Chapter 7 Who is the Thief

The Williams Villa was just a hop, skip, and a jump from the Johnson Villa. This wasn't in the city, and the road was pretty much deserted. Emily took her sweet time, taking half an hour to cover a short distance.

She had changed into a nice outfit and shoes at John's place. Everything seemed fine, but standing at the villa's entrance, she still felt super uneasy.

As Emily pushed open the door, even Amelia Martinez, the housekeeper, gave her a look of disdain. "Ms. Johnson, why are you back? Today is Miss Taylor's birthday. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are busy celebrating. They don't have time for you right now."

Facing the housekeeper's judgmental gaze, Emily awkwardly shifted her position. "Amelia, I'm just here to visit my parents, nothing else."

Amelia gave Emily a once-over but eventually stepped aside. "Go on in."

Since marrying into the Smith Family, Emily rarely came back to visit. The villa's furnishings were the same as always, but the traces of Emily and Ava's lives were gone.

This house used to be filled with their family's laughter, photos they took together, and the furniture and toys Emily liked. After Emily left eight years ago, those little things were swept out just like she was.

Emily lowered her head and stopped looking around.

Passing through the living room, she saw the dining table set with fancy silver cutlery, arranged neatly. In the center of the table was a three-tiered cake with silver wings on it.

The cake Emily once loved and wanted so much was now Isabella's birthday cake. Emily felt a pang in her heart and had to look up to avoid tears from falling. This was Isabella's birthday. Even if Emily didn't like Isabella, she couldn't ruin the mood.

"Aiden, I'm back."

The three people in front of her were happily chatting. Isabella wore a crown on her head, laughing exuberantly with Aiden and Mia surrounding her.

After Ava passed away, Mia, the daughter of the Wilson Family, the old-established family in Mist Isle City, came over with Isabella.

Aiden thought that the marriage would bring many benefits to the Johnson Family. But times had changed, and these old-established families were gradually being drowned in the tide of the times, losing their influence. The union of two families didn't make their life better until Emily married James.

But Isabella was lucky; at least Aiden genuinely loved her for the Wilson Family's sake. Even though Emily could understand a lot of things, the pain in her heart was still overwhelming. After all, Aiden was her father too.

Hearing her voice, the three people at the table turned around in surprise. Aiden instinctively frowned and stood up, the smile on his face vanishing the moment he saw Emily. "Why are you back? Aren't you supposed to be at home with the kid?"

Meanwhile, Isabella put down her fork in displeasure, her eyes filled with undisguised malice as she wondered why Emily couldn't just disappear from this house completely. "Yeah, today is my birthday. What are you doing here? Don't you know we don't like you?"

The disdain on Aiden's face became even more apparent as he heard Isabella's complaint. "Go back quickly. Don't be an eyesore here. If you make James unhappy, you'll be in trouble."

"How did Amelia let Emily into the house? Dad, make Emily leave," Isabella demanded.

Emily felt a sharp pain in her heart as she thought, 'This is my home too. Why can Isabella willfully drive me away, even if I am Aiden's biological daughter?'

"Dad, I—" Emily tried to explain.

"Shut up," Aiden snapped, clearly not in a good mood.

"Don't work up." Seeing Aiden's expression, Mia, who had been silent, felt secretly pleased but put on a magnanimous facade, pretending to mediate.

Mia wore a blue dress, with jewelry from a recent auction around her neck. She raised her wrist, her voice carrying an annoying tone. "Maybe Emily remembered Isabella's birthday and came back on purpose. Aiden, calm down."

Then she turned to Emily with a look of pity and condescension. "Emily, next time you come back, you should let us know in advance. We didn't prepare any food for you, and today is Isabella's birthday. Isabella has a bad temper, so don't mind her."

"Mia, you're still speaking up for her. It's Isabella's birthday, and she didn't even bring a gift," Aiden snorted coldly, turning to Emily. "You should thank Mia. If it weren't for her speaking up for you every day, you wouldn't even be able to step into this house."

"Don't say that," Mia covered her mouth. "Emily will be upset."

"Does she have the right to be upset? If she were as sensible as Isabella, I would be much more at ease," Aiden waved his hand in annoyance.

Seeing the undisguised malice from these people, Emily felt even more wronged. She lowered her eyes, her voice heavy with disappointment. "Dad, I divorced James."

Before she could finish, Aiden slapped her across the face.