Free Web NovelChapter 710: What Happened to That Man?
The atmosphere in the room felt tense.
Tom seemed to have trouble wrapping his mind around this.
The maid made some tea and sent it over.
Tom did not expect his older sister’s daughter to be Wendy, and she was even married to Michael.
Since they were both bigshots, the Stewarts could not afford to offend either of them.
"Are you really Sylvia’s daughter?" Tom remained in disbelief.
After Sylvia got pregnant and left home, the family was unable to find her.
Also, Sylvia had changed her name and kept a low profile by living in a small town like Linton.
No one in the family knew what happened to Sylvia after she left.
If she had not come home previously, Tom would not even know she was still alive.
Tom looked at Wendy as she nodded. He finally believed it was true even though it seemed inconceivable.
"Uncle Tom, can I see Granny?" asked Wendy sincerely.
"Ms. Stewart..." Tom hesitated before he said, "The family had already severed ties with Sylvia thirty years ago. If you are not here for business, then we do not have anything to talk about."
"We are here for business." Michael could not bear seeing his wife disappointed, so he said immediately, "Mr. Stewart, let’s talk about business then. If you let us see your mother, I will invest in Stewart Corporation. I can get you publicly listed any day."
The moment Michael said this, Wendy pulled his arm and gestured to ease up a little.
"Mr. Lucas, is that a threat?" asked Tom. "If I do not agree to your demands, will Stewart Corporation get bankrupted?"
Tom was genuinely flustered.
The man before him was Michael Lucas, and he could not afford to offend the richest man in town.
Michael smiled as he said confidently, "You are a smart man, Uncle Tom."
Wendy sighed as she listened to their conversation.
Sure enough, Michael was pulling threats at her uncle.
However, Michael’s threats seemed to work well on Tom.
Tom hesitated before he said, "Fine. Follow me then."
Tom stood up and led the way up ahead.
Before long, Tom brought Wendy and Michael to a room.
Tom knocked on the door gently and opened the door when he was permitted to enter.
Wendy saw her grandmother lying on the bed the moment the door opened.
"My mother was paralyzed a couple of years back. She can’t walk, so she is in bed all the time," sighed Tom sadly.
Tom did not agree to let Wendy and Michael see his mother solely because of Michael’s threats.
He knew that his mother always felt sorry about his older sister, Sylvia.
Although his mother refused to admit it, the maid told him that his mother would say Sylvia’s name in her sleep every now and then.
"Tom, why are you back at this hour?" Janine spoke weakly from the bed. "Who are they?"
The maid had already told her that Sylvia’s daughter and son-in-law were here, so she instantly caught on to who they were.
"Granny, I am Sylvia’s daughter, Wendy. This is my husband, Michael," introduced Wendy courteously.
"Did I not say I do not want to see you?" Since Janine spoke weakly, it was impossible to tell how she felt about seeing Wendy.
"Granny, I am sorry. I made my Uncle Tom bring us here," said Wendy. "My mother made a mistake and hurt your feelings in the past. However, she has lived in regret all these years. She has always wanted to come back and make up for what she has done. On behalf of my mother, allow me to apologize."
The moment she finished her sentence, Wendy bowed deeply.
...
Janine turned around, looking at Wendy’s pregnant stomach, and sighed. "How many months?" She asked.
Wendy did not understand the question at first, but she soon realized what her grandmother was asking. She answered, "A little more than seven months."
"Don’t bend your back. It’s bad for the baby." Janine struggled to sit up straight.
Tom immediately stepped up and helped his grandmother sit up on the bed.
Now that she was sitting up straight, Janine took a closer look at Wendy’s face.
She studied every detail on her face. Soon, tears began to well up in her eyes. "You look like her."
Wendy and Michael did not know what Janine meant, but Tom did.
When Tom first saw Wendy, he did not think that was the case, but when he knew that Wendy was his elder sister’s daughter, he realized that she looked a lot like Mary when she was younger.
"Come closer," Janine said.
Wendy took two steps forward when she realized that Janine was talking to her.
Michael also stepped forward with Wendy.
Janine stretched out her hand with much difficulty. She wanted to touch Wendy’s face.
However, her hand stopped midair and dropped on the bed.
She had been paralyzed for two years, and the muscles in her body had atrophied.
At first, she could not walk then after being bedridden for a long time, her arms had become weaker too.
When Wendy saw that, she took her grandmother’s hand and placed it on her cheek.
"I’m sorry, grandma. It’s quite a sudden visit, and we didn’t inform you before we came here," Wendy said apologetically.
Wendy did not inform her grandmother in advance because there was no point in doing so.
"Sylvia’s daughter is already so grown up." Janine smiled. She puller her hand away and sighed again. "Why do you come here today?"
