Chapter 593 This Is My Name Card
“Calm down, Mrs. Winters. Based on my understanding of Amelia, I can assure you she’s not that kind of person. Besides, we’re talking about her brother. No matter how ruthless she is, she wouldn’t go so far as to hurt him. I can’t say the same for her husband, though…” June said, deliberately letting his voice trail off at the end.
Melanie immediately understood what June was trying to imply. “Are you saying Oscar wants to harm my son? But why would he do that when we’ve never offended him?”
“There’s a lot you don’t know about him, Mrs. Winters,” June replied with feigned concern. “The Clintons are very powerful in Tayhaven, and even the mayor has to show them respect. I heard that you and Mr. Winters snubbed him before, and knowing what he’s like, I must say he’s being very kind not to hold it against either of you.”
Melanie said nothing as she lowered her head.
“Mrs. Winters, I think you should be wary of Oscar. I’m telling you this for Spencer’s sake. Otherwise, it’d be too late for regrets when you lose him.”
Melanie suddenly looked up, gritting her teeth with a mother’s determination. “If anyone dares to hurt my child, I’ll fight them till the end!”
“I don’t mean to upset you, Mrs. Winters, but it’s difficult for an ordinary person like you to get close to Oscar. That said, you might be able to make use of the fact that you’re Amelia’s mother to do so. Here’s my name card. Come to me if you want to help. And if there’s anything you can’t figure out, feel free to give me a call,” June said as he took a name card out of his wallet and handed it to Melanie. When she accepted it, June perked up and smiled. “You can always look for me if you need any help, Mrs. Winters. Remember, Spencer’s health is at stake. You don’t want to lose him, do you?”
Melanie gripped the name card as she threw a skeptical glance at June. She seemed to have realized something, but at the same time, she didn’t want to believe it to be true.
“I-I’ll think about it,” Melanie mumbled, feeling somewhat dazed.
“You don’t have to come to me either, Mrs. Winters. But if that’s the case, who knows what will happen to Spencer? I hope you’ll think it over carefully,” June added, determined to scare Melanie further. “Well, I shall make a move first, Mrs. Winters. I won’t keep you any longer.”
As soon as June left, Dominic returned.
When he saw the name card in Melanie’s hand, Dominic frowned in puzzlement. “What’s that?”
Melanie snapped out of her daze and quickly kept the card. “It’s nothing.”
“Did Mr. Wick say something to you?”
Melanie’s stare instantly took on a glint of panic. “No, not at all. We were just having a casual chat. What else is there to talk about?”
Dominic continued to scrutinize his wife. After being married for more than a decade, he could detect even the most subtle changes in her.
“Melanie, I know you’re worried about our son, but we can’t resort to despicable means. Stay away from Mr. Wick, will you? He doesn’t look like a good person,” Dominic advised.
Melanie glared at her husband. “Have you been bribed by Amelia? Don’t you care if Spencer lives or dies?”
“Do you hear what you’re saying? Of course, I’m worried about our son’s condition! I don’t want you to be taken advantage of by those with ulterior motives.”
“It wouldn’t have to come to that if Spencer recovers,” Melanie snapped before storming into the ward.
Vexed and tired, Dominic raked his hands through his hair.
He had to choose between the adopted daughter he felt so much guilt for and his own son. Alas, no matter who he helped, he’d still be seen as a heartless b*stard by the other party.
Dominic sighed, once again feeling the urge to go for a smoke.
When Eva heard about Spencer’s condition worsening, her first thought was to find Amelia instead of heading to the hospital.
“Amelia, I heard Spencer’s illness has taken a turn for the worse. What happened? I was in Beshya for a business trip and only heard about the news when I came back. How is he? Is it bad?” Eva rambled on anxiously.
“Yes, the doctor said it looks rather serious. Mom doesn’t want me at the hospital, though. She insists that I’m all to blame for what happened. Anyway, can you help me check on my parents? Get them whatever they need, and I’ll pay you back later.”
Eva, however, was perplexed.
“Huh? It’s a fact that Spencer fell ill, and of course, his condition would worsen if the treatment failed. Why would Aunt Melanie blame you?” Eva asked. “Back when we were young, I know they used to blame you whenever things didn’t go their way. Is that what they’re doing now? How can they still be so selfish?”
Amelia quickly patted Eva’s hand to calm her down.
