Hannah wasn’t young anymore, so she didn’t have the patience to watch her daughter kick around like some mindless child.
Her lips twisted in annoyance. “That’s enough. If you have something to say, then say it outright. Stop with the waterworks because I can’t hear a word you say.”
Despite this, Kayla’s tears kept pouring as she continued to thrash around. Hannah gave up and looked over at her daughter-in-law instead.
“What happened? Didn’t you guys go out for dinner? How did she end up like this?”
Sandra looked displeased. She uttered, “I’m not feeling well, so I’m heading back to my room now. You can ask Jacque what happened, Mom.”
The entire Wynter family was getting on Sandra’s nerves. She then turned and marched off resolutely.
At this, Hannah became furious. Even Kayla was upset as she cried out louder, “Mom! Sandra is clearly taking the enemy’s side! Mom, you have to—”
“Enough!” Jacque roared from being fed up.
Jacque’s words were law in the Wynters family. Hence, everyone was startled by his sudden instruction. Even Kayla held back her tears.
Hannah then looked calmly at Jacque as if motioning him to speak. After all, his words were the only ones she trusted.
Jacque’s tone was harsh. “Kayla, you’re over fifty years old. Yet your ability to tell right from wrong is skewed to this extent? Did your brain stop growing once you graduated from school? What do Shermaine’s crimes have to do with some innocent outsider? How dare you make accusations without any evidence!”
“Jacque, you know what happened. That woman caused my little Shermaine to—”
“To what? Illegally hire an assassin for murder? Did Clarissa outrightly ask her to that?”
“S-she forced Shermaine to…” Kayla mulishly denied.
Jacque’s jaw clenched in disapproval at how Kayla was blind to the fact that Shermaine was in the wrong.
At this, James finally spoke up, “Kayla’s just feeling sad about our daughter’s current situation. Please forgive her, Jacque.”
“Sad about your daughter? Your daughter is spoiled rotten by the two of you!”
Furious counter-arguments stirred James’ and Kayla’s minds. However, they bit down the urge to rebuke since Jacque seemed absolutely livid.
Especially since they needed Jacque’s help to get Shermaine released from prison early.
The two lowered their heads and kept silent. Knowing that they were only doing so for their daughter’s sake, Jacque fumed even more. He then dismissed them at once, “That’s enough now. You two should leave.”
“Jacque, about Shermaine…”
“Why are you still here?” Jacque shot them a cold look.
Within seconds, James and Kayla scurried off like frightened mice.
Once the two departed and his wailing sister was long gone, Jacque let out a long sigh before explaining earlier’s events to Hannah.
Even Hannah sighed after hearing everything.
“What an unfortunate coincidence! Your sister and her husband definitely overreacted. You shouldn’t—” Hannah tried to put in some good words about Kayla.
Truthfully, Jacque understood why Kayla and her husband took their anger out on Clarissa; as parents, it was only normal for them to be upset at their daughter’s misfortune.
Still, that’s not the right way to dote on their daughter. And shouldn’t they keep a low profile at this critical time when their daughter is still in prison?
Shermaine gets granted parole if she maintains good behavior in prison. However, that is if Matthew doesn’t interfere with things.
Now Kayla and James have done it! If Clarissa complains about their public outburst to Matthew, and if he suddenly remembers that Shermaine is still in prison, he’ll probably tamper with things and delay her parole.
All my life, I have never once been as furious as I was with Kayla and James. Those two are already fifty or so, yet they’re inconsiderate to how their actions affect the bigger picture!
Jacque broke down the entire situation. At this, Hannah instantly understood the severity of Kayla and James’ actions.
She sighed helplessly, “Jacque. Shermaine is ultimately still your niece. Even if she made some grave mistakes, she’s already paid for them these past few years. You have to find a way to get her out of prison. She can’t stay in there forever; it will ruin her entire future…”
Jacque disagreed inwardly. She has already ruined her future by committing those crimes.
Once she gets out of prison, it will be a miracle if she can even go back to living normally.
Yet, his mother’s voice was so full of desperation that he couldn’t bear refusing her request.
Hence, he agreed despondently, “Don’t worry, mom. Things have already escalated this far, so I’ll do whatever is in my power to get Shermaine out early. Still, please talk some sense into Kayla; she’s not a little girl anymore. She should have more restraint over her immature emotions and quit being so naive and stubborn.”
Hannah’s chest sank. “I’m fully aware. However, she’s used to being that way her whole life, so there’s no point talking sense into her. But I understand what you mean. I’ll talk to her about it whenever I can.”
Silence engulfed them for a moment before Hannah spoke up again, “Sandra’s not upset again, is she? I know that your wife doesn’t get along with your sister’s side of the family. I also understand what Kayla did earlier was wrong, but still, we’re family. You should talk to Sandra as well; make sure she knows where her place is.”
“Yeah,” Jacque uttered grimly.
He felt torn knowing that his mother and wife had opposite stances on the Kayla situation. After wrapping things up with Hannah, he went upstairs and noticed that Sandra was on the phone with their son. She boldly complained about Kayla’s family, despite Jacque’s presence.
Jacque frowned. “That’s quite enough. What do you think you’re telling our son? How could he understand?”
“How can he not? I’m asking him to be more alert and keep a distance from your sister’s family. What the hell is wrong with those people anyway?”
“What do you mean those people? They are my sister and brother-in-law. Even if they went out of line today, how can I stand idly by and not do anything to help them get their daughter back? Besides, how could you be so disrespectful to Kayla in front of my mum? You’ve gone too far this time.”
