In his rage, Ian Vaughn seemed nothing like his usual gentle self, his imposing presence surprising even Ann Vaughn.
Even when he learned that Sylvia Halloway had hired people to slander and humiliate him by twisting the truth, he merely smiled faintly, not taking her actions to heart at all.
It was the first time she saw her uncle so furious...
But as Ann Vaughn processed his words, she felt something off in Ian Vaughn’s message.
"Wait, Uncle, you just said my mom and Laura Quinn were close friends? But weren’t they supposed to have a terrible relationship?"
When Laura Quinn had falsely accused her of poisoning, she’d overheard her expressing her true feelings to Old Master Hawthorne outside the hospital room. Follow current novels on novelꜰire.net
It was because she hated her mother that she targeted her in every way possible, wanting nothing more than to eliminate her as a thorn in her side.
Ian Vaughn maintained a composed face and nodded as he explained, "Laura Quinn was born in The Imperial Capital, but she went to school in Marinia, and she knew your mother since elementary school. Their bond was like that of real sisters."
"It’s hard to summarize in a few words, but if you’re curious, you can check your mom’s room."
Taking the key from Ian Vaughn’s hand, Ann Vaughn stared at it for a while before asking in confusion, "Uncle, you never mentioned this before."
She had thought that after so many years, her mother’s room wouldn’t exist anymore.
Ian Vaughn patted her head lightly, "I never told you because I feared you’d be affected emotionally like us by the things inside. Besides, what do you plan to do in the future? Just let Laura Quinn off the hook?"
Ann Vaughn’s eyes darkened, "She did use Kenny’s life to threaten me, but her skill lies in the fact that she never actually harmed us. Even though I’m angry and unwilling, there’s nothing I can do against her."
Her cunningness is unmatched by Wanda Chamberlain’s extreme ways.
"She’s still Cyrus Hawthorne’s mother, having endured endless suffering to finally return to the Hawthorne Family, and everyone feels guilt and compensates for her." Ann Vaughn laughed bitterly, "Besides, Kenny is also her real grandson. Uncle, who would believe me?"
Who would believe that a grandmother would harm her own grandson?
Uttering such words, she would undoubtedly be condemned instead of Laura Quinn.
The more Ian Vaughn listened, the more his brow furrowed tightly. He hugged Ann Vaughn, patting her back comfortingly, "Uncle believes you, the whole Vaughn Family is your support. Don’t be afraid."
"Uncle," Ann Vaughn’s eyelashes trembled as she spoke in a muffled voice, "I actually tampered with the divorce agreement."
"Kenny’s custody is still mine."
Ian Vaughn couldn’t help but laugh, "Silly sweetie, you’ve already thought to tamper with the divorce agreement? Why didn’t you think to use this method to deceive Laura Quinn then?"
"With your intelligence, you surely could have thought of that." With a sigh, Ian Vaughn added, "You were caught too deeply in your situation."
Hearing his words, Ann Vaughn wanted to argue but remained silent for some reason.
"Uncle, do you find a day long?" she suddenly asked.
Ian Vaughn pondered briefly, "Not long."
"What about nineteen years?" The sharp edges of the key pressed uncomfortably into Ann Vaughn’s palm, but she didn’t notice, "A day may be short, but if you add it to the number nineteen, it becomes the last straw that breaks the camel’s back."
"On New Year’s Day, I waited for him at home all day. I even thought about joining forces with him to deceive Laura Quinn... but Uncle, I couldn’t wait for him."
No matter what they say about things coming back to haunt you.
Looking at Ann Vaughn’s empty and dazed expression, Ian Vaughn’s heart ached.
After a while, Ann Vaughn lifted her eyes, a hint of a smile suddenly appearing on her somewhat pale face.
"Just like Uncle said, I clearly had the chance to tamper with the agreement, to fake a divorce with him, yet why didn’t I choose to do so?"
"That answer, I don’t know myself."
In a moment of hopelessness, only those who have experienced it can understand the taste.
Ian Vaughn sighed softly, "Let Uncle handle Kenny’s matters. But as for the issues between you and Cyrus Hawthorne, it depends on whether there’s still fate between the two of you."
"It’s so good to have you, Uncle."
Shuhua Vaughn’s room was at the best location on the third floor for views and lighting, maintaining its setup and items over the years, it was marked by the passage of time.
It was like yellowing paper, or a particularly flavorful tea, its taste lingering long.
The most noticeable part was the wall full of various photos in front of the desk.
Photos of the young Shuhua Vaughn and her family covered half the wall, while the remainder was filled with her pictures with Laura Quinn.
From elementary school to middle school, high school, and university, the neatly arranged photos depicted a timeline, clear and easy to see.
Ann Vaughn thought her mother must have had OCD.
The orderly arrangement of every photo, with no deviation, elicited an intensely satisfying comfort.
Beneath the photo wall, there were several exquisite wooden boxes, and Ann Vaughn sat down to open and look through them.
It was only in the last box that she found everything she wanted to know.
——These were the letters exchanged between Shuhua Vaughn and Laura Quinn over the years.
About an hour later, Ann Vaughn emerged from Shuhua Vaughn’s room, her emotions inexplicably complicated.
Based on what her mother left behind, their relationship was so good it was not uncommon for them to call each other’s parents "Mom and Dad."
But why did it sound like her mother had harmed or owed Laura Quinn a lot from her mouth?
It was too contradictory.
The phone chimed, pulling Ann Vaughn back to reality. She hastily pulled out her phone to check the message.
It was from Sherry, telling her that the bone marrow transplant surgery was successful and Kenny was moved into a 24-hour observation ward.
To ease Ann Vaughn’s worries, she even sent a real-time photo.
Finally, the heart hanging in Ann Vaughn’s throat settled in her chest, her eyes immediately welled with tears that fell on her porcelain-white cheeks, reddening her nose.
If not for Laura Quinn’s warning that if she stepped into The Imperial Capital, she would harm Kenny, she would have long been unable to restrain herself and run to see Kenny.
Now she could only hope that Cyrus Hawthorne would take good care of Kenny and protect him.
The Imperial Capital.
Two days later, Little Dumpling finally woke up, his pale little face soft and adorable, making him even more endearing.
Old Master Hawthorne and the rest of the Hawthorne Family immediately gathered around, concernedly asking if he felt unwell or wanted a drink of water.
Only the man sitting in the soft chair by the bed, who had stayed vigil for two nights without rest, appeared so cold and distant that no one dared approach, though his dark, narrow eyes held a faint trace of concern.