Chapter 66
Before Trevor could finish dinner at Chriscopher‘s place, he received a call from Alice.
When he picked up the call, he heard the sounds of a woman whimpering and choking sadly, and he could tell that it was Crystal who was crying.
Then, his mother said in exasperation, “Trevor, I know what happened between you and Crystal, and she knows that she‘s in the wrong. Nothing happened to Emma, right? Why can‘t you forgive her this time?
When she said that ‘nothing happened to Emma‘, the fire of fury ignited in his heart, and if it weren‘t his own mother who had said this, he would have lashed out at her.
However, he still sounded mad when he said, “What if no one helped her to beat up that assistant director for her? What if she‘s timid and had just gone along with that assistant director‘s wishes? Mom, there should be a bottom line in everything we do.”
Stunned, Alice wasn‘t expecting Trevor to be so strict, and she froze for a few seconds before hurriedly saying, “Yes, you‘re right. Crystal was indeed in the wrong here, and she admits it‘s her mistake. She‘s crying so much that she can hardly breathe. Also, she‘s a girl. How can you say such harsh things to her?”
He sneered as he thought, How was I harsh? I merely told her not to cook up press releases that would give people the wrong idea about our relationship. Is that harsh?
On the other end of the call, Crystal cried louder, and he held the phone further away from his ear with a frown.
Seated across from Trevor was Christopher, who snorted loudly–a display of his disapproval for people like Trevor and Alice.
Alice sighed and added, “I‘ll call the shots today and say that this matter is over. Just have a meal with Crystal one of these days to make up with her. Both of you have known each other for so many years whereas Emma is the outsider, after all!”
She went on to say a lot by herself, but Trevor didn‘t reply as he was unwilling to say that he would forgive Crystal.
Instead, he purposely said, “I‘m having dinner with Grandpa. I‘ll hang up now.”
When Alice heard that, she immediately said, “Okay, bye.”
She had a bad relationship with Christopher. In addition to the age–old conflict between a woman and her parents–in–law, the disputes between them because Emma worsened the situation.
Back then, she insisted on getting rid of Emma with some money. In contrast, after his observation, Christopher concluded that Emma was a lovely girl and had the qualifications to marry into the Bateson Family.
Moreover, he always sided with Emma in all ways after she married Trevor, which made Alice hopping mad.
Even though she was dissatisfied with Christopher in many aspects, she didn‘t dare to fight back much because he was a prominent figure in Jonestown and very influential in the Bateson Family.
The other point was that Christopher had a foul temper, and he would reprimand her mercilessly on the spot if she ruffled his feathers.
As the representative of wealthy women in upper–class society, Alice cared a lot about her reputation and the last thing she wanted was to be poorly criticized publicly. Therefore, she quickly ended the call when she heard that Trevor was with Christopher.
Christopher threw Trevor a disgruntled look as he expressed his disdain, “Are you using me as a shield because you can‘t handle your own mother?”
Nevertheless, Trevor answered nonchalantly, “I‘m not using you as a shield. This shows how respected you are, and she doesn‘t dare to step on your toes.”
Christopher snorted as he thought Trevor had a glib tongue and started complaining about Alice. “Arianna turned out the way she is today all because your mother spoiled her! She can‘t even educate her children well and still sticks her nose into other affairs.”
“I‘m one of her children too,” Trevor reminded him, implying that he didn‘t turn out astray like Arianna.
Nature and nurture both played a role in an individual‘s personality.
Christopher sneered mercilessly, rolling his eyes at him, “Do you think you‘re any better?”
To that, Trevor was rendered mute.
At Trevor‘s parents‘ place, Alice hung up and began comforting Crystal, who was sobbing and heartbroken. “Hush now. I’ve already told him off. Later after he has cooled down, he‘ll definitely give you a call.”
Tears were still flowing down Crystal‘s face as she sobbed, “Mrs. Bateson, will Trevor really ignore me after this?”
“Thai‘s impossible!” Alice exclaimed. “Both of you are just having a small fight for now. There‘s bound to be ups and downs when two people are together, but everything will be fine once he cools down.”
Next to them, Arianna, who was lying on the couch, said while playing on her phone, “My brother is too much. Don‘t you think he has a problem, kicking up such a big fuss with Crystal over Emma?”
Alice almost passed out in anger from her remark. Isn‘t she adding fuel to the fire? By saying out loud that Trevor is fighting with Crystal because of Emma, how does she expect Crystal to bear this embarrassment?
Alice glared at Arianna fiercely before she comforted Crystal again, “Why would Trevor fight with you because of Emma? He‘s doing it because of you and our family‘s image, don‘t you think so?”
Because Alice had mentioned ‘our family, Crystal felt somewhat better or Arianna‘s comment would have really made her collapse in fury.
“Trevor didn‘t even look her in the eye once when they were married for three years. So, why would he turn around and stand up for her now that they‘re divorced? If that‘s the case, he‘s really ch–” Alice abruptly stopped herself because she almost called her son ‘cheap.
She wasn‘t wrong; if her son started missing Emma afier the divorce, he would be really cheap.
Crystal wiped away her tears as she calmed down a little and said, “I‘m sorry, Mrs. Bateson. I couldn‘t keep my emotions in check tonight.”
Alice patted her hand assuringly. “It‘s alright. In my heart, you‘re just the same as Arianna, a part of my heart. As long as you get along well with Trevor and give me a grandson as soon as possible, then I‘ll have no more worries.”
When Crystal gave her a shy smile, she added, “It‘s getting late. I‘m going to rest upstairs now. Stay here and have a chat with Arianna, then.”
After Alice went upstairs, Arianna kept her phone away and whispered to Crystal, “That Emma has an irresponsible brother and a gambling addict as a father, right? So, why do you have to do it yourself to take care of her? Isn‘t it enough if you just let both of them do it instead? Then, she would be in hot water when they messed with her. When that time comes, she won‘t have the time to seduce my brother anymore.”
Arianna had personally witnessed how Emma‘s father and brother had acted out shamelessly. If it wasn‘t for them causing a scene back then, Christopher might not have agreed to let Emma marry into the family.
Shocked, Crystal turned to her, not expecting that Arianna could be so sly.
If Arianna hadn‘t mentioned this, she would have forgotten about it, and instantly broke into a smile. “Arianna, you‘re a genius.”
Arianna continued, “This time, we won‘t do it ourselves. Instead, use an unknown puniber to send them a text to tell them Emma‘s current address. After that, just leave the rest to them.” The moment she detailed her scheme, a giggle that was gleeful and wicked escaped her lips.
Crystal nodded in agreement at her suggestion and said, “That‘s a great idea! Arianna, thanks for helping me out.“,
Arianna slouched onto the couch as she replied, “Oh, just put in a few good words for me once you‘re married to Trevor.”
“That‘s for sure.” But, despite what she said Crystal hated Arianna to the core in her heart.
If she really married to the Bateson Family, the first thing she would do was ask Trevor to send Arianna abroad so that she would stop embarrassing herself,