Sandra harrumphed, “So what if I was disrespectful? I’ve never once made things difficult for Mom. If it wasn’t for your sister’s ridiculous tantrum, do you think I would break my good streak of being a filial daughter-in-law?”
Jacque couldn’t refute this, or perhaps he didn’t want to anymore. Instead, he harrumphed in response and stormed off to his study.
On the other hand, Sandra was unbothered by this. She continued to grumble about Kayla and James to her son.
Later that night, Damon dropped by the Wynters’ residence.
Hannah was initially surprised to see Damon. However, she immediately understood why he had visited after recalling what happened earlier.
“Grandma, Uncle Jacque, Aunt Sandra. I’m sure you’re all up to date about what happened. Clarissa is my best friend. Perhaps you’ve misunderstood because you don’t know her well, but I can confidently say that Clarissa is a much better woman than Shermaine. Clarissa is a kind woman, probably the best there ever is. So as her friend, I feel horrible that the Smallwoods have publicly harassed her today. I’m sure you’re all recall that Shermaine was one-sidedly obsessed with Matthew back then. So when Matthew started dating Clarissa, Shermaine deliberately made Clarissa’s life a living hell. Shermaine’s jealousy drove her into hiring an assassin, as well as having the intent for murder. That said, uncle, I’m sure you guys can discern who’s the real villain here.”
“Damon. Why do you sound like you’re siding with Clarissa? Are you here to protest on behalf of her, to give us trouble?” Hannah spat.
Her lips twitched with anger. This brat! We’re supposed to be a family, so how could he show up and lecture us over some outsider?
Surprisingly, Sandra went against the older woman. “Mom. Did you not understand a word he said? He was only clarifying the facts to us. I’m sure Damon’s not here to cause any trouble. Besides, it’s understandable that he’s upset. After all, the Smallwoods hurt his friend, and to make things worse, we were the ones who brought the Smallwoods there. Now, Damon, your uncle and I had no idea that the Smallwoods would behave so uncivilly. Rest assured, we’re aware that they overstepped their bounds, so please don’t be upset anymore. You have to understand that your uncle and I are helpless in this matter as well. There’s nothing much that we can do…”
Sandra felt bitter about the whole situation. I’m stuck with in-laws like them, so what else can I do except blame my rotten luck.
The message behind Sandra’s words was unmistakable.
It was clear that she disliked Kayla and James. At the same time, she also didn’t approve of Hannah’s stance on the matter.
Hannah’s face scrunched into a hideous frown. She felt humiliated by Sandra’s disrespect. Not only that, but she also felt disgraced by Kayla’s irrational outburst that started all of this.
Truthfully, Damon had no intention of causing trouble. He impulsively showed up here as a result of the overwhelming guilt he felt. Unfortunately, the Smallwoods had already departed. Otherwise, he would have called them out for their dispute earlier.
Damon soon realized that he had impulsively ranted to the Wynters. Not wanting to make things worse, he quickly excused himself and scampered off in shame.
Likewise, Hannah marched back to her room with a tight frown. The same was for Sandra, who crossed her arms in a foul mood. Surrounded by everyone’s anger, Jacque slumped helplessly onto the living room’s sofa, not knowing what more he could do.
Elsewhere, Clarissa was down in the dumps after that awful encounter earlier with James and Kayla.
My birth parents insulted me with such cruel words the first-ever time we met. It seems like their hatred for me runs deep.
Granted, they weren’t aware that Clarissa was their biological daughter. Still, even if Clarissa wasn’t their daughter, they shouldn’t have accused and insulted an innocent girl in public. Needless to say, that was how they could raise a vile daughter like Shermaine.
The most important thing one could leave their child with wasn’t inheritance—it was principles. What mattered most was family involvement in one’s education, one’s parental education. These were what shaped a person’s future attitudes and integrity.
Considering the kind of person Shermaine was, it was clear that her parents had little regard for morals.
True enough, Clarissa witnessed James’ and Kayla’s skewed moral compasses today. She was greatly disappointed by their unreasonable dispute.
This disappointment had weighed her down the whole day. However, she felt it wasn’t right to share such negative thoughts with Ellie, much less Damian. Hence, she waited until her late-night call with Matthew to rant.
“I’m fortunate to have grown up with the Quigleys. Granted, Hilary isn’t someone with great character, but my Dad and Grandma’s principles have rubbed off on me. They have always insisted on being a good, kind, and just person. I’m also fortunate that Hilary abandoned me at a young age. Otherwise, I’d probably pick up a thing or two from her and end up as some mentally twisted person. If that happened, I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t have fallen for me. Then I wouldn’t have the happy home that I have now. So clearly, God has been more than kind to me.”
Although Clarissa originally intended to complain, her thoughts had somehow landed on the many things that she was grateful for in life.
That was her nature, after all. Clarissa was a warm-hearted and mild-tempered woman. She would never resort to extreme measures, no matter how disappointed or angry she was. Because by the end of it all, her positive outlook was enough to block out any negative thing that irked her.
Matthew’s lips curled as he listened to her bubbly voice on the call. How can I not fall deeper in love with this amazing woman?
Meanwhile, Clarissa continued, “So I’ve decided. I’m going to be a better person from this point onwards. I’m going to be a good role model for our son. And you too! You have to be a better dad and ensure that your son becomes a fine young man.”
See? How can I not love this perfect woman whose got such strong discipline and morals towards life?
