Love And

+5

Kelly had compromised too many times, to the extent that Ronan and her grandpa thought this tactic worked well to deal with her. But this time, she was truly exhausted. Kelly turned away, not looking at her mother. “Kelly,” her mom called from behind.

“Claire.” Kelly suddenly spoke, or rather, it was Claire speaking. To her, she wasn’t Kelly Jones but Claire Sullivan. If her mom hadn’t insisted on being with her dad, she would never have stayed here. Now, she was truly exhausted. If it meant dragging Charlie into this mess and involving him, she suddenly thought that sometimes it was okay to give up. She felt it was fine to just end things once and for all.

After all, she was a human with feelings too. From her 20s to her 30s, she had spent the best years of her life here. She was ready to make sacrifices and spend the rest of her life in this hellhole. Hence, she couldn’t understand why they had to drag Charlie into this mess. She thought, ‘I know mom’s love is important. But what about mine?‘ At that thought, tears silently rolled down her cheeks.

“Kelly, what’s wrong?” Kelly’s mother, Lydia Sullivan, paused for a moment, then continued, her voice gentle.

Claire’s heart ached as she heard Lydia’s voice. Her moment of willfulness passed quickly, and she soon regained her composure. She shook her head in response. “It’s nothing.”

Upon noticing how down Claire felt, Lydia’s heart ached for her. She bent down and gently gathered her into her arms. “Go to Zentiscape,” Lydia urged softly, cradling Claire close. “Go find Charlie. Claire, you and him truly love each other. You’ll be happy together.” Kelly’s eyes reddened at Lydia’s words, and she desperately wanted to ask the latter if she was still the same loving mom who cherished her more than anything.

When Kelly was little, Lydia always saved the best food for her. Even when she was sick, Lydia insisted on going to work, sometimes taking night shifts to save money for a trip to the amusement park, just to see Kelly smile. Those childhood memories seemed so distant now, and the thought made Kelly’s heart ache even more. Lydia pulled out a tissue and gently wiped Kelly’s tears. “Why are you crying?” she asked tenderly. Kelly suddenly felt overwhelmed and reached out to embrace Lydia tightly.

After a long while, the door to the room opened, and Ronan entered. He rarely wore a warm expression of fatherly love, but today, he tried. After he sat down on the edge of her bed, he said, “Kelly, don’t blame me. I have no other choice. You are the only direct descendant left. Besides, you and Charlie admire each other. That makes you two a perfect match. Don’t you think so?”

In reality, Ronan and his father, Ryker Jones, had a plan to breed a new heir, as Kelly was too disobedient. If she continued to refuse marriage and refused to produce an heir, they would have to resort to binding her and having a doctor forcibly retrieve her eggs to create a new heir. To them, Kelly’s rebellion and resistance were like a child’s silly games.

However, raising a child from scratch would take an incredibly long time, and they couldn’t even ensure that this newborn would grow up healthy. They feared that, despite their best efforts to protect the child, it might meet the same tragic fate as those before, falling victim to countless unforeseen accidents. The lengthy process of nurturing a new heir left them vulnerable, giving the conniving relatives ample opportunity to seize power before the heir could come of age.

Faced with too many uncertainties, they had delayed raising another child, indulging Kelly in her childish whims. With Charlie’s sudden appearance, they felt a wave of relief and vindication. It seemed their decision not to take the drastic step of extracting Kelly’s eggs had been the right one. “Are you worried he might be harmed?” Ronan asked, his eyes boring into Kelly’s.

Before long, Ronan added, “Kelly, have you investigated Charlie’s background? He’s Hayden Hoggard’s brother–in–law. If Charlie were to… I mean, if he were to be with you, the Hoggard family would undoubtedly protect him. He’d be safe. Besides, if the Hoggard family only supplies to us and stops supplying robots to the other two major families and our collateral relatives, we would monopolize the industry. We would dominate Yowhayton by then, and no one could harm us. You and Charlie would be the pride of the Jones family.”

“In your dreams,” Kelly retorted, glaring at Ronan, her words laced with venom.

Ronan’s smile faded slowly. After a moment, he sighed, his tone earnest. “Kelly, don’t disappoint me. Please. If you marry Charlie and align the Hoggard family with us, the entire Yowhayton will be at our disposal. The Jones family will be in power of the country.” Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

With a resounding sound, Kelly slapped Ronan in the face. “I will never agree to this. Don’t you dare involve Chuck in your schemes,” Kelly declared coldly.

Upon seeing Ronan’s furious expression and the murderous glint in his eyes, Lydia hurriedly stepped in, grasping his arm. “Ronan, don’t be angry with Claire. She’s just a child. I’ll talk to her. She’ll come around.” Ronan snorted and stormed off, clearly displeased. Only then did Lydia breathe a sigh of relief. Once he was gone, Lydia gently took Kelly’s hand, pleading softly, “Claire, listen to me. Talk to Charlie. You won’t regret it.”

As she spoke, Lydia discreetly traced a symbol in Kelly’s palm. It was a secret code that only they knew from Kelly’s childhood. Since coming to Yowhayton, Lydia had never used this symbol. Kelly froze, staring at Lydia in astonishment. Lydia lowered her head and kissed Kelly on the cheek. “Do it for me, please?” Kelly couldn’t shake the feeling that something was amiss, but she couldn’t pinpoint what. Maybe it was the symbol that tugged at her memories, but she found herself agreeing against her better judgment.

Meanwhile, watching the room’s surveillance footage, Ryker and Ronan were pleased. They were already anticipating the future with glee. Once Kelly married Charlie and secured the Hoggard family’s alliance, Yowhayton would be theirs. After Kelly agreed, Ronan and Ryker wasted no time packing her off to Zentiscape to find Charlie.

“Before her departure, Lydia filled a suitcase with items, assuring Kelly she’d need them in Zentiscape. As Kelly watched Lydia pack with meticulous care, her heart ached. Lydia had always been like this, ever so attentive to her. If Lydia had treated Kelly any slightly worse, she would have chosen to be selfish and leave the former behind. “Mom, I won’t get back with Charlie,” Kelly said, despite agreeing to go to Zentiscape, as she had no intention of dragging Charlie into the Jones family’s power struggles.”