been here for a while. Rosa told me that you are meeting a guest, so I chose to wait here.
Now that she had explained to him, she nodded her head at Josh, who was behind Jefferey, to greet him. However, Josh let out a grunt and glanced at her with disdain before leaving without saying a word.
After Jefferey had sent the man off, he returned to sit down while the maid served them with some tea.
Dad, what did you want to ask me about?
“Amber told me everything. You were the one who pushed her at the banquet, right?”
Jefferey had a somber expression and his eyes were staring at Rachel in a way that he wouldn’t even use on strangers.
However, she remained calm. The truth depends on who you believe in. No matter what I say, you’ll always believe Amber’s words. Am I right?
It was always the same ever since she was a kid. There was one time when they went to the vineyard in the outskirts where she had been pushed by Amber into a waterless pool. It had resulted in Rachel knocking her head on the ground, but no matter how much she had accused Amber, it was all brushed off by Amber’s simple reply. “It was Rachel herself who tripped.”
Amber never bothered to apologize.
Upon listening to Rachel’s words, he was infuriated as he bellowed, “What are you saying? You are Amber’s older sister, so you should always tolerate her.”
So, if she commits murder in the future, are you going to frame me for her crime as well if you have the chance to do so?
It was what Jefferey had done when he forced her to marry into the Burton Family.
Rachel was usually calm and she had hardly ever been this aggressive, so Jefferey was taken aback for a moment. After a while, he was enraged and slammed the table in front of him. “Do you really think you can say anything you want now that you have the Burton Family’s backing? Don’t forget that you are still a member of the Hudson Family.”
While she looked at his angry face, she became calmer instead. Dad, I have dreamed of Mom for the past two days.
He was stunned for a moment as the rage faded from his expression, but no one knew whether it was from guilt or something else. “Your mom passed away many years ago. Didn’t you forget everything after a bout with that serious illness?”
She wore a gentle expression. My memory has become better recently.
Jefferey was stunned as he looked at her in shock. “Do you remember anything?”
Rachel tentatively explained, I keep having the same dream of Mom bringing me up to the mountains to collect the herbs. At the same time, she kept telling me to memorize the—
“What?”
The formula.
He immediately jumped from the couch and looked at her in joy. “The formula? Have you remembered it?”
As Rachel looked at him, she was stunned as her eyes were filled with mixed emotions. Before she arrived, she had already prepared what she was going to tell him so that she could find out the cause of her mother’s death from him. Actually, she wasn’t sure whether the formula had anything to do with her mother’s death, but she gambled with her chance. By the looks of it, her suspicions were correct.
The car drove all the way to the Hudson Vineyard in the outskirts.
While he sat on the back seat, Jefferey continued to comfort Rachel. “It’s fine if you can’t remember it. I’ll take you to see something that’ll definitely spark your memory.”
She gently nodded her head and thoughtfully looked outside the window. What is this formula? What does it have anything to do with me? Why would Jefferey, who loves her daughter a lot, stop interrogating me to hurriedly bring me to this vineyard as soon as I mentioned the formula?
While they were on the road, those words echoed in her mind. She is the only clue to the formula. I’m the only clue? Does this mean that Jefferey raised me up in the Hudson Family all these years because of this?
The moment they arrived at the vineyard, Jefferey immediately brought Rachel to the same study room as their previous trip. As she looked at the direction of the bookcases, she suddenly became gloomy while resisting the urge to question him about the tablet and geomancy located behind the bookcase.
“Rae, come here.” Jefferey immediately opened the safe under the desk in front of her and removed a letter before handing it over to her. “Open it and have a look.”
What is this? Rachel silently guessed something in her heart.
“This is the secret formula of the Hudson Family that has been passed down from generation to generation.”
She clenched her hands. This is the thing that Justin is trying to locate.
