The Langston Residence was still the same as ever. It had been refurbished a few times over the years in order to keep up with the latest trends, but all that still seemed tacky to Heather.
At this very moment, a sense of familiarity welled up inside her—nothing could compare to this feeling that she felt now when she finally returned home. The security guard at the door noticed her and smiled at her, and Heather, who had always been indifferent, returned the smile this time.
He gaped at her from behind, shocked by her amiable attitude that she seldom revealed in front of others. The next instant, he blushed—nobody could resist her smile.
She walked to the living room and when she was passing by the garden, she gently touched the blooming flowers with her hand. At that moment, she immersed herself in the beauty of the scenery, for she knew that the Langstons would be destroyed in the near future.
In the living room, Robert was talking to the butler when Heather tiptoed to his side. She then shook her head at the butler to gesture to him not to inform Robert about her arrival.
With his eyes slightly squinted, Robert seemed to be resting or contemplating something. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and muttered, “Heather, you’re back.”
To her surprise, Robert was able to notice her arrival although she was so quiet. She wrapped her arms around him from behind and said to him in a sweet voice, “Grandpa, I’ve missed you.” She had merely left for a day, but it felt a lot longer than that.
“What have you done recently?” After holding himself back for some time, he was determined to get to the bottom of it this time.
She whispered in his ear, “Grandpa, can you believe it? Our biggest fear has arrived.”
Upon hearing that, Robert was shook to the core and he instantly understood what she implied. The butler had no idea what they were talking about but from their expressions, he was able to tell that it wasn’t something pleasant.
“Come with me to the study,” Robert uttered in a low voice.
Heather continued to wear a bright smile on her face, giving away nothing as she helped Robert upstairs.
The butler stayed behind as he knew that they had something confidential to talk about and at the same time, he had to continue with his unfinished task.
Staying beside Robert all these years had allowed him to learn how to read the old man’s mind based on his body language. Therefore, the butler could tell that Robert wanted him to complete organizing the living room as soon as possible.
The door to the study upstairs was opened and Heather helped her grandfather in. Robert’s health had deteriorated lately but because Heather’s attention had completely focused on Myra’s kidnapping case, she had failed to notice that his health was getting worse by day.
Presently, she asked worriedly, “Grandpa, how are you?”
However, Robert waved at her. “I’m fine. Tell me—what exactly happened?” he asked, feeling rather helpless. He did not expect that someone would create trouble right under his nose.
“Grandpa, I can’t hide this from you any longer because I need you to deal with it together with me.” After a thorough consideration, Heather decided that she had to inform Robert about this, else she had no influence over the Langston Family’s action.
“What exactly happened?” Upon seeing how cautious she was, Robert suddenly had a sense of foreboding.
“A mysterious force that we don’t know of has entered Bradfort City. We don’t know what their motive is. However, they now have kidnapped Myra and are using her to threaten me and Tony. They wanted the Hart and the Langstons to join forces to go against the Moriarty Family.” She briefly summed it up with a calm tone, yet the message she conveyed was shocking.
Robert’s expression instantly changed. Looking at Heather, he was able to guess her thoughts and he was disappointed.
“Heather, are you going to put the Langstons at risk for the sake of Myra?” In all honesty, he never thought that she would choose to risk the entire Langston Family.
“Grandpa, don’t you understand? We have no other choice. Do you really think that he only has Myra in his hands?” She looked unblinkingly into his eyes, determined to tell him how serious this matter was.
“Are you implying that he has a member of the Langston Family in his hands as well?” Robert glared at her in anger; he never expected that she would prioritize those relationships over their family’s safety.
“Grandpa, the mysterious force has the capability to easily capture anyone and destroy anything and everything that we care about. They leave us no choice,” she enunciated slowly. The reason why she made this decision was not because of some sentimental issues, but because they had come to the point where there was no turning back.
“I don’t believe that this power is so influential in Bradfort City.” Robert found it unconvincing when the mysterious man had only captured Myra, who wasn’t anyone important to him.
“Grandpa, I’ve seen what he is capable of, so I believed that he wasn’t pulling our leg. Now, he is using Myra to blackmail us and wants us to play his game and follow his rules. However, this is also a chance that we could use to turn the tables around.” Heather was not pessimistic about the current situation. Since we are going to play a game, let’s see who can play better.
“Nonsense! The Moriarty Family has been targeting us for a long time, so how could we go and provoke them instead?” Robert was actually afraid of the Moriartys and he had no intention to get into conflict with them, so he had been avoiding them all this while.
“Grandpa, since you know that the Moriartys have been targeting both the Hart and Langston Family, why don’t we join forces and deal with the Moriartys together?” In contrast, Heather found this an opportunity as she believed that they would be able to take down the Moriarty Family if the Langston and Hart Family joined forces.
