Chapter 8
James hugged Dad’s leg tightly, looking aggrieved. It was as if we’d wronged him.
I gazed at the fake emotions he wore on his face. I simply couldn’t understand how he had the nerve to call all this a
misunderstanding after playing me like a fool for seven years.
A misunderstanding? His so–called misunderstanding had killed Jasper!
Dad yelled furiously, “A misunderstanding? Do you call your son getting beaten to death and your wife being hospitalized from
assault a misunderstanding? Fine! You can tell me it’s all a misunderstanding once I beat the perpetrators up so badly they end up
in the hospital too!”
His rage frightened James a little, but James still retorted stubbornly, “I already asked them if they did it on purpose, Mr. Chalder.
Who would’ve expected a child to die from a couple of blows?”
I’d still been crying in Mom’s arms, but his words angered me greatly. “A couple of blows? Do you hear yourself, James Zeller? I
carried Jasper in my belly for nine months before giving birth to him! He was constantly by my side ever since young and had
never experienced suffering!
“Yet, now that your mother–in–law beat him to death, are you telling me it was Jasper who couldn’t take a beating? I’ll have you
know I want her to pay for his life in blood! She’d better not dream of living an easy life after killing my son!
“What right does she have to remain alive and well when death has taken Jasper from me?”
Mom, who usually had a constant smile on her face, also yelled at him and told him to get lost.
Despite this, James continued desperately, “Since what’s happened has happened, why must you insist on driving me into a
corner, Linny? Jasper’s already dead. I can’t exactly continue to immerse myself in grief for the rest of my life, can I?
“People should always look ahead in life, so why must you demand another life as well?”
I could hardly believe my own ears.
Even though I knew he was shameless, his outrageous speech still shocked me.
Dad was so angry that he clutched at his heart and stabbed a finger at James, wordlessly indicating for him to get out.
James kept on attempting to justify himself instead. “It’s true that mistakes were made, but you’re not entirely blameless either
for coming to this base without a word of warning. If you’d at least given me a heads–up, I would’ve made preparations in
advance, and Jasper wouldn’t have died.
“So, you can’t put all the blame on others. You also have to be held accountable!”
I smiled bitterly as soon as he finished speaking.
This was my husband, a man who’d not only distanced himself from me for seven years but pushed all responsibility onto me.
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Chapter 8
Nobody in the ward argued against him. We simply had nothing to say to him.
Everything would become clear to him once he was sent to prison.
However, he misunderstood our silence for fear and began spouting increasingly shameless things.
Eventually, Dad reached the limit of his tolerance and kicked him out.
Before James could hit the floor, someone carefully supported his weight.
I looked up and saw a pregnant woman looking angrily at me and my parents.
Although she was dressed plainly, her beauty was evident.
+25 Bonus
When James caught sight of her, he instantly panicked and hurriedly pushed her out of the ward. “Why are you here? There’s a lot of negativity around here. What if you were to be affected by the bad vibes and fall ill?”
However, the woman ignored James‘ attempts to stop her and marched into my ward.
After looking me up and down a few times, she asked arrogantly, “Are you that country bumpkin wife James married? I’ll have
you know James and I have registered our marriage officially. How dare a poor peasant from the countryside like you try to
ingratiate yourself with a prestigious man like my James?
“I advise you not to make a big deal out of this incident. Otherwise, you’ll be the one getting detained by the police!”
She had a stubborn, rebellious look on her face. However, it was her words that really confused me.
She actually knew of me? Also, what was that about me trying to ingratiate myself with James?
When I saw him standing anxiously behind her, looking as if he wanted to stop her from talking, I knew that there must be
something about the situation that I didn’t know about.
So, I deliberately provoked the woman, who must be Isabella. “A country bumpkin wife? Didn’t James tell you that I was the
reason he even managed to enlist with the military back then? I was the one who recommended him!
“And so what if you’ve registered your marriage officially? I gave birth to our child seven years ago! You’re the bitch who ruined
our marriage!”
Isabella’s face instantly contorted with rage, and she gradually lost her filter. “So what if you had a son with him? He died
anyway! The child currently in my belly is James‘ sole flesh–and–blood descendant!
“Do you think James would’ve taken a fancy to you if not for your shamelessness? He managed to enlist in the military through his own merit, so stop flattering yourself!”
“Shut up, Isabella!” James bellowed from the doorway.
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