“Eva, make a trip to the hospital for me, will you? Because of this, Oscar has also gotten rather angry. I’m afraid he’d lose his temper at my parents.”
“Ha! Oscar has my full support to teach Uncle Dominic and Aunt Melanie a lesson. They’ve gone too far!” Eva scoffed.
“All right, that’s enough. Help me buy some yummy food for my parents. I’ve already spoken to the hospital staff, so the doctors and nurses won’t make things difficult for them. Oscar isn’t keen on interfering in this matter because of me, but I know he’s worried. That’s why I have to trouble you to make this hospital trip for me.”
“Oh, come on, Amelia! It’s the Winters who have let you down. If I had a daughter like you, she’d be the apple of my eye! Uncle Dominic and Aunt Melanie have no one but themselves to blame for not treasuring you. You’ve married into a good family, and they should be thanking their lucky stars for such wealthy in-laws. Instead, they continue to push you away. What on Earth are they thinking about?” Eva grumbled. After airing all her grievances, she finally got up and left for the hospital.
A while later, Tiffany came by for a visit.
She stared at Amelia as the latter served her tea. “Are your parents in town?” Tiffany asked straightforwardly.
“Why ask if you already know the answer?”
“I can’t believe they have the guts to show up! They distanced themselves from you for years, and when they finally return, they drag their sick son along. What’s the meaning of that? Do they see you as their cash dispenser? Is that it?” Tiffany fumed.
Tiffany was the only one who had witnessed all the ups and downs in Amelia’s life. As such, she hated the Winters family with a vengeance. She could never fathom how they could treat an innocent girl like Amelia so callously and remorselessly. To her, the Winters family was simply cold-blooded and rotten to the core.
If Tiffany had a cruel family like that, there was no doubt she’d have dumped them a long time ago.
Amelia merely held her cup and let the heat from the tea warm her up.
“Babe, what exactly is on your mind?”
A faint smile crept across Amelia’s face. “What? Do you expect me to chase them away with a broom? Or do you want me to ignore and disown them?”
When Tiffany didn’t reply, Amelia continued, “See, you don’t think I can do that either, do you? I know they’re terrible, but no one can deny they brought me up. Just because they’ve been heartless to me doesn’t mean I should treat them the same. In any case, this will be the last time I help them. I realized that no matter how much I do for them, they’d always think I have ulterior motives.”
“My goodness, what have they done now?”
With that, Amelia gave a brief explanation of the situation.
After hearing it, Tiffany slammed her fist on the table and stood up. “How can they do that? And why didn’t you put up a fight?”
“Haha, what do you want me to do? Beat them to a pulp?”
“How can you still laugh at this point?”
To Tiffany’s surprise, Amelia’s smile grew wider.
“After everything that I’ve gone through, some things in life have become insignificant by comparison. In the past, I never understood why the Winterses treated me so coldly. But now that I know the truth, I don’t hate them as much anymore. My biological father was cruel enough to give me away, so how can I expect my adoptive parents to treat me any better? They took care of all my basic needs, and in that regard, they’ve been very kind to me,” Amelia said casually. “After all, we can’t expect everyone to have a heart of gold, can we? They have their own families to look after, so it’s only natural that an outsider like me will be ostracized.”
“Babe, I won’t allow you to belittle yourself! If you go on, I’m going to get mad,” Tiffany scolded.
Amelia shook her head and burst into laughter. “All right, enough about them. Let’s talk about you.”
“Me? What’s there to talk about?”
“Well, how are things between you and Derrick?”
Tiffany’s expression instantly became grim as she heaved a sigh.
“Oh, you know, same old, same old. Derrick’s parents still aren’t in favor of me marrying him. And now, Crystal has even moved into the Hisson residence. She claims it’s to look after Old Mr. Hisson, who caught a cold recently, but all it does is make me look like the other woman in their relationship! It doesn’t help that there has been so much gossip going around and distorting facts. Public opinion can be so scary at times…”
“His parents still won’t agree to the marriage?”
“Look at me. With my kind of social status, why would the Hissons approve of me?”
“Are you giving up, then?”
“No way. I’ve persisted for so long and put up with so much ridicule. Besides, if I wanted to give up, I’d have done so a while ago. Why would I wait until now?” Tiffany replied with zeal. “If a battle of wits and courage is what they want, that’s what I’ll give them. I’m confident of emerging victorious. In any case, I’m definitely marrying Derrick. No one can take him away from me.”
