Chapter 401
Chapter 401
Neil might have had steadied the cradle, but the massive jolt scared Brandon into a crying fit. My heart clenched at the sound, and I quickly handed Serena off to my mother to comfort Brandon.
The yard was a chaotic mess, but I had no patience for it. All I wanted was to soothe my frightened child.
Hiram, having realized his mistake, quickly hid behind Karina. Had Neil not been present, I was certain that Karina would have defended Hiram, using the excuse, “He’s just a child.”
But Neil was there and everyone had seen Hiram intentionally rock the cradle. So, without any hesitation, Karina pulled Hiram forward and demanded, “Hiram, apologize to Ms. Finch right now!”
“I… I just wanted to play with the baby. He’s so cute…” Hiram looked around nervously. His eyes lingered on Neil, hoping for some support.
“You can’t just rock his cradle like that! What if he had fallen?” My voice was sharp and anxious. The situation had threatened my child’s safety, and I couldn’t stay calm, even if Hiram had just wanted to play with my baby.
Ever since Neil and Karina had arrived, Serena and Brandon had been in one near miss after another. I wondered if it was Neil’s doing.
My mother was similarly upset. “Can’t you keep an eye on your son? If he hurts my precious grandchildren, you’ll have me to answer to!”
“Let’s go. Let’s go inside. There’s no point wasting our breath on them.”
With that, she headed back into the living room.
My father was out buying saplings at the market. Thank God he wasn’t here to see that, or the situation might have escalated further.
Russel was more level-headed than my father, but he was equally upset. He loved Serena and Brandon dearly and couldn’t stand to see them cry.
“Hiram, apologize.” Neil, not defending his son but siding with Karina.
They were surprisingly in sync on that matter.
Under the pressure from his parents, Hiram reluctantly walked over to me. His eyes were red with unshed tears. “Ms. Finch, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to, I thought he’d find it fun.”
I felt trapped. I had to accept the apology, but that was different from when Hiram had taken my nuts without asking. That was about Brandon’s safety, and it was harder to let go.
So, I kept silent, carrying Brandon back into the living room and closing the door behind me.
Seeing our cold reception, Neil didn’t stay long. He was a proud man, and I doubt anyone had ever made him feel that uncomfortable before.
“Should we just leave like this?” I heard Karina ask.
“Yes, let’s go.” Neil didn’t say anything more. It was already a miracle that he’d suggested Karina apologize to me.
When they left, my mother opened the door and looked at the gifts they’d left behind. “What should we do with these?”
I glanced at the nanny, and generously gave them all to her.
She was shocked but accepted the gifts. That was a good opportunity to ensure she’d take care of my children in the future.
After Karina’s apology, we had a peaceful week. My wounds were healing, and Russel and I took the kids out for a walk.
I was getting used to being with Russel. It wasn’t about love, but there was a feeling of companionship.
He had found a job at a hospital and was about to start work soon. He would have been busy, but with the nanny and my parents at home, he wouldn’t have had to worry much.
“Come, Serena. Look at Mommy!” I’d grown fond of capturing the kids’ daily activities. Their little faces brought me so much joy.
In the camera, the chubby little ones were lying in the stroller, making adorable noises as they wayed their little hands.
Suddenly, a shrill voice broke the peace. A car skidded to a halt on the road, followed by a man’s cry, “Ouch, you hit me!”
I looked over and saw a car accident. A black Mercedes had hit a man in his thirties.
But I didn’t expect the people getting out of the car to be Ryan and Faith.
They looked at the man on the ground, who was yelling, “Call the police, or settle it privately!”
“Mr. Whitmore, I didn’t hit him!” The driver seemed genuinely scared as he explained to Ryan.
“You’ve hit me, and I think my hand is broken. Take me to the hospital, or pay for my treatment!” The man on the ground was making quite a scene. “Everyone, come look! This luxury car hit me and they’re refusing to take me to the hospital or pay for my treatment!”
Faith and Ryan were people of status and farely dealt with such bullies. They didn’t lack money, so they could have easily gotten rid of the nuisance by paying a bit. Ryan asked directly, “How much do you want?”
The man answered, “One hundred thousand!”
That was too much. I couldn’t bear to listen anymore.
“Let’s call the police then!” Faith said coldly.
“What about Hiram? What if we’re late?” Ryan was worried about his grandson.
Faith hesitated at the mention of Hiram. One hundred thousand was nothing to them, but the man’s audacity was hard to stomach. That was clearly a scam! After a glance at each other, Ryan prepared to pay.
The man’s eyes lit up, and he started yelling again, “Oh, oh… I think my ribs are broken too. One hundred thousand is too little, it should be at least two hundred thousand…”
His audacity was through the roof. By the looks of it, he didn’t appear to have a broken rib at all. He had just spotted that Ryan and Faith were loaded and seemed to be in a hurry to get somewhere, so he decided to push his luck.
Ryan looked absolutely livid. Under normal circumstances, he would have never let that slide. But his grandson, Hiram was waiting for him, and he was desperate to see his little munchkin soon, even if it cost him a few extra bucks.
“Hold on!” I couldn’t bear to watch Ryan get ready to pay. I had to step in and interrupt them.
