Chapter 375 Artificial Insemination
Francis knew those threats weren't just for show.
But ever since he decided to be with Elissa, he saw this coming.
Keeping his cool, Francis said, "Grandma, if you ever lay a hand on Elissa, I'm done with the Peterson family. We'll face everything together. You get what I'm saying."
Elysia was pissed. But she didn't make a big deal out of it; she insisted on staying in the hospital, sharing a room with Wesley.
Whether it was real or not, Francis couldn't keep fighting them in this situation.
The family was tough on Francis, but they didn't beat or scold him every day.
Francis said all that to keep Elissa safe, but things hadn't gone that far yet.
Hope went back to be with Elissa.
Jerry stayed to keep an eye on things.
When Jacob showed up that night, he saw Francis and kicked him without a word.
Francis dropped to one knee but stayed silent.
Rainey stepped in, "What are you doing? Can't you talk? Don't hit him."
Wesley and Elysia, lying in their hospital beds, raised their hands to stop him, looking annoyed, "What good does hitting him do? You think you can beat him to death?"
Jacob was even angrier; he was doing this for them! "It's all because you let him get away with everything!"
Rainey wasn't having it, "When he was training under those harsh conditions in the wild as a kid, did I say anything?"
She went on, "What do you mean by letting him get away with everything? He messed up, but that's no reason to hit him."
Jacob snorted, "I just kicked him once!"
Rainey slapped him on the back, "Francis can't hit you, but I can. If you have the guts, hit me back."
Jacob, fuming, turned around and finally said, "Fine, fine, fine."
Rainey helped Francis up, but he knelt on both knees.
Francis said, "Making Grandma mad was my fault, but I'm serious. I don't care what you think about Elissa, but you'd better not mess with her."
He added, "Since you're all here, I'll say it again. She and I will face everything together, live and die together."
The hospital room went dead silent.
For a long time, the only sound was breathing.
Jerry knew it wasn't his place to speak now; he had to wait to see if the Peterson family would back down.
After a while, Elysia spoke, "Francis, we have other options. Don't think just because you're the only child of the Peterson family, you can use death to threaten us. I can back off now, but not because of your threat; it's because you're a Peterson."
She added, "And all the effort we've put in can't be wasted because of a woman. You can't escape the Peterson family, and you don't have absolute control over your life; it's not just up to you."
Wesley, catching Elysia's look, made it clear, "We won't stop you from dating her for now, but we can only indulge you for a year. Next year, you must follow the family's arrangements and get married. If you don't agree, then you can't date her."
Jacob chimed in. "You've seen what our family has been through. If you decide to stick with her through thick and thin, it might end up feeling like a fate worse than death."
Rainey finally spoke up, "Francis, we haven't forced you. We asked you before if you wanted to take your time and consider which path to take, and we've let you be for so many years."
"But this freedom wasn't for you to fall in love with a woman and go against us; it was for you to make the right choice."
"You have to bear the responsibility of the Peterson family; that's your destiny, unchangeable."
Francis stayed quiet after hearing all that. They weren't wrong, and neither was he; it was a deadlock.
Elysia spoke again, "The Peterson family has been passed down through generations to keep the family prosperous. We've put all our effort into raising you, and all our sacrifices were to see a return."
"You were meant to marry a woman with a strong family background, to shoulder the responsibility of the Peterson family together, and make the same sacrifices we did. That's what you should do."
"Now, allowing you to date her for a year is already an indulgence."
"Francis, you have no choice in this matter, not even with threats of death."
Francis got it. If it weren't for them giving him life and teaching him carefully, how could he have grown into who he was now, met Elissa, and fallen in love with her?
Because of this, he hadn't truly reached the point of no return.
But he couldn't let Elissa suffer, never giving her a proper status.
Francis retorted, "Family background isn't an absolute standard. How can you be so sure she can't help me? She's excellent; you'll know if you get to know her."
Elysia laughed, "Since you started getting involved with her, we've already looked into her. We know everything about her, probably more than you do."
Francis pressed his lips into a thin line. He and Elissa were in the phase of passion and hadn't yet explored each other's pasts.
"Just because she has a father like that, she can't be your wife." Elysia glanced at Jerry and said, "Even if she's close to Mrs. Hammer, it won't work."
Since he was mentioned, Jerry spoke up, "Legally, she has no relationship with her father anymore. In the future, she won't need to support or have any contact with that father."
Elysia showed a meaningful smile, "If it were that easy, it would be great. Family ties aren't something Elissa can sever as she wants."
"The diversity, complexity, and disgust of human nature far exceed your imagination."
"Would a gambler and alcoholic father with no income source not come looking for his daughter after seeing her marry into a wealthy family?"
"If he had any conscience or guilt, how could he have treated his daughter that way?"
"And why should we keep such a hidden danger?"
"Once she marries Francis, those who are hostile to the Peterson family will find ways to use this against us."
"We can clearly avoid it, so why take such a big risk?"
Honestly, this matter had been dragging on long enough.
Jerry was already a bit annoyed, let alone Francis, the person involved.
Jerry said, "I don't think we can reach a conclusion right now. Let's put it aside and deal with Jessa's child's matter first."
Meanwhile, Elissa told Hope about Elysia's words, but they couldn't figure out a solution either.
Hope helped her lie down, "Your head still hurts. Don't stress about it now. It looks like a deadlock. At least get better first, then you can handle it longer."
