Once Bitten, Twice Shy

She called Libby and said, “Take the boy back to the room. I’ll go see my mother.”

Libby replied, “Yes, Miss.”

When Samantha handed Matthew to Libby, the boy was a little unhappy and hugged her neck without letting go. She comforted him softly and said, “Be a good boy okay, Matt. Go and play with Libby. I’ll have to check up on your grandma. I’ll come down and look for you again later.”

Libby coaxed too. “I’ll play Gelo blocks with you, okay? The one your third uncle gave to you last time.”

At the mere mention of Gelo, Matthew’s eyes lit up and he finally let go.

Samantha watched Libby carry Matthew upstairs. She walked to the hall and saw an angry, red-faced Irene talking on the phone.

She sat beside Irene and comforted the latter by reaching out and patting her back.

Irene suppressed her anger a little when she saw Samantha there. Even though Samantha was much healthier, Irene still viewed her as a fragile porcelain doll and feared that anything might happen to her.

The other side seemed to have said something that made Irene lose control. She smashed the handset on the coffee table with a bang.

Her chest heaved up and down due to anger and she had difficulty breathing.

“Take a deep breath, Mom.” Samantha picked up the teacup and handed it to Irene. “Drink some water.”

Irene looked at her and took a deep breath, then grabbed the cup and downed it in one gulp.

“What happened, Mom? What was it that made you so angry?” Samantha ventured with a question.

She had the feeling that it had something to do with her.

Irene’s face was filled with rage but she said, “It’s not a big deal, Athena. You don’t need to be concerned.”

She was now even more certain that it had something to do with her.

The whole family coddled her and did not tell her any bad news, but as a family member, she did not want to just enjoy everyone’s kindness to her-she also wanted to go through the bad times with them!

Samantha held Irene’s hand. She spoke in a soft voice that unconsciously calmed her mother’s restlessness. “Mom, did...Fabian do something to our family?”

Fabian acted so arrogantly that day and would never have just given up after suffering so much.

There was a flicker in Irene’s eyes and she tried to calm her tone as much as possible. “No, Sweetie. Don’t think too much, Dr. Sherwood said that overthinking will affect your physical recovery.”

Despite her attempts to conceal her tone, Samantha could still hear it clearly.

“Mom, you should tell me the truth if you really want me to stop overthinking. Don’t you think it’ll affect my body more if I keep wondering what it is?” Samantha asked back.

Irene felt choked.

She looked at Samantha for a moment and smiled helplessly. “You’re a clever girl.”

During that period, Samantha let her guard down completely and revealed her true nature bit by bit as she got along with the Gilligans. There were many times when she caught Irene helpless.

She could only indulge her daughter.

Irene remembered what was said on the phone earlier and could not help but snort. “That b*stard wants to go against our company, so he tried to sow discord in from Old Master Garvey. Since the old man knew what kind of person his grandson was, he did not buy any of it and even had him a stern lecture.”

“That brat was so angry because of all that, and since he couldn’t go against our company, he...he...”

Irene gritted her teeth, “He went around spreading rumors about you, and now it’s spreading within our entire circle...”

Samantha understood.

The return of the Gilligans’ daughter had already caused a small sensation within their circle and everyone was curious about the woman who had never made a public appearance yet.

Fabian must have said the most unpleasant things to embarrass both her and her family.

It was probably the same as what he said the other day when he humiliated her, that she had a child out of wedlock, had a debauched private life, and was also disfigured...

“He even announced to the public that he would never marry a woman like you. Tch. He’s the kind of useless person that should be looked down on, not the other way around!”

Irene was so incensed that she could not say anything else.

Samantha was unaffected by that. Treating someone like Fabian seriously amounted to stooping down to his level.

Irene thought differently. She could not tolerate her daughter’s reputation being tarnished, not when she wanted to give only the best to the daughter that she had finally found.

She held Samantha’s hand and said, “Athena, no one can look down on you because you deserve only the best. Fabian’s ignorance is his loss. I’ll definitely find someone better for you so that blind man will regret it forever!”

“Mother, I actually...” Samantha wanted to stop her mother.

Irene became so much more excited as she spoke and did not notice Samantha’s words. “Yes, that’s it! I’ll plan a lavish banquet for you, Athena, and I’ll invite all the famous and reputable young men to offer themselves to be your partner!”

The more she talked about it, the more exaggerated she became.

“Mom...” Samantha continued to call out and tried interrupting her.

All of a sudden, she saw Irene’s face changed abruptly and she covered her chest with her hands.

Samantha was taken aback and asked hurriedly, “Are you alright, Mom?”

“My chest aches a little...”

Samantha held Irene and said to a servant, “Call Dr. Sherwood! Have him come quickly.”

The maid took out her cell phone and dialed.

...

Inside the bedroom, Dr. Sherwood examined Irene and gave her a sedative.

He looked at Samantha and said, “You don’t need to worry, Ms. Gilligan. She was just a bit too angry at that moment and will be fine after having a good rest.”

Samantha breathed a sigh of relief. “Alright then.”

Dr. Sherwood wanted to say something to her but his cell phone rang just as he was about to speak.

He smiled apologetically. “I’ll have to take this call, Ms. Gilligan.”

...

“Sure, go ahead.”

Dr. Sherwood walked out of the room, took out his mobile phone, and saw the caller ID on it. He smiled and picked it up, “Hello, Alan.”

On the other side of the phone was Alan Sherwood, the younger brother of Abel Sherwood.

Abel was about to go to the airport earlier to fly back to Axlelland and spend time with his family. He came over at the last minute after receiving an emergency call from the Gilligans.

Alan called to inquire about the situation.

Abel explained succinctly and said, “I changed my ticket to the next flight.”

Alan asked, “I see. Is Mrs. Gilligan alright?”

“She is. I’m heading to the airport right now.”

“See you later,” Alan said.

“Dr. Sherwood...” Samantha walked out and called Abel softly.

Abel caught a glimpse of her and was about to hang up when Alan’s voice rose suddenly, almost as if he was somewhat emotional. “Abel, who’s that person calling you?”

...