The entire hallway fell into an eerie silence.
Daniella Sullivan watched Charlotte Rhodes’s expression twist in horror and quickly berated him. "Sean Harrison! Do you hear yourself?! She’s your mother! You wouldn’t even exist without her! Are you really going to abandon your own mother for a girlfriend?"
Charlotte Rhodes’s face was ashen.
She couldn’t utter a single word.
Sean Harrison completely ignored Daniella Sullivan.
He asked Charlotte Rhodes, "What, are you disappointed in again? That son you were raising on the side—can you still find him? If not, give his information. I’ll help you look."
Charlotte Rhodes’s expression was grim.
Sean Harrison continued, "Didn’t you say he was a great student? Being a good student ans he’s smart, so he can’t be doing too badly for himself. It might not be too late for you to go back to him."
The hallway was utterly silent.
Sean Harrison stated all of this with perfect calm.
Even Daniella Sullivan didn’t dare to speak.
As Charlotte Rhodes’s good friend, she was fully aware of the history between the mother and son.
When Charlotte Rhodes married Sean Harrison’s father, the Rhodes Family’s fortunes had already been in steep decline.
Within just a few years, Sean’s father had grown very cold toward her and had taken a mistress.
The two of them were constantly at odds.
The Rhodes Family’s decline had accelerated during those years.
Charlotte Rhodes had pinned all her hopes on her son.
Unfortunately, Sean Harrison hadn’t been so exceptional from the start. As a child, he was, at most, a smart and sensible boy.
Charlotte Rhodes would savagely beat and curse him, trying to force him to beco exceptional.
But Sean never seed to et her expectations.
Later, Charlotte Rhodes even planned to go to an orphanage to adopt another bright little Chinese boy.
One year.
She even locked Sean Harrison in the attic and celebrated Christmas alone with that little boy.
During that ti, Charlotte Rhodes repeatedly declared her intention to send Sean Harrison away and keep the other boy.
However, one year, Sean Harrison’s personality suddenly changed drastically.
His academics and all his other abilities advanced by leaps and bounds.
Only then did Charlotte Rhodes give up on the idea.
In the blink of an eye, so many years had passed since then.
Thinking back on it now, Sean Harrison must have long harbored resentnt toward Charlotte Rhodes.
After saying his piece, Sean Harrison didn’t bother waiting for Charlotte Rhodes’s reply and turned to leave.
-
After leaving the hospital, Sean Harrison went straight to the airport.
He had scheduled a lot of work for himself recently.
He wanted to get as much done as possible while Rory Linden was away on her rural dical outreach trip.
That way, when she returned, they could spend more ti together.
He had just entered the departure lounge when he happened to run into Henry Lancaster.
"Boss?!" Henry Lancaster was also a bit surprised to see Sean Harrison. He leaned in and said, "What’s this I hear about Nadia Willow having an accident and losing her mory?"
"I’m the one who knocked her into amnesia."
Sean Harrison said it bluntly.
Henry Lancaster was so shocked his jaw dropped. "You know a trick like that? You have to teach !"
Sean Harrison said, "If soone wants to have amnesia, they’ll get it whether you hit them or not."
Henry Lancaster imdiately understood what was going on.
He hadn’t known Sean Harrison for very long, but he had helped him handle so matters abroad concerning Nadia Willow and her ex-husband.
He was experienced when it ca to romance.
The way Nadia Willow talked about Sean Harrison made it obvious that she was into him.
"Most people would throw a fit—crying, screaming, threatening to hang themselves. But she just goes and fakes amnesia," Henry Lancaster muttered to himself. "How could a stunt like that possibly work?"
Henry Lancaster knew Sean Harrison well enough.
’If my boss could be taken down by a cheap trick like that...’
He’d never have achieved what he has today.
However, Nadia Willow quickly moved on to the next phase of her plan.
That evening, Sean Harrison was at a banquet, discussing work.
A call ca in from Charlotte Rhodes.
She got straight to the point. "Nadia Willow tried to kill herself."
Sean Harrison, holding a glass of champagne, took a casual sip. "I’ll be back for her funeral."
Charlotte Rhodes was clearly stunned by her son’s indifferent attitude.
After all, in a way, Nadia and he had grown up together.
When Nadia Willow got married, he had even given her a large red envelope with cash.
Though he later found out it was used to help Nadia’s ex-husband pay off his gambling debts.
But she had always thought her son’s relationship with Nadia wasn’t this bad...
Charlotte Rhodes said angrily, "Sean Harrison, when did you beco like this? It’s because of that Rory Linden, isn’t it? What on earth did she do to make you this way! She—"
"Mom," Sean Harrison cut his mother off. "If you dare bother Rory Linden, I will kill Nadia Willow and go to prison."
"You..."
"And then you can go bring back that son you like so much. What was his na again? Leo, was it?"
Sean Harrison’s tone was perfectly level.
In all these years, this was the first ti he had ever said these things.
Previously, it was always Charlotte Rhodes who said them.
Charlotte Rhodes was always saying—
"I’m going to throw you out and let Leo co live here."
"You can’t even do sothing this simple. Leo wouldn’t have any trouble."
"If you weren’t my biological son, I would have thrown you out long ago."
Charlotte Rhodes was on the verge of a breakdown. "If I hadn’t pushed you like that, would you have achieved what you have today?!"
She had completely deluded herself into thinking that Sean Harrison understood her tough love.
She never expected that her son would one day use those sa words to hurt her!
"My achievents today have nothing to do with you. But you are my mother, so naturally, I can’t treat you the way you treated ."
Sean Harrison was attending a banquet.
He was there for work.
A few ters away, a CEO was waiting to talk business with him.
He said, "I have to get back to work," and hung up the phone.
-
By this ti, Rory Linden had already arrived at the first small village.
It was already dusk when the bus arrived.
After being assigned their dorms and dropping off their luggage, they went straight to dinner.
Rory Linden was sharing a dorm room with several of the accompanying nurses.
Dinner was a simple al prepared by the villagers.
After dinner, everyone else went back to their dorms to rest early.
Evan Hollis volunteered to stay behind and move tables and chairs. He wanted to get the consultation area set up for the next day so they could start work right away in the morning.
Rory Linden also stayed behind to help.
The two of them finished moving everything before getting ready to leave.
Night had fallen.
Rory Linden happened to glance up.
The moonlight was cool as water.
The river of stars, boundless.
Evan Hollis also looked up at the sky.
He pointed to a pair of stars on the horizon. "Do you think those two could be my mom and dad, watching over from up there?"
"Hmm..." Rory Linden saw a twinkling star and added, "I think I see my mom, too..."
The two of them found a place to sit down.
It was very quiet all around.
They just sat there, looking up at the sky.
"I was just kidding. My parents probably aren’t up there. The truth is, I was abandoned by them." Evan Hollis paused. "What’s worse is, I was abandoned twice."
Rory Linden knew what he ant.
’The other ti was by the woman he ntioned who had wanted to adopt him.’
"It’s not your fault."
Rory Linden was still trying to figure out how to comfort him...
"I know. Of course it’s not my fault. I’m smart, sensible, a good student, and I know how to care about people. Abandoning was their loss!"
Evan Hollis declared, speaking as if to himself.
His tone was light and cheerful.
But his eyes held a sadness that even the night couldn’t hide.
As if to cover up his feelings, Evan Hollis looked at Rory Linden again.
"Enough about . I don’t have many happy stories to tell. Why don’t you tell about yourself? For example... how did you and your boyfriend et? What do you two usually do? I could take so notes for when I get a girlfriend in the future."
Reviews
All reviews (0)