Shattered Illusions: Love, Lies, and Redemption

"Bro, why'd you call me out here?"

"Grandma came out with you, and she almost got scalded. Don't you have anything to say about that?"

Jerome furrowed his brows slightly, his mind drifting back to that incident at the airport.

It was Mrs. Bernice Madden who had gone to the restroom with Andrea, only to get lost. If it hadn't been for Lizetta bumping into them...

In places like airports, where getting lost could lead to unimaginable consequences, Jerome's gaze grew sharper with each passing moment.

Andrea's face paled slightly as she clenched her fists, "Bro, it was Grandma who wanted to ask the doctor when Ms. Gardenia would be discharged. I had Elva go with Grandma. It was because Grandma was impatient and couldn't wait for the doctor that she ran into that mishap. Hospitals are full of germs and all sorts of people; frankly, it might be best if Grandma visits less. Ms. Gardenia needs to rest, and I don't think she was all that welcoming of our visit anyway."

What Andrea implied was that Lizetta only showed warmth towards Mrs. Bernice Madden in front of Jerome and Nelson.

Jerome looked at Andrea, "No one forced you to accompany Grandma here, but since you did bring her, it was your responsibility to ensure her safety, not just hand her off to a maid."

Andrea's eyes welled up as if she felt unjustly accused, and she lowered her head in a show of hurt feelings.

"I get it, okay? Grandma's my own flesh and blood too. How could you talk as if I did it on purpose? It scared me too..."

Jerome stared at her, remaining silent.

However, he suspected that Andrea's actions might not be entirely without ulterior motives. She clearly didn't want them getting too close to Lizetta, fearing that if something happened to Mrs. Bernice Madden during her visits...

They might stop allowing the elderly lady to come over, or worse, it could lead to resentment towards Lizetta.

After a moment.

Remington finished dressing the wound and came out with Nelson.

Business was business. Remington had saved Mrs. Bernice Madden, and Nelson had taken care of his injuries in return.

"Jerome, let's prepare a generous gift for Mr. Dashiell's room."Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

Remington waved it off, "Mr. Madden, I helped Grandma Bernice because you all had once saved my family. It's a debt repaid, and that's all there is to it. Besides, you didn't accept the gifts I sent to your house before..."

Before Remington could finish, Nelson cut him off impatiently.

"What debt repaid? Don't think I don't know, you and Liz have been divorced for ages! Who's your family now? Quit the nonsense! And don't even think about trying to leverage this act of kindness to gain an upper hand Just because you did us a favor this time doesn't mean you can overstep. I'll tell you this, you're accepting the gift whether you like it or not!"

After Nelson had his say, he stormed off with Jerome.

Andrea lingered a step behind, offering Remington an apologetic smile before catching up with the others.

Remington watched Andrea a

moment longer, his gaze lingering on her features and demeanor, which seemed quite different from the rest of the Maddens. He hadn't noticed her at the airport before.

Feeling his stare, Andrea's cheeks flushed, and she glanced back at him a few times.

Remington entered the elevator a bit later, heading back to his room, but not before instinctively glancing towards Lizetta's room next door.

There, he saw a vase tossed aside by the door, filled with a few sunflowers and yellow roses.

Remington paused, his footsteps halting. The blatant disapproval was as clear as day, and it looked like Ray had been right after all.

No sooner had it been discovered than it was cleared out.