Chapter 395 He Wasn't So Taciturn
"Mr. Vanderbilt, the audacity you have to even make such a request." Frederick's cold voice echoed from above.
Daniel's face suddenly changed. Selah's expression also became grim. Daniel had been repeatedly held back by Frederick, humiliating Selah in the process.
Selah took a deep breath and meekly apologized to Amelia. "Amelia, Daniel is a man of deep emotions and loyalty. In his view, regardless of what she has done, Ruth is carrying his child and is his lover, so he can't just ignore her. Don't take his nonsense to heart."
Amelia's expression was very calm as she responded to Selah in a composed manner. "I know how Daniel is, so I don't blame him. We just have differences of opinion."
She paused, then continued, "Daniel asked me for a favor. I admit that Daniel has indeed taken good care of me before. But let's not forget, for those two years, the Davis family also supported the Vanderbilt family's business quite a bit. I wonder if that could be considered payback enough for Daniel's care?"
Selah's face tensed slightly at Amelia's pointed remark.
The Vanderbilt family's progress had indeed relied significantly on the Davis family’s support during Amelia's time in Fondaniss—a fact Selah had hoped would be ignored when Daniel brought up his favor.
Selah tried to ease the tension and said, softly, "Amelia, please, let's not make this about favors. With our families' history, nobody owes anyone anything. Let's keep things amicable."
Selah cast a disapproving glance at Daniel. "Daniel, hurry up and apologize to Amelia," she snapped.
Amelia, calm and composed, interjected, "There's no need for that. It's good to clarify things so I don't mistakenly think I owe Daniel a huge favor."
Frederick, holding Anna, stood upstairs and looked at Daniel's vexed expression.
"Daniel, do you think that every woman you like owes you a favor?" he asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "This is the first time I've heard of someone pursuing another and then asking for a favor in return when they fail."
Daniel's face went pale, the rebuke hitting hard. Anna, nestled quietly in Frederick’s arms, tilted her head slightly, her wide eyes filled with curiosity as she looked at the embarrassed man below them.
"Did Uncle Daniel do something wrong?" she asked innocently.
Frederick didn't answer her directly. Instead, he held her a little tighter, his tone softening as he looked down at her. "I'll make sure Anna never encounters such a person in the future."
Anna looked puzzled but remained silent, sensing that the situation was beyond her understanding.
Selah frowned as she observed Frederick saying such things in front of Anna, undoubtedly with the purpose of humiliating Daniel. Even though Daniel did say something wrong, he was still her son. As a mother, how could she bear to see her son being humiliated like this?
"Mr. Hastings, you..." Selah had just spoken when Amelia interrupted her.
"Mrs. Vanderbilt, you and Daniel should leave. There's no room for negotiation when it comes to Ruth."
Selah took a deep breath, looking helpless. She had already predicted this outcome, so she was unfazed by the revelation. However, with Frederick here, Selah couldn't help but feel a bit defiant.
For Amelia's sake, Selah suppressed her anger. She looked at Amelia with a somewhat stiff smile. "As you wish. Amelia, I'm really sorry. Daniel was just acting rashly due to desperation."
Selah then glanced at Daniel with unconcealed displeasure. "Let's go."
Daniel frowned slightly, his gaze falling on Amelia. After a moment of silence, he asked, "Amelia, if everyone else is willing to sign a letter of pardon for Ruth, would you be willing to sign one too?"
Amelia's expression shifted slightly. She hadn't expected Daniel to be so stubborn when it came to Ruth.
Selah took a deep breath and suddenly pulled Daniel's arm. "We should go now!" she demanded sternly.
Selah was already dissatisfied with Ruth, and now, seeing Daniel so relentlessly helping Ruth, she was furious. Having finally gotten rid of Ruth, she couldn't understand what was wrong with Daniel.
As Selah pulled Daniel away, his gaze towards Amelia was filled with disappointment. "Amelia, in my memory, you were always a kind girl. I didn't expect you to become like this now. You seem to be no longer the Amelia I remember," he remarked in a low voice.
Amelia listened to Daniel's words, her expression becoming slightly serious. She shot back. "Sorry for not living up to your memory. Perhaps you always misunderstood me. I'm not someone who can let go of all grudges and be kind."
Daniel's face darkened suddenly.
Amelia's expression gradually calmed down, unaffected by any of Daniel's words.
Frederick's eyes turned cold. After handing Anna to Susan beside him, he walked downstairs.
He walked to Amelia's side, placing a protective hand on her shoulder, and looked at Daniel with a proud gaze.
He uttered, "With the Davis family's background, if Amelia's kindness didn't have an edge, wouldn't the Davis family's assets have been deceived by those with ill intentions? This matter has nothing to do with Amelia. You insisted on involving her. Now it seems like it's Amelia's fault?"
Daniel's face stiffened slightly. He retorted. "I never intended to involve Amelia in anything. Don't try to sow discord here."
Frederick sneered, "You asked Amelia to return your favor, and now you blame me for sowing discord. Whether anything happened between you and Ruth and whether the child in her belly is yours, you should know best, right?"
Frederick paused, then questioned,"Mrs. Vanderbilt is your mother. Do you not know her attitude toward Ruth?"
Daniel was rendered speechless by Frederick's questions, but Frederick didn't intend to end the topic there and continued. "When the child was still in Ruth's belly, you didn't seem to care much about her. Now that the baby is gone, you act like you're deeply in love with her."
Frederick remarked sarcastically, "Mr. Vanderbilt, you just don't want to take responsibility for Ruth, but you also don't want to be labeled as heartless and ungrateful. You want the world to know that you're a man of deep emotions and loyalty, right?"
Daniel's eyes showed a hint of anger, but he couldn't find any words to refute Frederick. Instead, he stood there, awkward and exposed.
Amelia glanced at Frederick standing beside her, raising her eyebrows slightly.
She had only seen Frederick being sharp-tongued when dealing with work matters. Seeing him now fiercely defending her with words, her heart felt warm. Frederick wasn't so taciturn after all.
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