“Sir has returned.”
The maid’s voice sounded and following it, a tall and rigid figure emerged from beyond the door. It was
a man in his fifties and he was dressed immaculately in fine suit. He exuded an immensely serious
aura.
When he saw Hayden in the living room, his feet stopped moving. A stupor appeared on his face as he
whispered under his breath, “Florence…”
Hayden instantly stood up and greeted him, “Uncle.”
The man came back to her senses but he still looked lost. He studied Hayden for a while before
cracking into a smile, “It’s you, Hayden? Look how much you have grown! Why are you here today? I
heard previously that you have gone overseas for many years. When did you come back?”
He began a barrage of questions which improved Hayden’s sullied mood a little. She nodded, “I have
come back to the country for a few months, and I have been busy at work.”
“You have secured yourself a job? Where are you working now?”
“I am working at the ST Hotel.” Hayden answered truthfully.
“Oh, it’s that ST Group. Sounds like you got yourself a great job.” The man was still ecstatic, “It has
been more than a decade since I last saw you. I thought that I am seeing your mother just now. You
can have dinner with us tonight.”
“What do you mean she is having dinner with us?”
Before Hayden could say anything, her aunt’s petty voice interrupted her uncle’s invitation, “Your niece
has come back to the country because she wants to retrieve her mother’s inheritance. If it were not for
that, I am afraid that she would never visit us again. Do you really think that she is paying us a visit
because she misses you?”
A slight change occurred on that man’s face, “Inheritance?”
Hayden pursed her lips without saying anything.
With how things were looking at the moment, he didn’t have to think hard to figure out what was going
on. The man glanced at his wife as he asked hesitantly, “Are you here because of that matter?”
“Yes.” Since things had come to this, Hayden had no choice but to come clean.
“What kind of inheritance is left? Even if it existed, ever since she was born, she had been staying with
us for all her life. Did you think she could stay here for free? Everything would have been spent before
long.”
The aunt glared at the man unhappily.
After a moment of silence, the man said in a low voice, “Hayden, I have heard your request. You can
go back now.”
Hayden had not intended to delay her departure, so after hearing her uncle’s words, she revealed a
self-deprecating smile before leaving with vehemence.
She shouldn’t have come here today. At that time when her grandfather had passed away, it was this
aunt who had labelled her as a bringer of bad luck. It was this same person who had shunned her from
the family. Everything she ever owned had been delivered to the Downey family without hesitation. Her
aunt had made herself clear that from that moment on, she could not return to her home anymore. Her
path back home had been severed.
Now, she needed their help although the circumstances were never in her favour. Perhaps, she was
really foolish and naive.
After Hayden had left, the man held his knees as he settled onto the sofa, “You never touch any of the
assets left by Hayden’s mother, so why did you say all of that just to ignite her hatred?”
“I intend to do that all along.”
Hayden’s aunt who looked petty revealed a hint of hatred on her face, “All those years before, Florence
was too weak. All she could think of is Bentley Downey, but what fate awaited her? How could Bentley
abandon his wife and live a good life later on? Hayden is his biological daughter, so her father has no
choice but to pay attention to her. Hayden that rascal actually looks smart, yet I didn’t anticipate that
she is actually very foolish. She is just like her mother; She should look for her father if she encounters
any problem instead of coming to us. What does she mean by doing that?”
“I don’t think he is the type to not repent. Two days ago, I met him and he actually mentioned Florence.”
“He still has the nerve to bring up her name?” Hayden’s aunt gnashed her teeth in hatred, “What is
there for him to repent? I want him to always see with his own eyes the daughter which was delivered
by his wife with the price of her life. Only by doing that, he will always be reminded that Florence as
died for him all those years ago. He won’t be able to have peace of mind forever.”
Upon hearing that, the man could only let out a sigh. He no longer had anything to say.
When his sister passed away that time, their hands were intertwined. The only thing she could not be
rest assured was this daughter of hers. However, that same daughter was pushed to a corner by them
nowadays. He didn’t know whether this was a good or bad thing for her.
--
After getting out of her uncle’s house, Hayden immediately hailed a taxi to go back home.
“How did it go? Did you get back your house?”
Alayna’s voice came from the bedroom and upon hearing the noise of a door knob turning, he emerged
from her room while applying a mask on her face. She had just returned from a business trip last night,
but she was dragged by Hayden to help her move. She had been deep in her slumber since morning.
Hayden shook her head as she felt a wave of powerlessness overwhelming her. She slumped onto the
sofa while sighing profusely.
Alayna took a cucumber from the refrigerator and took a audible bite of it. She said vaguely, “Don’t you
think that you are extremely unlucky? Your father has given you a villa, yet Chelsea has intercepted it
for her boyfriend, and the house left behind by your mother has been take over by your aunt. How
could you be so unfortunate?”
“Stop it. It’s all so fussy.”
Hayden couldn’t stop sighing, “If I can’t really own a house, what should I do for my future?”
“What about staying with me? I can pay for your livelihood forever, in exchange you just need to make
my meals for me.”
Alayna let out a giggle as she sat down beside her playfully, “Why are you so worried about it? Why did
you have to own a house on such short notice?”
Hayden frowned, “I am just preparing for the court case in the future. If I don’t own a house, the court
will deem me unsuitable to assume custody over a child.”
Alayna froze for a moment, “Who are you going to court with? Is there anyone snatching Stella away
from you?”
“I’m not referring to Stella.” Hayden slowly raised her head. After hesitating for a while, she decided to
tell Alayna the truth, “The jewellery shop has called me two days ago. The owner of that necklace has
been identified.”
“The owner of the necklace?” Alayna rummaged through her thoughts and was able to figure out what
Hayden was talking about, “Are you talking about Stella’s father? Does that mean you have found your
long-lost son who have been taken away from you all those years ago?”
Hayden nodded, “But do you know who that person is?”
Alayna tensed up when the conversation reached this point. She could sense that something was off,
“Who is it?”
“It was Joseph.”
A silence immediately descended upon them, and Alayna simply stared at Hayden for some time. After
confirming that she was not joking, Alayna couldn’t stifle her gasp, “Oh my god! What kind of fate is
binding you guys together?”
Hayden frowned upon hearing that.
“No, wait, don’t give me that face. Isn’t having Joseph by your side the best possible scenario? You
should grab this chance since you are the mother to their precious son. He is so fond of his son, so you
will be equally important in their eyes too. You can even be the young lady of an affluent family
overnight. Why are you thinking of taking custody of his son? Is your brain fried?”
Alayna gushed about non-stop, and the cucumber in her mouth almost spilled out.
Hayden felt her head throb and she interjected abruptly, “Enough, Alayna. Stop with your tasteless
joke. I am not in any mood for that.”
“What’s wrong?”
“There’s no way I can be together with Joseph.”
“Why is that so?”
Hayden’s expression darkened, “If it were not for him, I wouldn’t even give birth to two children. In order
to preserve Stella, I had to go overseas without having the chance to complete my university degree.
The Beckham family is all-encompassing. They could change the course of my life with just a flick of
their fingers. For them, they just have another son. But what about me? He will never take into
consideration the future life of a twenty-year-old young lady. Someone like him is way too
scary.”
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