Chapter 180 Hayden's Attitude
Hayden gripped the wheelchair handles, trying to stand up, but both attempts flopped. Seeing this, Lila rushed over to help, but Hayden waved her off, a stubborn look in his eyes saying he didn't need it. With a lot of effort, he managed to stand for a second before his strength gave out, and he fell back into the wheelchair.
He let out a long sigh, his voice heavy with sadness. "I'm old. I'm just a burden now."
Looking at his worn-out appearance, I felt a pang of sadness. Hayden had been so dashing and handsome in his youth, but time had taken its toll, and now he looked so old.
I said softly, "Don't say that. With some rest and good food, you'll get better. I'll ask Melissa to whip up some nutritious meals for you; she's great at that."
But Hayden shook his head slowly, looking tired and helpless. "With all the stress at home, no amount of good food will help. The Howard Mansion has plenty of servants and a team of doctors and chefs who know all about nutrition. But despite all these arrangements, I'm still worn out from worrying all day, and my health is going downhill."
He mentioned the "stress at home," and I knew who he was talking about. I understood why he came alone despite his frail health. He had always been decisive and in control, and even now, he held onto that authority.
But Edward and Anne had caused me so much trouble and pain that I didn't want to bring them up. I tried to stay calm, waiting for Hayden to speak first.
Noticing my silence, Hayden sighed and then said to Lila, "I need to talk to Diana alone."
Lila got the hint and exchanged a brief glance with me before leaving the room and gently closing the door behind her.
After a moment of silence, Hayden broke the quiet, his tone steady and direct. "Diana, you know I've always been decisive and hate getting caught up in trivial matters. I came today to clear up some things once and for all."
I wanted to understand Hayden's take on these so-called issues, so I followed his lead and said, "Regarding what happened before..."
But Hayden cut me off, "Regarding what happened before, I know Edward and Anne wronged you. Edward was too protective of Anne, and in his haste, he accidentally pushed you down without seeing the situation clearly."
A bitter smile crossed my lips, and I shook my head lightly, choosing to stay silent. In my heart, I thought, Edward's concern was never for me, and it wasn't an accident; he just didn't care about me.
Hayden awkwardly raised his hand to smooth his sparse hair and continued, "I've had a thorough investigation done. Aria suffered illegal harm, resulting in lifelong disability, and the instigator behind it was Anne. Coupled with the loss of your children, she owes the Howard family two lives."
His voice was low and heavy, each word seemingly squeezed out with difficulty. "I will never forgive her, no matter what."
"Yeah, Anne messed up big time, but she's still young and probably just got confused. I know what she did brought shame to the Howard family and caused me a lot of pain, but she must have had her reasons." I lowered my head, frowning, and my fingers started fiddling with the hem of my clothes as I spoke slowly.
Hearing this, Hayden furrowed his brows, and a flash of anger flickered in his eyes. He slapped the armrest of the wheelchair hard and raised his voice. "Reasons? She was spoiled by Edward her whole life and caused trouble now. But I never thought Edward would still protect her. This time, I won't be lenient. Anne and Clara won't get a penny from me, so you can rest easy."
"Mr. Howard, you know I never cared about the inheritance. I just never thought Anne would have the guts to do something so awful." My eyes were full of sorrow as I touched my belly, my voice dropping. "Aria, despite her humble background, was a kind person. To suffer such an undeserved fate and end up disabled for life is truly pitiful."
I knew that, despite Hayden's disdain for Aria's background, she had once carried a Howard family child. So I deliberately avoided talking about my own grievances and voiced my outrage for Aria instead.
But in my heart, I was plotting, trying to use Hayden to achieve my goals. I also knew that Hayden's seemingly fair and strict words were actually a way to protect the Howard family's reputation and interests. His seemingly protective words towards me were also a way to control and balance the family situation. We were both strategizing in this family conflict.
"Aria was indeed a good person, but she also wronged you. I never expected that she would actually have such a relationship with Edward..." Hayden looked at me regretfully, unable to continue.
I knew that although Hayden had a good impression of Aria, he never expected her to dare to get involved with Edward. I sighed lightly and said, "Aria's child was lost, and Edward believes it was out of my jealousy that I ordered someone to harm Aria..." At this point, I couldn't help but shed tears of grievance.
"Although I love Edward deeply, the child was innocent, and I was also supposed to be a mother soon. No matter how angry I was, I wouldn't harm a child. But now, because of Edward, I've lost my own child too—a child I fought so hard to conceive." I sobbed, my words coming out in fits and starts.
Hearing this, Hayden sighed along with me.
"I've been in the hospital for so long, and I haven't seen Edward. I really miss him." I said.
"What? You mean Edward hasn't visited you in the hospital even once?" Hayden looked shocked.
I nodded sadly and replied, "He must still be angry with me for upsetting Anne. If I hadn't upset her, she wouldn't have grabbed the waiter's knife and hurt herself. And Edward wouldn't have pushed me down."
"That fool is so thoughtless." Hayden angrily slapped the armrest of the wheelchair.
"It's all my fault for being so useless, not being able to protect Anne or my own child. Edward must be furious with me, but I really miss him. Could you please ask Edward to forgive me?" I pleaded.
Hayden responded, "You did nothing wrong; why should you ask for his forgiveness? He is the one who should apologize to you. My foolish son is so blinded by his sister that he has forgotten you."
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
