If Matthew had come to know the truth at another time, he would have been fine. However, he knew it at this critical moment. Dolores wondered how much he would be suffering now.
She clung to Boyceâs arm and her nails unconsciously dug into his flesh. In his embrace, she burst into tears.
Boyce ignored the pain in her arm and did his best to comfort her. âDolores, calm down. Youâre pregnant now. You canât get too emotional.â
Ignoring him, Dolores couldnât control herself at all. Her mind was filled with the scene where Victoria had done her best to protect her overhead to keep the sign from crashing into her. Red blood flowed along Victoriaâs neck, dripping, and she slowly exhaled more than inhaled, in her last gaspâ¦.
Covering her chest, Dolores choked back sobs.
Boyce could do nothing. Unable to convince her, he let her cry.
When Dolores grew tired, he took her back to his living room.
Lying on the bed, Dolores stared out the window aimlessly. She stared into the distance, but her eyes wouldnât focus. Her eyes were blurry.
Boyce didnât dare leave her alone, worried that she might be too excited and harm the baby in her womb. After all, sheâd already had a sign of miscarriage.
âIf it wasnât for saving me, I might not have diedâ¦â Her voice was husky and rusty.
Boyce stood silently on the sidelines.
âIf I could have another chance, I should tell Matthew who she was as soon as I knew the truth so he wouldnât have any regrets. Matthew would deal with the situation too before his birth mother passed away, this wouldnât have happened.â
Victoria said she had no remorse in her life, but that all mothers would expect their own children to call them mom.
âDonât blame yourself. No one would know such an incident would happen. Besides, you did it for their own good. This matter had to do with the old peopleâs grudge, what does it have to do with you? What you should do now is take care of yourself and let him take care of Victoriaâs funeral. We must respect the dead by letting her rest in peace,â Boyce whispered to convince her as he stood in front of the bed.
She let out a sigh. âRest well. If thereâs anything, Iâll let you know. Cheer up and help him cope with the things that are coming.â
Dolores knew what he meant. Although the news that Victoria was Matthewâs mother had not been made public, as Matthewâs wife and Victoriaâs daughter-in-law, Dolores was to attend the funeral and other relevant events.
âI know,â she replied hoarsely, slowly closing her eyes. She had probably cried too much, her eyes were parched. She felt more comfortable closing them.
Later, she heard Boyce leave the room. She did not open her eyes.
However, her tears ran down the bridge of her nose, dripping again.
At noon, Boyce came to deliver her some food, but she had no appetite.
Instead, she kept asking him how Matthew was doing.
Matthew had been in Victoriaâs living room the whole time.
âDonât worry. He needs time. After all, it happened too suddenly. It all came at him completely.â
Boyce convinced her to eat. âIf you donât have an appetite, you should eat for the baby in your belly.â
Dolores forced some food into her mouth. Then she felt like throwing up. She threw it all up, harder than before. When she couldnât vomit anything from her belly, she started vomiting gastric acid. She was very exhausted.
Boyce called a nurse to inject her with some vitamins. Otherwise, she would not be able to hold on at all.
In the afternoon, she felt too tired, so she went back to sleep.
When Dolores woke up again, the room was pitch black. It was already dark. Rubbing her sore eyes, she tried to sit up. In a trance, she saw a figure sitting by the window.
He stared at the figure and recognized who it was. After a moment, she lifted the quilt, got out of bed, walked over to him and hugged him from behind.
They did not speak. Looking at each other, they could understand what the other was feeling.
After a long while, he reached out to rub her hair. âLetâs go home, okay?â
She replied, âOkay.â
Boyce took them back. She was sitting with Matthew in the back seat holding his arm.
He was very quiet and didnât speak at all during the ride.
When they returned home, he went straight to the study. Dolores knew he needed to be alone at that time, so she didnât go to bother him.
On the second day, Jayden arrived at the villa. It didnât matter if the car accident was an accident or rigged, they werenât going to investigate the matter for the time being. First they had to let Victoria rest in peace.
Jayden said the funeral was planned to be held in three days, which was a suitable day.
He also chose the cemetery himself. He also personally decided on the location of the funeral ceremony.
After informing her, he asked her about Matthew.
Dolores told him that Matthew had been in the study, locking himself in. Jayden let out a deep sigh. In one night, he seemed to have aged a lot. His erect figure suddenly bowed.
With cloudy eyes, he whispered, âPlease inform him of it.â Dolores agreed.
In the evening, Dolores sent some dishes to the study, and found that Matthew was sitting in the chair by the window. The light was off in the study, and only moonlight was falling from outside. She turned on the light, set the dishes on the desk, and walked over to him. âDad came here early this morning. He said the funeral will be held in three daysâ¦â
Suddenly, Matthew tugged her hand, reached for her and wrapped it around his waist, unwilling to let go.
âLola, please let me hold you for a while.â His voice was quite low. She couldnât see his expression at all. He rested his face on her belly.
Dolores stood still, reaching out to return his embrace. She did not speak or look at him. She merely accompanied him in silence, hoping they could get through these difficulties. Whatever happened, she would always be with himâ¦..
Time flew by. Matthew hardly spoke for the last three days. However, from time to time he would come out of the study, hugging Simona and telling her bedtime stories.
His appearance was the same as always. Except that he had become quiet and less talkative, he was much the same as always.
This day it was drizzling. It was the day of Victoriaâs funeral.
The Q cemetery was surrounded by green pine and cypress trees. It was probably raining, the wind was extremely cold. Sadness filled the air.
Since Victoria was known as the mistress who managed to marry Jayden, most of the wives of wealthy families did not keep in touch with her. She also liked to be to herself, so she didnât have many friends. All the people who attended the funeral were members of the Nelson Family. Kevin was the only one left from the Forbis Family.
In addition to them, some relatives from the Nelson Family also came. They had nothing to do with Victoria, but they came because the Nelson Family was rich and famous. Other attendees were business associates, most of whom were famous.
Someone asked. âWhy didnât Matthew come? Although Victoria is his stepmother, she is his eldest. Itâs not appropriate for him not to attend her funeral, is it?â.
Matthew didnât actually show up at Victoriaâs funeral.
Jeffery was wearing his uniform with Marina at his armâs side. He replied, âHeâs one of our Harris Family members â what does he have to do with the Forbis Family?â
Dolores gave him a cold look but did not speak. It was Victoriaâs funeral, and she wanted Victoria to rest in peace.
She held Victoriaâs portrait on Matthewâs behalf. Samuel and Simona were dressed in mourning like her.
At that moment, Marina felt very sorry for Victoria. Pulling Doloresâ sleeve, she said, âCall Matthew. He hasnât had a child. Itâs a very sad scene. Ask him to fire her one last time.â
âNot necessarily. If he wanted to come here, heâd show up,â Dolores said flatly, without a glance at Marina.
In her opinion, everyone who came was just fulfilling an emotionless process.
No one felt truly sad for the dead woman.
.
.
.