.
When Armand Bernie heard Abbott Baronâs report that Jeffery Harris had come, he scoffed, âDo you think heâll be forgiven in this way?â
Matthew Nelson sat at his desk in silence, apparently not waiting for Jeffery to take the initiative to admit it. It was obvious that such a move showed goodwill toward him.
Jeffery was old-fashioned and valued his reputation. The move to withdraw was brilliant and put him in a difficult position, but the ruthlessness made him more human.
Boyce Shawn glanced at Armand, as he disagreed with Armandâs statement, so Jeffery took the initiative to admit it to reconcile. He looked at Matthew, âItâs better to see him, after all he is Doloresâ familyâ¦â Even if he doesnât think for others, he has to think for Dolores.
âShe left because she didnât want you to hold back, so you should think for her too.â
Even if he wasnât willing to admit it, this relationship would not be erased since Jeffery was Doloresâ uncle.
Surely Matthew could think about it as Boyce was clear on the reasoning as well. He just couldnât get over the setbacks.
How could he let go of the enmity of having killed his mother? Because of Jeffery, he had regretted it for the rest of his life.
This was a dead end, there would be a trail there and it would never disappear even after a long time.
Jeffery dressed in civilian clothes and Marina Lee helped him inside. It hadnât been long, but it seemed like a lifetime ago when they met again as there were too many changes and everything had been so different.
Marina helped him sit on the couch and whispered, âCall me when you leave, Iâll be waiting for you outside.â
Jeffery said, âOkay.â
Marina put her head down and walked out of the office. There was nothing she could say to Matthew because of the current situation, so she didnât greet him.
Once the office door was closed, the space was silent. Then it was Jeffery who broke the stalemate first, âNoah Harris has left the entertainment industry and enlisted in the military. He must not have come to see you.â
Sean Lee, who knew the ins and outs, wasnât shy about coming to see anyone.
âIâm not here to justify anything or to plead with them. What I did deserves retribution and punishment, I wonât shirk it.â
It was no coincidence that Sean went to the military and admitted everything. This was the plan he thought up for himself. His relationship with Sean was always bad, so outsiders were unclear about Seanâs identity. There are some of his confidants, as he had been in power for many years, so it was not difficult to get Sean in.
Also, Sean did not participate in the military like his son. Even if he made a big mistake later, it would not affect Sean.
He did it because he didnât want the Harris Family to fall because of him.
Sean went there willingly, as it was clear to him that Jeffery should be punished accordingly to put this matter to rest. Hence, he enlisted in the military to put a hole in the Harris Family so that Jeffery would have no worries, come forward and admit everything.
Jeffery knew he could neither blame nor hate anyone. Even if he wasnât aware of it, he had made a mistake after all. Even if he only intended to kidnap Victoria Forbis and didnât want to kill her, in the end she had died because of him.
He had an inescapable responsibility!
âWhether in prison or in disgrace, I have no complaints, I just want to see her once.â When he spoke, he did not raise his head. Until the last word, he only raised his head to look at Matthew.
He hated Victoria, but he had never intended to kill her. If he had wanted to kill her, he would have done it when he imprisoned her twenty years ago. He wouldnât have waited until now.
His only regret was that he had prevented Jolene Harris from staying with the man she loved. She didnât know Jolene would be so stubborn and still didnât want him after marrying Jayden Nelson. She had no idea that Jayden would spoil her in such an absurd way, that he would allow her to find a woman and hide from everyone to give birth to a bastard child with Stanley Lennon. She never thought that the person she had hated for almost half her life was because of her sisterâs decision.
A word like âIâm sorryâ wasnât enough to make up for anything, so she didnât say it.
Jolene not only harmed the lives of others, she had done it to him as well. But what could he say? What could he say in his defense?
As it happened, this was Jolene, whom he had adored since he was a child. He deserved it, and he couldnât blame anyone else.
Matthew looked up at the floor-to-ceiling window with one arm resting nonchalantly on the desk, leaving only half of its outline. No one could pry into his expression, his thoughts and his heart. Even her tone lacked emotion, âI donât know where she is either, she left over a month ago.â
Jeffery opened his mouth in disbelief, âYou just let her go? Donât you like her very much?â
He used to care a lot about Dolores. He was willing to make an enemy of her and was even unafraid of the trap he and Eddie Chambers had set together.
Matthew slowly turned his head, the chill seeping through made people afraid even without showing any expression, âWhat else, let him watch the two of us kill each other?â
Wasnât that another kind of cruelty?
Jeffery was suddenly speechless.
He couldnât say a word. Whether she admitted it or not, he was still her uncle and Matthew was her husband. Whose side would she be on?
Who was the one she would expect to die?
She gripped the arm of the couch and slowly stood up. She looked at Matthew and said word for word in a pleading tone, âItâs all my fault. Please let me come back.â
At last he said, âI myself will admit what I did. There is no need for anyone to be involved in it.â
If he turned himself in, his throat wouldnât be cut and Dolores wouldnât have to feel guilty in front of Matthew. He would fix the mistake he made himself.
âI know you definitely donât want to see me. This is the last time I appear in front of you.â When he finished walking, he walked slowly toward the door. He was sent to the hospital in time, so he had no sequelae. Only his health was much worse than before and his legs were not as agile as before.
As he opened the door, Marina heard the noise and rushed over to help him, âWhy didnât you call me?â
âIâm not paralyzed, I can still walk on my own.â Jeffery had been proud in his life, but he had lost it all in his old age.
Marina sighed knowing he was upset with himself. He hated Jolene because his selfishness had hurt so many people.
If it werenât for Jolene, Jeffery wouldnât have become like this.
In Marinaâs opinion, it was all Joleneâs fault, but she didnât dare say so in front of her husband. Still, Jolene was still his sister and he still cared about her, just as he cared that Dolores was Joleneâs daughter.
If she was indifferent, why did she have to suffer?
Jeffery, who had left, seemed to want to prove to Matthew that he was telling the truth by turning himself in, bringing Declan with him. He was clear about Matthewâs character, as he would not let anyone involved in the kidnapping get away.
So he did it for Matthew, not to show goodwill in the purpose, but so that Dolores would face him without guilt.
Even though he had turned himself in, the police would not give the verdict so quickly as they still have to get evidence and conduct the investigation.
Matthew was not soft-hearted about his words and did not feel the pleasure of revenge, even though Jeffery might lose his reputation by turning himself in. His feelings were now complicated and even contradictory.
He wondered in his mind if they would be able to embrace without distraction when he saw Dolores.
He was afraid of hurting her.
He was also afraid that she would have problems with him because of Jefferyâs surrender.
It was a rift. No matter how it was resolved, there would be a scar between them and no one would dare mention it or touch it, so he would become wary all the time.
During the period when Jeffery was being investigated, he paid close attention to his work. He asked Abbott to go back to the villa and bring a few sets of clean clothes to the office. When he was tired, he would rest in the office without returning.
This kind of life was satisfying. Although it was somewhat self-abusive, it was a way to forget the things that bothered him and the person who made his heart ache for a while.
He kept quiet until he overlooked an invitation card that made him get agitated. It wasnât because of the card or anything that interested him, but because of the person on it.
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