Chapter 615 Come In, and I'll Tell You
Leonard had barely stepped forward when he noticed the young man's undisguised disgust, as if beholding some loathsome refuse.
Moments later, a servant of the Norton household chased him away: "Scram, you mutt! You've upset Mrs. Norton—hurry off before he loses his temper and does something to you and your dying mother!"
That very night, Leonard's mother departed from this world. By dawn, her body had grown cold.
Throughout the years of his growth, he pondered countless times what his mother had done wrong. The answer was nothing. She was a student reliant on scholarships, and the second son of the Norton family, naturally charming and manipulative, was an insurmountable force against a powerless foreign student.
Perhaps it was the words of Mrs. Norton, or the butler's sharp tongue, or it might have been the mere appearance of Oliver and his disdainful glance, or the servant's threat that "Mr. Norton might kill your dying mother" and his mother's sudden death…
Those moments fused into a fiery motto, turning "Oliver" into the focus of his vengeance. Oliver Windsor became the embodiment of his vengeance, the obsession that haunted him.
He would ensure his mother rested in peace, and to make that haughty Mrs. Norton bow in apology!
Leonard said slowly, “Some folks used to call me a dog, and I've been called worse by my own kin before I took over the family business. And what if I am a dog? I'm living a better life than most, and they still depend on me for their daily bread.”
But when Leonard pinched Susan's chin a tad too hard, making her wince in pain, things got real.
"Susan, what gives you the right to call anyone a 'whore'?" he sneered.
Susan glared back at him, seething. How dare he humiliate her like this!
In that moment, Susan finally realized that she had been in Leonard's sights from the start, not the other way around as she once believed.
"Oh, by the way, I came to remind you that you don't get to use my people just because you're my fiancée," Leonard said, letting go of her chin.
Susan's expression shifted as she realized why Leonard had lashed out.
"How did you find out?" she stuttered, her voice losing its edge. Firming up, she retorted, "I'm your fiancée, the future matriarch of the Ashford family. Can't I utilize a few family members? Besides, they volunteered to help me!"
"Firstly, you are my fiancée," Leonard paused with a smile. "But it doesn't mean you'll be the future lady of the house. And secondly, those folks you mentioned? They won't be in the country anymore, and they were the last of the Ashfords at your beck and call."
Leonard turned on his heel and walked away, his disdain obvious even from his silhouette.
"Leonard!" Susan's voice cracked as she called after him. "Are you this upset because of Natalie's Oliver's close call? Have you fallen for that second-rate castoff? That's ridiculous!"
"Valuing a woman's purity so highly, being so archaic and demeaning, Susan, you truly do not deserve the position as the leading lady of the Ashford," Leonard retorted.
When Susan's call came through, there was a chill in Oliver's voice.
"It's me, Oliver," Susan choked out through the phone, her voice quivering and laced with tears.
A year ago, Oliver might have been swayed by such vulnerability.
But Oliver said nothing, his expression cold and teetering on impatience. He strolled to the end of the corridor, the lake breeze greeting him, his gaze resting on the water lilies.
Such a beautiful sight did nothing to lift his brooding spirits.
"Hey, Oliver, I need to see you. Can we talk?" Susan's voice trembled through the line.
"There's nothing to talk about," Oliver replied, his indifference biting through the connection.
Susan felt a chilling wave of shame engulf her.
Taking a deep breath, she clenched her teeth and said, "Oliver, I just want to talk. If you don't want to... then I might just end it all."
"End it all?" Oliver's icy tone grew even colder as he let out a short, mocking laugh. "You think such a pathetic threat would work on me?"
Defeated, Susan's gaze fixed on the ceiling, her spirit draining away.
"What if I trade you information for the talk?" she offered half-heartedly.
"What kind of information?" Oliver wasn't really interested.
"Things you don't know about your hospital stay after the accident."
Alone in the spacious apartment that she used to share with Leonard, Susan stood in the doorway dressed in a slinky dress that hugged her curves. Despite her beauty, there was a haggard look on her face and the imprint of a slapped cheek.
Revulsion flickered in Oliver's eyes as he approached, his disdain apparent.
"Out with it," he demanded.
"Come inside and I'll tell you," she gestured, reaching for his hand.
Oliver deflected her touch without hesitation.
"Just say it here. It's inconvenient for me to go inside," Oliver said, hands in his pockets, his body language screaming urgency and detachment.
"Why is it inconvenient?" Susan asked, feigning ignorance.
Oliver wasn't biting; he gazed down at her with a look that was nothing but cold.
He wasn't the least bit swayed by the sensuous woman trying to allure him.
"Come inside, and then I'll tell you," Susan insisted, her voice wavering.
Losing patience, Oliver turned to leave; he didn't need her so-called 'information'.
"Oliver, wait!" Susan called out desperately, "The person who took care of you in the hospital wasn't me!"
Oliver halted in his tracks. "Who was it then?"
"Come talk, and I'll tell you." Susan felt a pang of jealousy at the thought of the other girl, but she kept a composed facade. "Oliver, I just want to clear things up. Why are you pushing me away like this?"
Oliver halted just a few steps inside the foyer, irritation clear in his voice, "Spit it out, now."
"Oliver, I didn't do anything this time. Are you seriously going to let Natalie hit me again?" Susan wasn't about to spill the beans to Oliver, the information he wanted to hear. She pleaded, tears welling up in her eyes, " Oliver, I admitted my mistake last time - it was my mom's fault. But this time, it was all her!"
Oliver sneered inwardly as he looked at the woman he once fiercely protected and cherished; she was still shifting all the blame onto her mother.
How could this woman be the same little girl who once patiently cared for him in the hospital, offering him encouragement and warmth?
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