Chapter 68 I'll Do Anything for You!
Farewell kisses were pretty standard, and Alexander always nailed it with his classy moves. But Catherine couldn't shake off that warm, fuzzy feeling on the back of her hand.
"Why are you picking me up?" she asked, a bit puzzled.
"Aren't we heading to your grandparents' place? Got the gifts all set," he replied smoothly.
Samuel had indeed set up dinner with her at the Martinez family tomorrow. With Brandon and Aurora having a spat and already gone, she figured she'd go with Richard.
Charles was out of the country on business, George had surgery and would be back in the evening, and Philip had court, leaving only Richard, who had just wrapped up filming and was back home.
"You're not planning to ditch me, right? Samuel invited me too," Alexander said with a grin.
'When did Samuel invite him?' Catherine wondered.
'Grace being able to come home from the lab is thanks to him, and since both families are tight, it is cool to leave him out.' Catherine thought.
"Alright, I'll wait for you," she agreed.
Alexander playfully tapped her nose, "Good."
After giving Catherine a few pointers, he bounced, heading back to handle business at the Howard Group.
As soon as Alexander left, Oliver dodged the patrolling Andrew and snuck into the ward.
He blurted out, "Catherine, you gotta help me! Celeste got hit by someone and she's still out cold. Since you're Marcus's caregiver, can you put in a good word for us with Marcus and get the Windsor family to help us out? The Smith family has never wronged you. We raised you! We've always given you what you wanted. You can't just ditch us now!"
Catherine smirked, "When I was in school, Elodie asked you for money, and you said girls didn't need much education. It was Elodie who secretly collected trash to pay for my schooling."
Oliver felt a bit embarrassed.
'How does she remember that from when she was four or five?' Oliver thought.
"Back then, we were broke. Celeste and I were scraping by, really had no money to send you to school."
Catherine smiled, thinking, 'At that time, Clara was in a private kindergarten with a $5,000 monthly fee, paid by Oliver! And I had to rely on Elodie secretly collecting bottles to sell for school money. For his business, Oliver took all of Elodie's savings, not even leaving money for my schooling.'
"When I was in middle school, it was Elodie who gave me living expenses and tuition. You thought $500 a month was too much and told me to eat less. You weren't poor then," Catherine said.
By then, Oliver had already bought a villa, and the whole family had moved to Serenitia City.
"I wasn't wrong, Catherine. Girls with too much money go astray. I was looking out for you. $500 was enough to fill your stomach. I only spent $300 a month on food back then!" Oliver explained.
"Oliver, at that time, you and Celeste were spending $3,000 a month on nutritional supplements, one bowl a day."
Oliver was speechless.
'Why does Catherine remember all those little things so clearly? I've forgotten all those insignificant details.'
'Catherine is so ungrateful, always remembering the bad things and never mentioning the good things we did for her.'
'Besides, if we really mistreated Catherine, could she have grown up to be so tall and beautiful?' Oliver thought.
"I was doing it for your own good, worried that eating too much would stretch your stomach, making it hard to lose weight and look good when you grew up. Look at your figure now!"
"I raised you for years, Catherine. Maybe I wasn't perfect, but I tried. Elodie is part of the Smith family too. Her kindness is my kindness! Just put in a good word with Marcus. If he backs the Smith family, it'll only help you down the line!"
The ward door swung open, and in rolled Marcus, looking like he was ready to tear Oliver apart, with Richard pushing him, equally pissed off.
They always thought the Smith family were not perfect but at least did something to raise Catherine, but they had no clue her life was worse than they imagined.
'What kind of family doesn't even feed their kid right? The Windsor family's only daughter had to rely on an old lady collecting trash for school money. That's just messed up!' Richard fumed.
"Mr. Windsor, I'm Catherine's father. I came here to..." Oliver started.
Marcus gripped the wheelchair armrest, not wanting to lose it in front of Catherine, and growled, "Get out!"
Andrew didn't need more than that. He hauled Oliver out of the ward without a word.
Marcus's eyes welled up as he motioned Catherine over. "Catherine, come here."
"Grandpa, I'm fine," she reassured him.
Marcus held her hand, his heart breaking. "Catherine, do you want us to deal with their family? Just say the word, and I'll do anything for you!"
Catherine shook her head. "No need to get our hands dirty over them. I have a family now, and the past is the past."
Marcus, tears streaming, turned away to wipe them. He couldn't speak, just patted her hand heavily. "Good girl! From now on, you're only a Windsor. Charles said he wants to move the grave of the old lady who raised you. The Windsor family will handle the memorials. Even if you want her in the Windsor family cemetery, I agree!"
'If it weren't for her, I might never have met Catherine. If she doesn't mind, the Windsor family cemetery could be her resting place,' Marcus thought.
"No need, Elodie would prefer to stay at her own home. I've asked Charles to place her near the old Smith family house, which we've bought," Catherine said.
Richard stepped forward, hugging Catherine and gently patting her back. "Catherine, if you ever feel wronged, tell us. If that man comes to bother you again, come to me."
"I understand, Richard," she nodded.
Richard held her tightly, his face pressed against her shoulder, and she felt the wetness. 'Is Richard crying?' she wondered.
Richard's voice trembled. "I'm sorry we didn't protect you well. Even after you came back, we let such a scumbag disturb you. It won't happen again!"
'This isn't the Windsor family's fault. Oliver sneaked in. The Smith family has always been shameless, and the Windsor family, thinking they were my former family, didn't take harsh measures. The Windsor family is reasonable, but the Smith family is shameless. It's hard to guard against Oliver,' she thought.
Catherine patted Richard's shoulder, comforting him instead. "I'm fine. I don't care about the Smith family. Don't worry about me."
Marcus watched them hugging, motioning with his little finger. Andrew bent down to listen.
"Arrange a team to protect Catherine at all times. If any of those people approach her, drive them away immediately. Use force if necessary, no matter the consequences."
This "no matter the consequences" meant Marcus was seriously pissed!
"Yes! We will protect Miss Windsor!" Andrew affirmed.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