"Grandma, we would like to apologize to you on behalf of my mother," Wendy said sincerely. "My mother was young and impatient, and she had done something wrong to hurt you. She knows that she’s wrong now, and that man will spend the rest of his life in prison."
"What happened to that man?" Janine seemed visibly agitated when she heard that.
"He changed his name, went to Rheinsville City, and started a company there. He ran violated the law and was sentenced to twenty years in prison," Wendy answered truthfully.
"Twenty years? Hahahaha..." Janine suddenly burst out laughing. "Great. This is great. There is justice in this world after all. Do you hear that, old pal? He broke the law and got sentenced to twenty years in prison..."
Her laughter eventually turned into sobs.
Words could not describe how much Janine hated Timothy Woods. None of this would have happened to her family if not for that man.
"Grandma, my mother had always wanted to come and visit you," Wendy said. "It’s my mother’s birthday next week, and she wants to come and visit you if it’s alright?"
"This is the real reason why you’re here today, right?" Janine asked when she noticed the hesitance on Wendy’s face.
Wendy did not hide the truth from her grandmother. She nodded and said, "It’s been so many years, grandma. My mother has also suffered a lot over these years, and I believe that she has already received the punishment she deserves. She’s your daughter, and I believe that you miss her too."
Wendy rubbed her stomach before continuing to speak, "I have a pair of twins, and they’re already seven years old now. As a mother, I know that all mothers cannot hate their children forever. My mother is already old, and I believe that she has already suffered enough for all these years."
...
"Ms. Stewart, Mother isn’t only just a mother but also a wife. Back then, she had..." Before Tom could finish his sentence, Michael stepped up to him and placed his hand on Tom’s shoulder. "Uncle Tom, I’d like to discuss something with you. How about we go outside and have a chat?"
While Michael said that, he led Tom out of the room.
That way, only Wendy and Janine were left in the room.
Tom wanted to say something, but he was already taken outside.
"Don’t you want to see the family be together again, grandma?" Tears were welling up in Wendy’s eyes as she spoke. "Grandpa might not be with us now, but if he were still alive, he wouldn’t want to see you bearing a grudge against your daughter for so many years."
"I’ve never met my grandpa before, but I believe that he loved my mother.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone away alone to search for her over thirty years ago. I believe he would want to see you reconcile with your daughter."
Tears blurred Janine’s eyes.
She wanted to wipe her tears away, but she could not lift her hands at all.
Wendy immediately took a facial tissue and wiped her grandmother’s tears with it.
She did not continue talking. Instead, she wanted her grandmother to consider it herself.
She knew that her grandmother would agree with her.
Just like what she said, no mother in the world would hate their children forever.
Moreover, if Janine still carried a grudge against Mary, she would have asked Tom to tell Wendy and Michael off when they came to visit her.
If Janine agreed to meet them and talk with Wendy, it was proof enough that she wanted to reconcile with Mary.
"Sylvia, she..." Janine spoke, "How has she been all these years?"
Wendy was not surprised to hear that question from Janine.
Instead, she said happily, "Grandma, you can ask these questions to my mother when you meet her next week, alright?"
Janine did not say anything. At this point, her silence could be taken as an indirect acknowledgment.
When Wendy came out of Janine’s room, she saw Michael and Tom chatting in the living room.
"Wendy..." Michael stood up when he saw Wendy. He went over to her side and supported her. "How did it go?" He asked softly.
Wendy smiled and nodded.
The caretaker came and told Wendy, "Madam requests for you to have dinner here and stay for the night."
Michael glanced at the time. It was almost six o’clock.
He did not have any second thought with the suggestion. Moreover, Wendy was pregnant, and she would appreciate not having to rush back home so late at night.
Michael nodded and said, "Thank you for letting us stay with you."
After dinner, Wendy continued to chat with her grandmother.
She showed Janine photos of Leah and Jake.
She could tell that her grandmother adored her children. Janine also said that she could bring the children over next week. freёweɓnovel.com
Surely, Wendy agreed to it.
The next morning, after breakfast, Wendy and Michael prepared to leave.
The caretaker handed Wendy an envelope. "This is a small token from Madam. She said that it’s for your first visit here."
"No, we can’t possibly accept her money." Wendy was a little embarrassed. She did not even bring presents when she came here.
Tom said casually, "Just take it. It’s a family tradition to give a little something to our grand-niece when she visits us for the first time."
After that, Tom remembered that he had to give them something too, but he did not prepare anything.
He went to the caretaker and asked her softly, "Do you have another envelope?"
The caretaker smiled and handed one to Tom. "Madam has already prepared one for you."
Tom took the envelope, went back to his room, stuffed some cash inside, and handed it to the couple. "Here. It’s important to keep up with our traditions. I wouldn’t want your other relatives to say that I’m stingy."
Wendy smiled when she sensed Tom’s awkwardness. "Thank you, grandma. Thank you, Uncle Tom."
