George’s POV:
My mother turned on the computer and directed me to the mailbox from which she had received the
photos.
"I‘ve had someone check it out but he came back empty handed."
"Let me try and hack it."
My mother stood up quickly and gave me her seat.
I sat in front of the computer and typed as fast as I could on the keyboard.I tried really hard to keep my
anger under control.
"George, will you be able to trace the sender?" my mother asked, her voice much softer than before.
"Yes!"
After all, I worked in the Internet industry.
Finding out an IP address would take me under ten minutes.
As I expected, this mean act had Jane‘s name written all over it.My mother asked with angst, "George,
who sent it? Are they targeting our family?" She had always put the family honor ahead of her own.
"No.It has nothing to do with our family.They‘re after me," I replied casually, while my attention was
focused on those photos.
Those photos were all of Helen and me, taken in the elevator, in the garage and by the lake in our
neighborhood.
Some were really intimate.
Although I was very angry that someone had secretly revealed my relationship with Helen to my mother
in such a despicable manner, these photos were indeed perfectly captured, showing that Helen and I
were unmistakably close.
The shooting angles seemed deliberate which meant that they were taken by a professional.
Before I saw these photos, I never knew how gentle and sweet Helen could be whenever she came
close to me.
These photos said it all.
As I looked through these photos, I sent them to my email to save a copy for future reference.
But my mother was still worried.
She asked again, "Are you sure no one is trying to target our family?"
"No, it‘s from someone I know," I replied briefly.
"Don‘t worry about it.I‘ll handle it."
"Then why did that person send the photos to me? What‘s their intention?"
"Mom, it’s obvious that they are aware of your belligerent character.So clearly they wanted you to
create trouble between Helen and me in an effort to separate us.They were just using you to get their
work done as smoothly as possible.If you really want to argue with me about this matter, then they
would have succeeded in their mission.Don’t fall into their trap."
It wasn‘t hard to guess why Jane sent those photos to my mother.She wanted to inform her about my
relationship with Helen in a roundabout way.
Obviously she was devious enough to provoke my mother into separating us.I thought Jane would
have remembered how her evil plan backfired the last time and she would learn her lesson.
But no! She actually took her revenge a step further.
My mother had always valued family relationships, so I made it a point to remind her not to allow
outside influences to sabotage our family.
However, she still gave me a dose of her stubborn medicine.
"George, you are still young.I don‘t mind if you just fool around with Helen for fun.But fooling around is
very different from making that person your life partner.Your bride must come from a family of equal
social stature as our Affleck family.You can‘t just randomly pick up some cheap tart from the street.I am
advising you as a concerned mother who knows what is best for you.There is no room for negotiation
on that matter."
I retorted firmly, "Mom, I love Helen.She‘s the only woman I want to spend the rest of my life with.I
won‘t marry anyone else except her.There is no room for negotiation on that matter!"
I threw back her words into her face.
"I hope you and Dad can accept Helen and not cause any unnecessary drama."
When I looked at my mother, I sensed a dark storm cloud hover over her head.She said threateningly,
"Let me make myself abundantly clear.Young man, as long as I am still alive in the Affleck family, I
won‘t allow you to marry her."
I was not at all surprised by her words.
My mother had been in the Affleck family for more than a decade.Her sense of social hierarchy was so
deeply ingrained in her bones that her attitude toward Helen would not change overnight.
So, I came here just to show my attitude.I wanted her to know that I was willing to challenge her
authority and break her principles too.
Helen would be my wife and no other.I was sensible enough not to expect them to accept Helen
immediately.
They could take their time.
"Mom, in that case, there is no need for us to discuss this topic any more.You are set in your ways and
so am I. I refuse to budge.Just one thing.Please stop bothering Helen.And more importantly, whatever
your agenda regarding the Leeson Holdings project, just get over it."
I thought about it for a long time, but still couldn‘t fathom out why my mom would introduce Helen to the
project.It made me feel apprehensive.
"Did she talk ill about me? What purpose could I possibly have? I introduced a client to her out of
kindness.Not only was she ungrateful, but she even suspected my motive was not pure! How could you
believe her words over your own mother? She is trying to make me look bad in your eyes."
My mother was bitter and spoke of Helen venomously.
The more she said, the blunter she became.
"So, in my opinion, girls from poor families are all just gold diggers."
I couldn‘t bear her humiliation of Helen.I explained to her seriously, "Mom, don‘t speak about my future
wife like that! Helen is a wonderful soul.She doesn‘t know your identity, nor does she care.She didn‘t
tell me about this.I stumbled about this truth on my own.I want you to have no contact with her in the
future.Otherwise, don‘t blame me if I break off my relationship with you."
Helen was the apple of my eye.I had never entertained a single bad thought about her.
How could I allow others to bad mouth her? Even my parents were not exempt.
"What do you mean? You will cut ties with your parents for a woman? What has that vixen done to
you?" my mother asked incredibly.
I had anticipated my mother‘s opposition regarding social rank, but I didn‘t expect her to show Helen in
such a bad light.
Looking at my mother‘s face pregnant with fury, I realized that I could not talk to her, for she would not
understand.My parents‘ orthodox views had accompanied them in their journey in life.It would not be
easy to make them see life from a different perspective.It was just hard to teach an old dog new tricks.
Both of us were very angry with each other when I marched out of the study.
I went back to New York from Washington, and then drove to Princeton, my mother‘s words echoing in
my mind all the time.I couldn‘t wait to see Helen and hug her.
Unfortunately, when I arrived at the hotel, Helen rejected me.She said that it was not yet Wednesday,
and that she was too busy with her work to spare any time to see me.
As usual, she stuck to her principles, leaving me high and dry.
She would always devote herself wholeheartedly to her work and become oblivious of my feelings
whenever she was busy.She had no idea how consumed I was with worry.
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