Chapter 354 Do youAgree?
"So you finally decided to show up?" Aurora snapped, her voice full of venom. She lunged at Adeline, fists clenched, but the bodyguards at the door quickly stopped her.
"Let go of me!" she screamed, her face twisted with rage. "I won't be satisfied until I slap some sense into her!"
Adeline, still weak and trembling, surprised everyone by stepping forward. "It's okay," she said, her voice calm despite the tremor in her chest. "Let her go. If hitting me gives Mrs. Carter any peace, then so be it."
"Adeline, you're in no condition..." Violet started, worry etched on her face, but Adeline silenced her with a look.
"I owe her an apology," she murmured, eyes on Aurora.
Seeing the bodyguards hesitate, Adeline took a shaky step toward the furious woman. "I understand your pain, Mrs. Carter," she said, voice thick with emotion. "I lost my son too. I know the agony."
She thought of Bennett, her precious six-year-old, and the gaping hole his absence left in her heart. Aurora had lost her son too, a son old enough to have dreams. And unlike Adeline, Sebastian was Aurora's only child.
A terrible guilt gnawed at Adeline. If she hadn't asked Sebastian to watch her kids, he wouldn't have been caught in the crossfire. He wouldn't have died with Bennett, their bodies lost in the inferno.
She deserved Aurora's anger.
Slowly, Adeline sank to her knees before Aurora. "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Carter," she whispered, voice choked with remorse.
Aurora stared down at her, chest heaving, expression flickering between fury and disbelief. "Sorry?" she spat, scornful. "You think 'sorry' can bring back my son?"
Without warning, she slapped Adeline hard across the face.
The blow sent Adeline reeling, her head snapping to the side. Blood trickled from the corner of her lips.
Violet rushed to her side, eyes wide with alarm. "Adeline! Why didn't you move?"
Adeline touched her lip, wincing at the taste of blood. "It's okay," she mumbled, voice slurred. "I deserved that." She looked up at Aurora, steady. "Want to hit me again?"
Aurora hesitated, hand still raised, expression shifting from rage to bewilderment.
Seeing Adeline's pale face and blood-stained lips, a flicker of pity momentarily dimmed the fire in Aurora's eyes. But then she remembered Sebastian, her son, cold and lifeless, and her anger flared anew.
"Don't act like the victim here!" she shrieked, voice raw with pain. "My son is dead! My only son! A thousand slaps wouldn't be enough!"
"I know," Adeline whispered, barely audible.
No matter how much she begged forgiveness, how much she hurt herself, Sebastian wouldn't return. He was gone. Just like it couldn't bring back Bennett. It was a debt she could never repay.
As Aurora drew back her hand to strike again, a hand shot out, catching her wrist in a firm grip.
"Enough, Mrs. Carter," Jasper's low, dangerous voice cut through the tension.
He frowned, looking between the enraged Aurora and the trembling Adeline on the floor. "Adeline considered Sebastian a friend," he said firmly. "That's why she asked him to look after her kids. And Sebastian thought of her as a friend too. That's why he came to help."
He sighed, shoulders heavy with shared grief. "This tragedy... it wasn't anyone's fault. Adeline lost two children that night. Her pain is just as real as yours."
His eyes locked with Aurora's. "Don't punish her. You're both victims here."
Aurora's shoulders slumped, her anger draining away, leaving raw grief. Tears welled up and spilled down her cheeks.
She remembered Sebastian's last call, his voice excited about Adeline's kids, his plans to join her abroad, to build a life together.
"Mom," he had said, full of optimism, "Adeline is finally free. She's cut ties with Jasper for good. I'm going to take care of her, Mom. I'm going to marry that amazing jewelry designer and we'll be happy. We'll settle down, and I'll finally stop running. I promise."
His words echoed, mocking her with their unfulfilled promises.
Aurora choked back a sob, looking at Adeline, still kneeling, head bowed.
Before she could speak, the elevator doors pinged open and a harried Andrew rushed out, eyes wide with alarm as he saw Aurora.
"Aurora! What have you done?" he exclaimed, pulling her away from Adeline. "She had nothing to do with it!"
He turned to Jasper, face flushed with embarrassment. "Mr. Foster, I'm so sorry. I can't apologize enough for my wife's behavior. She's... she's not well. I brought her here for a psychiatric evaluation, but she slipped away from me."
He glanced at Adeline, his expression softening with concern. "Miss Wilson, are you alright? I'm so sorry for this. Please accept my sincerest apologies."
Adeline shook her head, forcing a weak smile. "I'm fine, Mr. Carter. Truly."
Andrew sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat. He tightened his grip on Aurora's arm, ready to drag her away.
As they reached the elevator, Aurora turned back, locking eyes with Adeline. Her expression was no longer angry, but cold, calculating.
"Sebastian loved you, you know," she said, voice devoid of emotion.
Adeline nodded silently, heart aching. If only Sebastian had never met her.
Aurora continued, voice flat. "Mr. Foster is right. You lost two children that night. I can't blame you for everything."
She paused, her next words sending a chill down everyone's spine. "But Sebastian was my everything. My only son. And I won't let him be alone, not even in death."
She fixed Adeline with a chilling stare. "I want you to be with him."
A stunned silence fell over the hallway. Violet stared at Aurora, eyes wide with shock, then turned to Jasper, who stood frozen, face unreadable.
Andrew, sensing the shift, tightened his grip on Aurora's arm. "Aurora, stop this! What are you saying?" he hissed, voice panicked. "Sebastian is gone! We have to accept that!"
But Aurora was undeterred. Her gaze stayed on Adeline, voice low and steady. "You will marry him."
She continued, voice gaining strength. "I want a simple ceremony. It doesn't have to be grand. You won't be part of the Carter family, no obligations to us. I just... I need you to do this for Sebastian. To fulfill his final wish."
Her eyes narrowed, voice hardening. "And to remind you that you are a married woman. For the rest of your days, you will belong to my son. You will never be with another man. You will never remarry."
She leaned closer, gaze piercing Adeline's. "Do you agree?"
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