Chapter 231

S2 61. Grandma is the Cause

Frank nodded curtly. “It wasn’t intentional. That’s why Mommy called it an accident.”

The twins’ cheeks puffed up. Their eyes narrowed, considering something.

“No wonder Grandma cried so loudly. She must be scared.”

“I understand Grandma’s feelings. When Louis protected me in the library, I was also scared, especially when his hand had to be in a cast. I felt guilty and wanted to keep hugging him.”

Seeing Emily hugging Louis and leaning her head on her brother’s tiny shoulder, Frank could smile again. Half the burden in his heart lifted. “Now that you know the truth, your hearts are at ease, right?”

Before Frank told them to sleep, Louis quickly raised his palm. “But we still want to accompany Auntie, Daddy.”

“Yes, we are curious about her condition. And as a family, we must give her support for a speedy recovery.”

“Actually,” Kara interjected with a mysterious smile, “there is one way you can do it. Go visit Auntie before you go to school.”

Frank looked at his wife in awe. “That’s a great idea, Kara. Louis and Emily can provide Barbara with support without shirking their responsibilities.”

Louis and Emily glanced at each other. After a few blinks, they slumped down. They realized that they had no reason to refuse Kara’s suggestion.

“Okay. Let’s meet Auntie early in the morning.” Emily sounded like she

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was grumbling.

“Oh, I hope I don’t get sleepy in class later. If we accompany Auntie, we can sleep for a while at the hospital.”

Kara snorted a laugh at that excuse. “If you’re afraid of falling asleep in class, you should sleep now.” She rubbed Louis’ back.

“Yeah, let’s go back to your room, Buddy. Don’t bother Emily.” Frank held out his hand.

Louis quickly hugged his younger sister. “I’m not bothering Emily. In fact, I’m comforting her so she won’t be too sad. Emily, let’s go back to sleep.”

Emily just blinked as Louis pulled her shoulders towards the pillow.

“Actually, Louis just doesn’t want to sleep alone, Dad. He’s the one who needs a friend.”

“Don’t be noisy, Emily. It’s already late. Sleep or I’ll kidnap Yemon later.

Emily shuddered in horror. She hugged her plush tightly as if securing it from Louis.

Feeling exasperated, Kara laughed a little. “Don’t joke anymore, Little Angels. You should sleep. We’ll meet Auntie early in the morning.”

After receiving a kiss from their parents, the toddlers closed their eyes. Their faces looked peaceful, in contrast to Frank’s. Kara noticed

the change.

“Frank, are you okay?” she asked after closing the door.

Frank blinked. “Yes.” He lifted the corners of his lips.

“You want to see your mother now?”

The man nodded. “Go rest first. I’ll follow.”

“You don’t want me to accompany you?”

Frank smiled and shook his head. “Don’t worry. Mom won’t go crazy again. Did you hear what the children said? She was crying earlier. She must be devastated and regret her actions.”

“But you still have to be careful.” Kara stroked Frank’s face.

“Sure.”

After kissing Kara’s forehead, Frank approached the bodyguard standing in front of Melanie’s room. “Is my mother asleep yet?”

The man was suddenly confused. “We don’t know if she is sleeping or not. Ten minutes ago, she was still sitting against the wardrobe, but her eyes closed.”

Frank nodded. Slowly, he opened the door. As the bodyguard said, Melanie was still on the floor. Without saying hello, Frank approached

her.

Feeling someone’s presence, Melanie’s eyelids trembled. When she discovered her son’s whereabouts, she gasped. “Frank ….”

Unexpectedly, Melanie crawled and stopped right in front of her son. Her hand didn’t hesitate to hold his knee.

“Where’s Barbara? How is she?”

Frank stared at her face intently. The frown on his forehead looked

honest.

“She’s still in the hospital, just finished having surgery.”

Melanie let out a quick sigh. She scooted closer. “How is her

condition? Is she awake?”

Frank’s expression remained flat. “The operation went smoothly, but she will have difficulty moving her right arm for a while.”

Melanie lowered her gaze. Her eyes twinkled and her mouth round Before she could express her gratitude, Frank interrupted, “Why? A you disappointed because your attack failed to kill anyone?”

Melanie was stunned again. The vibrations in his eyes became visible. “What do you mean, Frank? Do you think I would have the heart to kill my own daughter?”

Frank shut his mouth. He was more interested in observing his mother’s response than to talk.

“I didn’t mean to hurt your little sister, Frank. It was an accident.” Melanie shook her grip.

“If you didn’t stab the wrong target… let’s say, Philip was in the

hospital now, would you be this messed up? Or are you going to party instead?”

Melanie gasped. Her mouth opened wider, but she didn’t make a sound.

“Where did your courage come from to attack someone with a knife? You aren’t afraid of the consequences?”

Melanie shook her head swiftly. Her hands started hitting her chest.

“I don’t know either, Frank. I suddenly lost my mind. Maybe because

I the pressure on me was too great, I acted beyond reason. When 1 realized, I was shaken.”

Seeing the tears streaming down Melanie’s cheeks, Frank almost snorted. The disappointment nestled in his heart grew thicker.

“Did you dare because you’ve done the same thing before?” Frank raised an eyebrow.

Melanie swallowed hard. Her breath hitched. “No, Frank. I’m not a

murderer.”

“If Philip dies, you will be legally called a murderer.”

Melanie stammered again. “No. I just meant to bluff. I didn’t think that the knife would actually hurt someone.”

“What about the powder that you put in Dad’s food? Was that also a bluff?”

Melanie froze. Her eyes didn’t blink as she saw her son’s throbbing jaw. “What do you mean?”

Frank let out a chuckle. “You still want to pretend to be stupid? When I was eight years old, we had dinner with Dad. I remembered he took a call in another room. That’s when you sprinkled something on his plate. Wasn’t that shrimp powder?”

Melanie sighed in disbelief. “How did you know?” Her hands were no longer holding Frank’s knees.

“I didn’t know at that time. I thought that it was a special spice, you wanted to give him a surprise.” Frank shrugged one shoulder, smiling sadly.

“But after I secretly tasted Dad’s food, just when the allergic reaction appeared, I realized. It’s shrimp powder. Since that second, I have wondered why you did that to him. Now that I’m an adult, can we talk

about it?”

Melanie was taken aback. She sat with her mouth agape. “Y-you really know?”

Taking a deep breath, Frank placed one knee on the floor. He could see his mother more clearly now.

“Even though your plans fell apart at that time, it doesn’t mean you didn’t have anything to do with his death. If you didn’t intend to harm. him, the enemy wouldn’t know his weakness. Until this moment, Dad might still be alive.”

+25 B

Melanie looked down, not daring to look into the eyes that would

remind her of the past. However, her vision kept getting blurred. There

was no way she could escape those memories.

“It turns out you know,” she muttered vaguely.