Elissa lay on the hospital bed, stretching out her limbs, and sighed, "This isn't something I can just handle by enduring. It's strange. I knew my background would cause trouble for Francis, yet I still fell in love with him."
Suddenly, the door to the hospital room opened. Hope turned to see Jerry. She said something to Elissa and then left the room.
Hope closed the door behind her and looked up at Jerry, "How did the talk go on your end?"
Jerry said, "No conclusion. I suggested they put this matter aside for now and deal with Jessa's issue first."
"Did they agree?"
Jerry shook his head. "Not exactly, but they didn't oppose it either. I just saw Francis put them in the car; they should be home soon."
Hope nodded, "As long as they can go home."
At least it proved their health was still okay.
If Francis had really made them sick, things would be even harder to handle.
"Can Francis stay in the hospital with Elissa?"
Jerry shook his head, "He has to go home and keep an eye on Jessa."
Hope found it inappropriate, "If he's around Jessa, what if she uses him to miscarry and then blames him? Isn't it safer for him to stay in the hospital?"
A cold glint flashed in Jerry's eyes, "I don't think she'll lose this child. With all the fuss these past two days, Francis is suffering on all sides. There's a possibility I haven't told him."
"What?"
Jerry beckoned her closer and whispered something in her ear.
Hope was shocked, "Is that even possible? Is there any scientific basis for that?"
"It's just my guess," Jerry said.
"A guess? Are there any successful cases? Have you asked Mr. Quill?"
Jerry put his index finger to his lips, "Shh. Honey, if you keep shouting, the whole world will know."
Hope had never heard of such a thing and couldn't calm down.
But she forced herself to lower her voice, "If what you say is possible, and it turns out to be Francis's child, will the Peterson family make Jessa and Francis get married?"
"No," Jerry shook his head. "If that were the case, they might as well have Francis and Elissa try to have a child."
"True."
Jerry said, "The Peterson family clearly already has a marriage alliance in mind. With Jessa's scheming, Rainey might have wanted to keep her initially, but once the child is born, they'll likely leave it to Francis to handle. Keeping her is like keeping a ticking time bomb, affecting Francis's marriage alliance."
Hope rubbed her head, feeling a headache coming on.
Jerry raised his hand and lightly tapped her forehead twice. "Don't think about it. We'll know the result in a month."
A lot could happen in a day, let alone a month.
"Do you have any other ideas?" Hope asked. "Is the hotel's surveillance from that night really unrecoverable?"
Jerry glanced into the hospital room, then hugged Hope and sat down, saying, "I can't be sure. Even if it can be recovered, it will take time. I tested Jessa this morning, but she didn't show any flaws. She hasn't done anything yet, which means she guessed my intention. So, we can only wait."
Hope leaned on Jerry's shoulder, "What a mess. Elissa finally found someone she likes."
In the hospital room, Francis was peeling an orange for Elissa.
The two of them hadn't said anything for a while, yet they understood everything.
Francis peeled the orange carefully, feeding it to Elissa piece by piece.
After feeding her an orange, he gave her some water.
Francis finally spoke, "What do you want to eat? I'll go get it for you."
Elissa, unable to shake her head, waved her hand, "You should go back."
They looked at each other for a while, then Francis got up, bent down, and kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry."
Elissa reached out to hug him, patting his back, "Don't be."
"It's not about Jessa," Francis said.
Then it must be about what Elysia said.
Elissa realized and asked, "Were you at the door when your grandma came?"
"Yes."
"So you heard everything."
"Yes."
Francis gently hugged her, but in the next moment, he tightened his arms, as if he wanted to merge her into his bones.
He said, "I also told them that I would face everything with you."
Elissa laughed, "Just hearing you say that is enough. Go back now. Don't come to see me until it's resolved."
Francis let go of her, adjusted her pillow, and tucked her in. "Rest well. I'll come to see you whenever I can."
"Okay, go back now."
There were only a few steps to the door, but it took Francis a long time to walk.
Elissa turned over, her back to him, and wiped her eyes.
Francis opened the door and left.
Jerry had to go to the company, so he could give Francis a ride.
Before leaving, Jerry looked at Hope, "I'll come back tonight."
Hope nodded. After they got into the elevator, she returned to Elissa's ward.
Sitting by the bed, Hope looked at Elissa, who had her back to her, and said, "Are you crying alone?"
Elissa wiped her tears and turned to look at her, "Who's crying? I'm not."
Hope peeled a candy and put it in her mouth. "Don't think about anything, just rest."
In the car, Jerry handed a bottle of water to Francis.
Francis had just unscrewed it and taken a sip when Jerry suddenly said, "I suspect that the child in Jessa's belly might be yours."
Francis spat out the water he had just drunk.
Jerry dodged his spray attack and looked at the water stains on the leather seats, "You'll cover the cleaning fee."
Francis took a deep breath and asked, "What do you mean you suspect the child in Jessa's belly is mine? I would know who I had sex with. I couldn't have touched her."
Jerry crossed his arms, his eyes dark, "What if she touched you?"
Francis blurted out, "She is not a turn-on."
Jerry seemed to believe him and nodded. "Have you ever heard of artificial insemination using stolen sperm?"
About five minutes later, Francis finally reacted. "Are you serious?"
Jerry rolled his eyes and said, "You heard me, and you understood."
"But..." Francis ran a hand through his hair, "I've had people watching her all the time. How could she have gone for artificial insemination?"
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