Chapter 60

THE GENEROUS MAN

CELINE’s POV

I thought they had already left for Mrs. Anderson’s birthday party, so you can imagine my surprise when I found them still in the house, sitting at the dining table and eating breakfast.

I spun on my heels and dashed towards the door, but just as I was about to open it, I heard Brylee shout out my name. “Celine!”

I stopped in my tracks, took a few deep breaths, and then closed my eyes when I heard her footsteps getting closer.

“What are you wearing?” she asked, undoubtedly looked at me with a disgusted expression on her face “Dad! Look at her! If she goes to school looking this moth-eaten, people might think that we’re giving her a hard time!”

I opened my eyes and forced a smile onto my face before I turned around to face them.

“Your sister gave you heaps of clothes, why aren’t you wearing them?’ ‘dad said, his eyes raking over my black overcoat.

My brow raised as I looked down at the clothes I was wearing before looking up at them. “It is still presentable in appearance… there are no holes in it… and the stitching is in good condition. Is there anything so moth-eaten with it?”

Brylee rolled her eyes as she walked around me with her arms folded over her chest. “Do you think your clothes have to be to the point of being ragged before you throw them away? Oh, my G od…” she shook her head. “Do you know that I don’t wear the same piece of clothing more than three times…?”

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“Is that so? You’re such a princess, my dear sister…” I said and she acknowledged it with a big grin on her face, completely unaware that I was being sarcastic. “Anyway, I’m leaving…”

“To school?” Brylee asked, her face obviously thinking about

something.

“Nope…” As I eventually turned around and walked away, I chuckled to myself, but then I felt her fingers wrapping around my wrist to stop

me.

“W-where are you going?” She inquired once more, this time with her eyes widened in terror. What exactly did she have reason to fear? “Do you want me to ask the driver to send you where you want to go?”

Let the driver send me?

“Don’t worry about me, Brylee…” I smiled. “I’ve spent the entirety of my life traveling by bus and taxi. You know, I can always…”

“I insist!” she exclaimed, and I frowned at her, with a puzzled expression on my face. “I mean… I’m your older sister, and I can’t always let you take a bus for a few kilometres…”

I stared at her for a few moments before I smiled. “Okay, thank you…”

She smiled back fakely at me and let go of my wrist. “I’ll call the driver

”

she remarked before she turned around and left.

As I pieced together the reason for Brylee’s anxiety, I let out a sigh. Perhaps she was mulling over the possibility that I might go to the

Anderson Villa and look for Sebastian.

When I saw that the car was already waiting for me, I couldn’t help but cra ck a grin as I made my way toward the front door. Taking a ride in a car was far more enjoyable than walking. And a triumphant grin spread across my face.

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“Miss Celine, we’re here…” the driver announced, causing me to open my eyes. I didn’t realize I had fallen asleep in the car. “Do you want me to wait for you?”

“No…” I said, shaking my head, “I’ll just call for a taxi to take me home. Thank you…”

The driver nodded, and as soon as I hopped out of the car, he roared off without saying anything more.

I heaved a sigh as I carried a bouquet of flowers and made my way towards the cemetery where my mother was buried. It has been two months since the day Mom passed away, and this was the reason why I took a leave of absence from school. To visit my mom…

It was a bit chilly in the early morning hours, and there was no one else around. Even the elderly groundskeeper at the cemetery was still bleary-eyed.

Step by step, I made my way inside while firmly gripping the boug

of flowers. This was only the second time that I had visited this place. The first occasion was during the first month of her death.

Even though it’s only been two months… it seems like an eternity to

me…

“I’m sorry, Sandra…” I was startled to hear a strange voice speak. quickly. “I’m sorry I’m late…”

I frowned and headed over to investigate the source of the voice when I noticed a man kneeling on the ground in front of the tombstone that belonged to my mother. His tears were streaming down his cheeks as he gently stroked the picture of my mother with his fingers.

“Who are you?” I asked, and the man appeared to be shocked for a

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few seconds before turning around and looking at me. “Who are you? What are you doing on my mother’s grave?”

The man swiftly took his crutch and stood up from the ground, looking at me as his eyes lit up. “You… You are Celine, right?”

Who is this man? Why did he know me? And why did he know my

mother?

Before I could open my mouth to ask him who he was again, he spoke.

“My name is Karl…”

Karl?

I was feeling a little uneasy, so I eyed him with some suspicion. “Karl

Smith…? You are Karl Smith?”

The worried expression that had been on his face began to dissipate, and he suddenly smiled broadly at me.

“So… you’re the one who’s been sending money to my mom…” when mom and I were living a hard life, we had been receiving an amount of money transferred from someone with the name of Karl Smith. I never imagined that I would get the chance to meet this generous man today.

He nodded, wiping away his tears with one hand. “I’m sorry…” he said. “I’m sorry if it’s only now that I came to visit her. I didn’t know that she was ill…”

I took my time, carefully analyzing his physical characteristics, and I was unsure of how I felt about him. However, despite the fact that he had long, dark hair, a beard that wasn’t sh aven, and cr ippled legs, he came across as kind and unthreatening. He wouldn’t send money to my mother if he was as bad as my father.

I had no idea how he’d stumbled into this place, so the only thing I

could do was interrogate him about anything I was curious about.

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Karl lowered himself carefully to the seat and set his crutch to the side. Fresh tears were pouring down his cheeks as he glanced at the photo of my mother that was on the tombstone. And I couldn’t help but feel sad about the situation.

“Mr. Smith… my mother urged me to put aside the money that you had sent to us, and she instructed me to track you down one day and give you back the entire amount that you had given to us.

The disabled man glanced at me with brows furrowed. “Why didn’t she spend the money I sent her?”

I couldn’t help but shake my head as I recalled how reluctant we had been to make use of the money that wasn’t earned through our own efforts. Even when we were in dire financial straits, we steadfastly refused to use it.

Especially considering the fact that Mr. Smith was in a worse financial bind than we were…

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POINT OF DEATH