Chapter 520 A Private Talk with Chris
Chris was visibly taken aback.
In the past, Thalassa was very sensitive about his early loss, his mother's tragic departure.
He never brought it up in front of Chris.
"Thalassa, don’t listen to baseless rumors," Chris said in a grave voice.
Even though they had been apart for a while, Chris still interacted with him in the same manner as before.
He wanted to outright reject and deny her suspicions.
"How did she really die?" Thalassa suddenly stood up, raising his voice in demand.
When Thalassa arrived at the Shaw family home, she was still young.
She only vaguely knew that Chris's mother had supposedly committed suicide due to postpartum depression after giving birth to Walker.
Then it occurred to her, from the beginning, Justin seemed to intentionally steer the conversation subtly.
This made her feel increasingly uneasy.
Chris looked at Thalassa, her face a complex mix of emotions.
"Sleeping pills." Chris's voice trembled.
Her mother had been found by him first.
She left a suicide note.
She took an overdose of sleeping pills.
By the time Chris found her, her body was already stiff, beyond any chance of rescue.
"Where was Justin that day? Was there an autopsy? I heard her body was rushed to be cremated without one, is that right?"
"Thalassa!" Chris exclaimed in a low, stern voice.
Seeing the tension, Kenny stepped in, pulling Thalassa behind him and stood in front of Chris, “What are you yelling about?”
Chris glared at Kenny, enraged, “This doesn’t concern you!”
The atmosphere was charged with hostility.
Justin, supported by the other two named Charles, appeared.
His face was a mess of tears and snot; he truly looked utterly distraught.
"Mr. Walker, what are you trying to do? Our family is already torn apart. Are you really going to start a fight with my Charles here too?" Seeing Kenny confronting Chris, Justin expressed even greater dismay, “Thalassa, at least let your mom rest in peace, can you?”
“Justin, stop putting on an act here; I know it was you!” Thalassa glared at Justin fiercely.
She had never hated someone this much in her life.
"My mom would never go to that remote place!"
"Thalassa, I know you’re mad at me, but I had an alibi that day!" Justin exclaimed, looking like someone who had been wronged by the world.
Nearby, Walker, who never got along with Thalassa, said with disgust, "Besides, the guys who checked the scene said Maria’s death was consistent with drowning. She was reaching out to you for help and you ignored her. In agony, she chose to take her own life. You are the real killer!"
Thalassa's pupils shook violently.
Then, Justin stepped in to play the good guy.
He raised his hand and slapped Walker hard on the face. "You jerk, who gave you the right to talk to my stepdaughter like that?"
"What did I say wrong?" Walker shouted, enraged. "She's the reason our house has been in chaos and we can't run our business. She left her mother, who raised her, feeling hopeless!"
"Thalassa, Walker was raised by your mother too. He cares deeply about her, don't be mad at him," Justin said, ignoring Walker and turning to Thalassa. "What's done is done. Whether you hold a grudge against me or not, your mother’s funeral is what matters most. After giving it a lot of thought, I've decided that your father was always the man your mother loved most. So, after the cremation, I think they should be buried together…"
"You want to cremate my mother now?" Thalassa caught the key point in Justin’s words.
Justin was taken aback, looking bewildered at her. "The autopsy is done. Do you want to let your mom stay in the morgue indefinitely, her soul unrested?"
"It’s only once we find the person who killed my mom and bring them to justice that her soul will rest in peace!" Thalassa's grip tightened on Kenny’s hand. "Until then, I won’t allow anyone to touch my mother!"
"Thalassa, I am her husband…" Justin looked at Thalassa, his eyes beginning to challenge her.
"Then, try to take Maria away without my wife’s consent," Kenny replied coolly, his presence suddenly overwhelming.
The pressure was so intense that Justin and his son unconsciously frowning.
"Justin, I’m not one of your foolish yes-men. Your ex-wife died under mysterious circumstances, and you had her cremated without an autopsy, closing the book on her life with a suicide verdict. That won’t work with me!"
Justin looked at Thalassa. "Kenny, can I have a word alone with Thalassa?"
"No," Kenny spoke firmly, brooking no opposition.
Thalassa offered no objections.
"Mr. Walker, can you stop making a mess of things? We just want to resolve this family matter quickly," Chris said sternly.
He despised Kenny's hold over Thalassa.
"I'm afraid what I have to say to her is something Thalassa wouldn't want you to hear," Justin's tone cooled, his face still adorned with a false smile.
Chris was taken aback.
He looked at Justin with surprise, already guessing what Justin was about to reveal.
"Dad, don't go too far!" Chris rebuked while reaching out to grab Justin's arm. "Let's go back and pack up Mrs. Maria’s belongings."
Justin only glanced at Thalassa, offering no resistance.
He followed the impatient Chris and left.
The hallway quickly returned to its previous eerie silence.
Thalassa collapsed back into her chair.
She knew Walker was right.
If she had checked the messages that day and contacted Maria, she wouldn't have died.
The trio of Justin and his sons silently made their way to the parking lot.
Chris stopped first and glanced at his two younger brothers "You guys go on home, Dad and I need to talk alone."
"You don't really believe what that ingrate said, suspecting that Dad is behind Mom's death, do you?" Walker's brows were furrowed.
"When I tell you to leave, just leave. Why so much talk?" Chris snapped.
Walker snorted and stormed off.
Once the two brothers were gone,
Chris turned to Justin. "What were you going to say to Thalassa earlier?"
"What do you think?" Justin looked at Chris coldly. "Chris, she's changed her heart. Look at her and Kenny, holding hands the entire time so tightly."
"Shut up!" Chris's breathing became rapid. "What exactly do you have to do with Mrs. Maria's death? Why the rush to cremate her, and even think of using Thalassa's and my situation to threaten her?"
"I just wanted to get rid of a headache," Justin said impatiently. "Maria, that wretched woman, has been no better than a madwoman these last two months. She drove me to find comfort in other women, and in the end, she played the victim! Do you know, on the day she died, she was not only trying to catch me cheating, but she also got her family involved to extort five million from me!"
Chris frowned deeply.
Justin continued, "I despised her and just wanted to burn her to ashes quickly, to keep everything related to Maria far away!"
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