Filled with even more questions, I grabbed on to her tightly and asked anxiously, “Will you be leaving again soon? Are you going to stay in Anglandur forever?”
Since she was already Mrs. Goldstein then, I understood a lot of things were not up to her to decide. It would not be possible for her to stay if Mark had to leave the country. Still, it would break my heart to see my mother leave again.
“I’m not going anywhere. This time I’m staying here for good. You’re the reason why I’m here, and I’m not going to leave your side again.” After wiping the tear hanging at the corner of my eye, Isabelle started crying herself. “Everything happened so fast back then, and not bringing you with me was my greatest regret. You have no idea how relieved I am to see you safely grow up. Whatever the Tanners did to you, I’ll make sure they pay for it. Don’t you worry.”
When my mother mentioned Nathan, I could see her contempt toward the man in her eyes. I thought she loved my father because that was what Darius told me too. He insisted that my father was the love of my mother’s life.
“Mom, what exactly happened back then? Why did you have to leave so suddenly? You were gone for years!” I could no longer keep those questions to myself. I was convinced that my mother only left me because something serious had happened. She loved me, this I could tell, so there had to be a reason.
Looking at me guiltily, Isabelle seemed reluctant to provide me with an answer.
“Is it something you can’t tell me?” My gaze dropped to the floor in disappointment. “You know, people have told me a lot of bad things about you, but I didn’t listen to them. You only did what you did because Dad was in the wrong. He cheated on you, right?”
“It’s not that I can’t tell you.” Isabelle sighed, and she had never looked sadder. “Eve, you’re right. Something did happen back then. But now is not a good time to talk about it. I’ll tell you everything when it’s over, I promise. For now, you’ll just have to trust me. I’ll never do anything to hurt you, Eve.”
In the end, I decided not to dwell on the question. I did not go back to the Lane residence that evening, and neither did Isabelle to the Goldstein’s. We got ourselves a hotel room and talked there the whole night through.
Isabelle got upset when I mentioned my past with Lyle. “Old Mrs. Smith used to be a very capable woman, so you can understand why I find it hard to believe that she would spoil her grandson like that. It just doesn’t make sense to me.”
“Grandma actually treated me okay.” I was content with what I had then, and the past just seemed like distant history.
“I left those shares for you, but not only did old Mrs. Smith decide to hide it from you, but she also took all the dividends earned. No matter what she told you, those shares belong to you. Do you hear me?” Isabelle poked my forehead lightly. “Tomorrow, we’ll go get what’s yours, and you can spend the money however you like.”
Even though I had no idea why Grandma did that to me, I would rather not find out. That way, I could save myself the sorrow.
“How has, uh… How has Mark been treating you, Mom?” I asked my mother hesitantly, seeing how she had never mentioned her life with the man since we met. The only time she did was when we talked about business. That was why I could not help thinking that the two had grown apart.
After glancing at me, Isabelle gave me a forced smile. “He’s good to me. Though, he’s too focused on his career sometimes. The man’s always trying to figure out how to expand his empire, so all he can think about is how to make profits. Hey, if Mark said anything to you that sounded weird, just ignore him, okay?”
Nestled in my mother’s arms like when I was younger, I could feel my eyelids getting heavier and heavier before I soon fell into a deep sleep.
