252 Ch. 252 Elliotâs True Feelings
After getting approval from Loraine that Anxia could take Elliot back to England, the older woman kicked out her daughter and grandson on the grounds that she wanted to rest.
âAre you sick, grandma?â
âNo, darling. Iâm just too tired to deal with a lot of work.â
âThen, you should make it up with rest a lot. Iâll be happier if you are healthy and spend more time with me.â
Like Lori, Elliot is good at stealing peopleâs hearts with a different method. Lori was more straightforward with no hidden motive, while the latter had a more shrewd and active way of approaching people.
âElliot, I never knew you could act like that. I hope you donât act in front of me someday.â Anxia reminded her son after they walked further from her motherâs room.
Elliot looked at his mother and tilted his head to the side. âActing? Iâm not acting.â
âAre you not?â
ââ¦â
.....
âElliot?â Anxia folded her arms in front of her chest as she looked at her son with a stern gaze making Elliot pout. âTell me the truth now.â
Elliot sighed in resignation, realizing he couldnât fool his mother. âOkay, I was acting a little earlier. If I donât, she wonât let me go. Plus, she wasnât in a good mood when I entered the room. I had to lighten up a little bit.â
âYou can tell sheâs not in a good mood?â
âIs it bad? I wonât do it again if you donât like it.â
Was this kid acting innocently now to make her forgive the boy? Anxia herself didnât know the answer either. She crouched to look at her son so Elliot wouldnât have to tilt his head to speak to her.
âElliot, I understand why you must behave and hide your true feelings while living here. I donât know what happened during your growth here, but I admire your current acting skills stemming from your survival instincts in a place like this. But... I hope, once you get together with me, papa, and Lori too, you wonât have to act in front of us.
You donât have to hide your feelings or hold back from expressing your thoughts. You also donât have to worry about upsetting us; we only get angry if you put yourself in danger. Besides, we would never get mad at anything you do.â
Anxia hadnât noticed before that Elliotâs hands had trembled when she said that Elliot didnât need to hide his true feelings. But it was only when she saw her sonâs pair of black eyes glistening with tears that Anxia noticed that her sonâs hands were trembling.
âElliot?â
âCan... can I express my feelings⦠now?â
Although confused by what her son was thinking, Anxia answered his question gently. âOf course.â
Anxia was confused by the attitude of her son, who was now walking towards her to bury his face in the crook of her neck. Not long after, a sob sounded right by her ears, and Anxia felt her neck wet with tears.
Hearing her sonâs sobs and cold tears trickling down her neck made Anxiaâs heart feel like it was being sliced. She just realized that all this time, Elliot had been holding back his true feelings and wearing a mask to please Loraine.
Anxia didnât know what kind of burden Elliot had felt during these five years, but she did know one thing. One of the reasons that made Elliot so good at acting was Loraine Shu.
âHuwaaaaaâ¦. mama⦠to tell you the truth... Iâm scared... Iâm so afraid to live here⦠I hate this place... sob⦠I want to leave here, but⦠but that man⦠that man will beat me and lock me up⦠and Aunt Jamie too... she...â
Anxiaâs forehead furrowed at this, pushing Elliot gently to look at her sonâs face, which now didnât look as bright as usual. The boyâs eyes were filled with tears, his nose was red, and the freshening smile as bright as the sun that had continually graced the boyâs lips was gone.
âThat man? Who? Who beat you and locked you up?â
Elliot didnât answer and sobbed as if he was afraid even to say that personâs name.
Anxia wiped away her sonâs tears while comforting him and patiently waited for his answer. As it was currently Loraine Shuâs fiefdom, Anxia couldnât openly talk to her son because the walls and the ground of this place might eavesdrop on their conversation.
Because of that, Anxia brought Elliot to the seaside, where no one nor the cameras would watch them.
Luckily, they werenât too far from the beach so that they could walk, and in less than ten minutes, they were at the beach while Elliotâs crying had subsided.
Anxia sat on the sand while leading her son to sit on her crossed legs while looking at the sea. Her arms wrapped around Elliot from behind, and she held her sonâs hand, making Elliot feel comfortable and protected.
âElliot, as long as your father and I are alive, we will not allow anyone to harm you. We couldnât protect you because we didnât know you existedânow we know and plan to take you home. Therefore, donât be afraid and tell me who has made you suffer?â
âThat manâ¦â
âThat man? Do you know his name?â
âI donât know. But I have seen him hugging grandma and kissing grandma... like papa does to you.â
Anxiaâs body stiffened upon hearing this. The man who hugs and kisses her mother? What has Loraine Shu done to poison her sonâs innocent brain? Now she hoped that Loraine Shu was not her birth mother so she could avenge her sonâs suffering on that woman.
âWhat did this man do to you?â
âWhen I first argued against grandma, this guy locked me in the shed. He even hit my cheek because I was crying so hard. He said I am a man and should not shed tears. He says I will always get punished if I disobey grandma. He also saidâ¦.â
âSay what, honey?â Anxia coaxed as her sonâs recounted stopped.
Hearing a soft and comforting tone of voice, coupled with the supporting caresses on both fists, Elliot mustered up the courage to continue his words.
âHe said he would cut my tongue if I said a word grandma didnât like.â
Elliot could feel his motherâs arms tightening around him, but he couldnât see the dangerous glint in her mother, who looked like she wanted to kill someone.
After two years since she made peace with the past and decided to live quietly with Richard⦠in the end, the urge to kill someone resurfaced from within Anxia.