Chapter 329
Elise had no idea what had happened between the mother and son, but one thing was clear: she probably wouldn’t have to worry about her relationship with Madeline in the future. This brought her more joy than escaping from imprisonment.
Both Elise and Alexander stayed at the Griffith Residence for an hour. When they left, Madeline didn’t press her with questions, allowing Elise’s bright mood to continue.
On the way back to Sinclair Residence, Elise could no longer hold herself back. She was all smiles as she looked at Alexander. “Did you hypnotize your mother?” she teased.
A smile tugged at the corners of Alexander’s lips, and he deliberately played along .with her. “Guess.”
“You definitely did.” Elise had been bothered about the situation with Madeline for a long time. Now, she felt unbelievably relaxed. Still, she couldn’t help her curiosity. Dialing down her expression, she attempted to pry the truth from Alexander. “Come on, tell me: what kind of sorcery can make someone have a personality change? I need to learn it.”
Alexander grinned mysteriously. “It’s a secret.”
He was the only one who needed to know about that time when he fought tooth and nail against the world and practically estranged himself from his family. Telling Elise would simply put more stress on her.
Elise rolled her eyes at him balefully before she mulishly turned her head to the side. “Still keeping secrets from me. If you’re not going to say it, then don’t. I’ll keep my secrets from you in the future too.”
Screech
Alexander slammed on the brakes, pulling over by the side of the road.
The sudden stop made Elise lurch forward before her seatbelt catapulted her back firmly into her seat. When she turned around, she saw Alexander looking at her with a sad and hurt look on his face instead of the smug look he had been sporting just before.
“What is it?” Elise was baffled.
“You said that you’re going to keep your secrets from me?” Alexander’s expression was dark, an ugly sight.
For a moment, Elise was at a loss for words. It was only then that she realized she had stepped on a sore spot for Alexander. Just hiding her identity had caused many arguments between them. He had always disliked secrets, and now that Elise openly said she was going to hide things from him, he would of course disagree.
Since Alexander managed to resolve the issue with Madeline, Elise decided to cheer him up. She looked at him with puppy-dog eyes and a cheeky smile on her face. “All right, I’m sorry-I shouldn’t have made such a joke. I promise that I definitely won’t hide anything major from you.”
Alexander’s gaze softened a little. “Not even the small things,” he pointed out.
Whoops, he got me there. Elise initially wanted to sneak in a loophole, but she hadn’t expected Alexander to be so sharp-eyed. He didn’t even give her any wriggle room. With no other choice, she smiled harder. “Heehee, got it. I’ll do as you say.”
Only then was Alexander satisfied. He started up the engine again and sped off toward the Sinclair Residence.
Robin and Laura were already waiting for them. The moment the security guard announced Alexander’s arrival, the old couple promptly helped each other to hurry to the door to wait. Before the car even came to a complete stop, they’d eagerly tottered over to the passenger seat with their walking canes.
“Elise, my darling granddaughter…”
Elise was pulled into a hug by Laura the moment she alighted from the car. When Laura noticed that Elise’s right hand was hurt, her heart ached so much that tears came to her eyes. “Are you seriously injured? Oh, darling, you should have stayed at the hospital if you’re hurt. Why did you have to rush back?” Laura might seem like she was chastising Elise, but every word of hers was filled with love.
Robin gripped his cane hard with both hands wordlessly, his brow furrowing deeply. Worry was plain as day on his face.
“Grandma, don’t worry. I was actually responsible for that injury myself. It’s not all that bad; it doesn’t hurt-see? I’m perfectly fine, right?” Worried that her grandparents didn’t believe her, Elise hastily waved her hand a few times.
Laura quickly stopped her and patted her with exaggerated movements, “All right, you heartless little girl. You’re going to break your poor grandma’s heart!” she
chastised
“That’s enough. Poor Elise has suffered enough. Let’s continue this inside,” said Robin.
It was only then that the four of them noisily headed inside the house.
They had only just sat down when Alexander’s phone rang. He took a look at the caller’s name; it was Cameron. “I’m going to have to take this call.”
Robin lowered his gaze as he dipped his head slightly. “Go ahead.”
Having gotten Robin’s permission, Alexander went to the balcony with his phone in hand.
Laura ignored this as she simply fired off all her questions at Elise. “Ellie, Matthew didn’t mistreat you, did he? That madman is practically inhumane!”
“No. Don’t worry about that, Grandma…”
Robin listened to their conversation while occasionally glancing at the balcony, where Alexander was, to look at him thoughtfully.
Not long after that, Alexander hung up and came back to them to indicate that he had to leave. “There are some urgent things that I need to finish up at work. I apologize beforehand for leaving Elise in your care.”
Robin’s expression darkened. “There’s nothing to apologize for. Elise is my own granddaughter; why should I find her presence a problem? Go. Don’t ever come back without any good reason.”
Upon hearing Robin’s tone, both Laura and Elise instinctively turned their heads to look at him.
“What are you saying…” Laura asked.
Elise also couldn’t figure out what was going on. Her grandfather had always been a good-natured man, and he was usually friendly to others. But why was he being so antagonistic today?
As a man as well, only Alexander knew what Robin was thinking. He wasn’t angry with this either as he gently smiled to show that he was fine with Robin’s words. “No problem.” He then turned to Elise. “I’ll come back later for you,” he said
“Okay.” Elise nodded demurely, showing some sort of consolation for him.
Alexander pressed his lips into a thin smile before he relaxed and left.
The moment he left, Laura turned on Robin. “What is wrong with you? He saved your precious granddaughter, so why were you in such a rush to chase him away?”
“What do you know?” Robin distastefully frowned, wanting to say more but also trying to stop himself. “You forgot how… never mind. In any case, he and Elise are not meant to be. It is better to cut your losses instead of dragging things out.” Having said that, he exhaled deeply. However, his gaze remained on Elise, studying her perhaps on purpose, perhaps not.
Elise was sharp enough to realize that her grandparents were hiding something from her. “Grandpa, did something happen while I was away?”
Alexander had always been respectful toward his elders. He probably wouldn’t have started an argument with her grandparents. Elise truly didn’t understand he was such a perfect man, and every parent out there fell over themselves to have him as their son-in-law. Why did her grandparents suddenly seem to dislike him so much?
Could the law of equivalent exchange also apply to familial relationships instead of being limited to material things? If one’s relationship with one side of their family improved, would the relationship with the other side worsen? Was Elise fated to never be able to have both families bless their relationship?
Laura already understood Robin’s hints, so she hastily covered for him. “It’s nothing. What could have happened while you were away? We were just worried about you.”
But Elise wasn’t so easily deterred. Laura’s hesitance was a clear sign that she was not telling the full truth, and besides, neither grandparent was good at lying to her. Sighing, she placed a hand on the back of Robin’s hand. “Grandpa, you know that you can’t hide things from me. Just what happened actually? Tell me, please,” she said patiently.
Deep down, Robin knew that it was only a matter of time before Elise found out the truth. With no other choice, he laid out everything about the photos and videos that Matthew had sent. “I’m doing this for your own good. Regardless of Matthew’s wicked ways, he and Alexander are still brothers at the end of the day. Now that something like this has happened, you two must break off your relationship no matter how reluctant you are. Girls can only live their lives with pride if they know how to love and respect themselves. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
