Chapter 381 So What if We're Related by Blood?
After she finished speaking, Reese left the stage, and the reporters immediately swarmed around her.
At that moment, Malcolm walked toward her, instructing Justin to have a few people control these reporters.
Reese was extremely displeased, especially being surrounded by these people. Her slender body exuded a daunting momentum, and her eyes were sharp and piercing, making some of the reporters feel intimidated.
"Instead of wasting your time surrounding me here, you might as well go interview Mr. Hawthorne properly to ask how he abandoned his family back then. How did he not feel moved to come looking for his daughter even after knowing her whereabouts? I believe you will definitely gain a lot to write about," she coldly said.
"I suggest everyone ask Mr. Hawthorne why he suddenly revealed this without the consent of the parties involved. Is Mr. Hawthorne too confident in his role as a father, or does he think everyone wants to climb the Hawthorne family's ladder?"
Malcolm suddenly walked into the crowd and stood by Reese's side, his long arm naturally resting on her shoulder as if he wanted to lend strength to her.
He knew that the conversation Reese had with Stephen just now had exhausted her strength. Although she appeared calm on the surface now, there was probably a storm brewing inside her.
No matter how strong Reese usually appeared on the outside, she was ultimately just a normal person. Like other normal people, she had emotions. She wasn't someone who disregarded everything.
On the contrary, she was more human than anyone else, but in her world, some boundaries were very clear.
Reese turned her head and saw Malcolm. There was always a sense of stability that settled her down when she was with him. This wasn't the first time, and it had happened several times before. No matter when, in her most frantic moments, Malcolm's presence could calm her down.
This fact made her feel strange as well.
She then tightened her grip on Malcolm's hand and calmly addressed the reporters.
"When Mr. Hawthorne abandoned me and my mother back then, I was still very young, and I don't remember the details clearly. If the reporters want to know specific details, I think it's more appropriate to ask Mr. Hawthorne."
After speaking, she smiled at Malcolm and said, "Honey, let's go home."
"Agreed. Justin is already waiting for us outside."
The reporters naturally wouldn't miss this great opportunity. For so many years, there hadn't been any major scandals, but today they finally caught something.
Stephen's face turned pale with anger. Since the Hawthorne family had reached its current glorious state, he had never been insulted like this before.
A birthday banquet had turned into his most embarrassing moment. He had clearly underestimated Reese and, more importantly, underestimated her courage.
Reese had made herself an enemy of the entire Hawthorne family. Whose side was she on?
Before Stephen could react, the reporters had already surrounded him, their flashing cameras aimed at him.
"Mr. Hawthorne, why did you abandon Ms. Brooks and her mother back then?"
"Ms. Brooks just said that you knew she was your daughter, but you hesitated to acknowledge her. Why did you choose today to recognize her?"
"It seems that Ms. Brooks is not willing to acknowledge you. Haven't you discussed this before? Is everything that happened today part of your plan, Mr. Hawthorne? Was Ms. Brooks unaware of it?"
These reporters engulfed Stephen, their sharp questions buzzing in his ears, making his head spin. He swayed, his vision darkened, and he collapsed.
A commotion erupted in the crowd.
"Mr. Hawthorne, Mr. Hawthorne."
"Call 911 quickly."
"Stephen, Stephen."
The scene was chaotic.
The reporters online had already detailed everything that happened today. The Hawthorne family had become the laughingstock of the industry, and the reputation of the Hawthorne Group had been severely affected.
Reese saw the chaotic scene on the screen, a faint cold smile appearing on her face.
"Serves them right."
Compared to the helpless despair when she and her mother were kicked out of the house, what Reese did to Stephen was nothing.
Alyssa, however, couldn't feel happy. Although she didn't usually care about the business world, the Hawthorne family was a big enterprise after all, and there were several sons in the Hawthorne family.
Alyssa turned to Reese and said, "Reese, by doing this, you've already made enemies with the entire Hawthorne family. Sebastian, Stephen's son, may not harm you, but Clara Hawthorne is in his family, and Stephen has two more sons. If they find out about this, they might cause trouble for you."
Reese, however, was fearless. "In all these years, have you ever seen me afraid of anything?"
Reese had been through tough times before. Could she be afraid of those few people now? Even if the Hawthorne family wanted to come after her, they needed to have the ability to do so.
Seeing Reese so composed, Alyssa felt relieved, but she was worried about potential trouble in the future.
Malcolm was also unworried. "Alyssa, with me here, what are you afraid of? Who dares to bully you?"
Alyssa chuckled, covering her mouth. "I almost forgot about you. Both of you are extraordinary individuals. Who would dare to bully you?"
Returning to the topic, Malcolm said. "But jokes aside, the main point is that Stephen is in the hospital now, and I heard that his health has never been good."
"Don't worry, I've seen his complexion. He may have minor issues, but it won't be life-threatening."
Reese was always sensible in her actions. She wouldn't disregard someone's life, even if Stephen had abandoned her and her mother. However, he wouldn't pay with his life for his past actions.
At that moment, Reese's phone rang. Seeing it was an unknown number, she didn't think much of it and answered the call.
"Who is this?"
"Reese, you're being too harsh. No matter what, he is your biological father. By pressuring him like this on stage today, what's the difference between you and him back then? Dad is now in the hospital and still being treated. If something happens to him, the Hawthorne family won't let you off!"
Sebastian dared to call Reese by her name for the first time after so many incidents, showing how angry he was.
But Reese wouldn't let others affect her mood, especially those irrelevant people.
Her voice was cold, devoid of any warmth. "If it weren't for your actions, none of this would have happened. I warned you a long time ago not to contact me. Now that you've broken the rules, who can you blame?"
Moreover, Stephen's past actions had only led to a small consequence for him. It wasn't a big deal.
Sebastian felt that he was no match for Reese. Although he was now full of momentum and wanted to confront her, he had to admit that she was right.
But he was a member of the Hawthorne family. He couldn't tell Reese that he agreed with her. If Sebastian agreed with Reese, she would be even less likely to return to the Hawthorne family.
He could only act as a mediator, but he didn't entirely agree with Stephen's intention to use Reese to make money.
Unfortunately, Sebastian couldn't speak his mind due to his position.
After a long silence, Sebastian spoke again, almost squeezing the words out of his teeth.
"Even so, you shouldn't be so harsh. After all, he is your biological father. You have a blood relationship with him."
Reese retorted, "So what if we're related by blood? In this world, some people with blood ties are not as good as those without."
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