Even after three years, his unnerving smile made my breath hitch in my throat and my eyebrows knit together in disgust.
The rough, hard days of being in prison had failed to teach him a lesson in humility. If anything, he had come out even more unscrupulous and evil than he’d been when he first went in.
John hadn’t expected his intimidation to not work on Jared, his face fell slightly and he became irritated. The two men just stared at each other while the tension around them grew thicker with every passing second.
Not wanting to waste any more time in Jared’s presence, I spoke up, “Cut to the chase and tell us what you really want.”
Only then did Jared turn to stare at me, silently pondering for a moment before saying, “I never wanted to be your enemy, Scarlett, so don’t act so hostile towards me. All I want is to watch Summer grow up and correct my past mistakes.”
“You’re wrong. You became my enemy the moment you included Summer in your plot of revenge,” I instantly retorted. “You’ve gone mad. What right do you think you have to sacrifice so many people’s lives and happiness for the sake of one deceased person?”
He took a deep breath as his expression turned solemn. “I’ve already paid back everything that I owed those people while I was in prison. The Crest family is also doing their best to help compensate for anything that I’ve yet to make up for. Why is it your place to decide that I deserve the death penalty all because of that one mistake I made?”
“That’s bullsh*t!” John blurted out. “The death penalty is exactly what you deserve! While you were kicking back and relaxing in jail for three years, Summer was in the hospital struggling to stay alive! And even if she’s been discharged from the hospital now, she’ll need to live on medication for the rest of her life! That damage is something that you’ll never be able to compensate for!”
John had verbalized exactly what I was feeling. Summer had suffered greatly as a result of Jared’s actions, both physically and mentally.
Jared looked slightly upset at that. “I didn’t know back then that Summer was my child,” he lamented, staring at John with a frown. “My heart hurts, too. All I want is one more chance with her. I promise that I’ll never reveal to her my real identity, and that I’ll never make her remember what happened all those years ago.”
There was a brief pause. He held his hands on top of the table as he hung his head, staring at the ground. “I’ve also been going to therapy and counseling sessions recently. I’m aware that Summer has slowly learned to trust me, and that no one is more suited to be her private doctor than me. I’m confident that I can change her back into the innocent, naive child that she once was, if only you’ll give me some more time with her…”
“No thanks,” I cut in. I didn’t want to listen to him go on. “Let me ask you. If Summer isn’t your child, would you still be acting this way?”
I recalled very clearly how many children from families living nearby the chemical plant had fallen sick or had been affected in some way by the pollution from the plant. Even if Jared truly regretted his actions, Summer was not the only child that he had to compensate.
Jared looked surprised that I would ask such a thing, his eyes widened for a brief second. “There are no ‘if’ or ‘but’s about any of this. The fact that Summer is the flesh and blood of Macy and I is the truth. I can’t just give up on her. I know that you’ve started arranging for her to change school. If you’re willing to go to such measures to prevent me from seeing Summer, then I’ll have no choice but to take our paternity test results to show the court.”
There it is.
He’d finally shown his true colours after being all polite and nice, just like every other manipulative person I’d met before.
“Do you want to sue us? Go ahead and try!” John jumped to his feet, about to swing a fist in Jared’s direction before I frantically tugged on his shirt under the table, signaling for him to calm down.
Jared was completely undisturbed, not even flinching as he went on, “By the way, I forgot to congratulate you on giving birth to twins, Scarlett. I’m really happy for you, and I’m sure Macy feels the same way up in heaven. But you must be busy with taking care of two babies, especially after having gone through a divorce recently. Summer is at the age where she loves running around and causing mischief, so it’ll be a challenge for you to look after her as well. Why don’t you let me take care of her and lift a burden off of everyone’s shoulders?”
“What rubbish! The Stovall family has countless relatives available and willing to help take care of a child!” John rolled his eyes, breaking free from my grasp and standing up to tower over Jared. “Even if Letty and the maids are unable to look after Summer, she still has me as her uncle! And as long as I’m around, you will never be able to touch her!”