“Enough with this nonsense! Heather, you’ve let me down,” Robert snapped, his eyes full of disappointment. He never thought that Heather would actually have such a daring thought.
“Grandpa, do you think that I’m selfish?” She stubbornly went down on her knees in front of him. “I don’t want anyone to lose their lives because of this,” she said this with utmost sincerity.
“What about the Langston Group? Have you considered the century-old foundation of that group?” he questioned her, having no intentions to help her up.
“Grandpa, which do you think is more important—human lives or the century-old foundation? You may not be aware that Myra is merely the beginning. This is not something that can be resolved by sacrificing her life. In fact, the other party could even destroy our family.” Heather deliberately stressed on her last sentence as she firmly believed that the mysterious man had such capabilities.
Her words triggered Robert, causing him to glare at her, enraged. The next moment, he walked up to her, raising his hand and giving her a tight slap on her face.
A handprint instantly appeared on her fair face. If this were to happen at some other time, Heather would feel aggrieved but this time, she merely smiled, unfazed by his treatment toward her.
“Grandpa, in the end, I still lost to the Langston Group. In your eyes, I’m always second to the Langston Group.” The sorrow in her eyes broke his heart.
Robert did not know how to respond to her. He had indeed gone overboard today and his palm actually stung now. I must have been out of my mind! Have I actually hit Heather?
“Grandpa, the Langston Group is always your top priority and our lives are insignificant compared to that!” Heather continued to trigger him. She had to convince Robert to accept her idea because there was no room for failure as this matter involved the lives of many.
Robert’s body trembled. It was unexpected to him that Heather, who had always been meek and sensible, would say such words to trigger him. Looking at her with his deep gaze, he did not know how to respond to her.
“Heather, I’m sorry.” He bent down to her level to meet her eyes, squatting down in the process as she was on her knees.
“Grandpa, I don’t need your apology. I know your concerns and I understand them. But, is the Langston Group really more important than the lives of the Langston Family?” Tears brimmed in her eyes as she really felt heartbroken this time.
Robert, who had never seen her like this, instantly gave in. “Heather, I’m sorry. I was wrong and I should have trusted you.” he mumbled, apologizing to her non-stop. Guilt welled up inside him and he felt that he was a failure who did not deserve to be Heather’s grandfather.
“Grandpa, I don’t blame you for it. I just want you to see this clearly. The Langston Group is the blood, sweat, and tears of the Langstons, but the people are still our most important assets. Without the Langston Group, the Langstons can still rebuild its glory but without the people, we have nothing.” Her words came from the bottom of her heart as she was determined to change his mindset.
Robert looked at Heather in distress. He was conflicted, wondering if he should go all out for the chance to save their family. Since Heather had put it this way, it seemed like the Langston Group was now in a dire situation. Which option should I choose?
“Heather, I understand where you are coming from, but I can’t let the century-old Langston Group be destroyed in my hands,” he snarled. The efforts of their ancestors would go down the drain if the Langston Group were to fall.
In the end, Heather had no choice but to bring up the person who had scarred his heart in an effort to change his mind because she knew that this was something that Robert could never let go. And so, she countered, “Grandpa, do you still remember your younger sister whom you used to favor the most, Claris? I’m sure that you don’t want to see tragedy repeating itself!”
Upon hearing the name ‘Claris’, Robert seemed to fall into a daze, as if she was standing right before his very eyes. Sorrow filled his eyes and hidden beneath them was a deep sense of guilt.
“Heather, don’t force me.” At that point, he started to beg for her to stop as he really couldn’t bear to listen to her anymore.
Heather’s back was straight as she knelt on the floor. She refused to allow Robert to continue evading this problem and she had to make him face up to it.
And so, she continued to stress her point and she muttered, “Grandpa, stop evading reality. We should let bygones be bygones, but we cannot allow tragedy to repeat itself.” Although Heather felt distressed for her grandfather, she knew that if she allowed him to ‘escape’ this time, she would never have the courage to help him to get over this hurdle again.
Robert’s face blanched. Knowing that he was not in good health, Heather had to finish this quickly for fear that he would pass out.
She had to make sure that he resolved his emotional entanglement when she managed to gather the courage to point things out. She couldn’t back down, nor could she allow him to do so.
However, Robert tried to switch the topic without a trace. “Heather, get up,” he murmured.
Upon hearing that, she shook her head. “Grandpa, if you don’t agree to my request, I won’t get up.” She remained on her knees, acting very rebelliously in front of him for the first time.
“Heather, please don’t torment me.” Robert had no strength to continue to talk to her. He felt as if he was dying and it was as if he was on his deathbed.
“We should let go of the past. Now, all I hope is for you to not repeat the past mistakes. I, Heather Langston, swear to God that I will rebuild the Langston Group even if it is destroyed,” she vowed with full confidence that she had such determination and ability.
