Chapter 1215
Hailey stepped out of the elevator and just as she rounded the comer through the lobby, she saw Hertha, slowing her stride.
Upon seeing her, Hertha removed her sunglasses and approached Hailey again.
“Ms. Vulpe, there are some truths you should know about. Let’s find a place where I can fill you in,” she said.
Faced with Hertha’s round two of truth-telling, Hailey found her untrustworthy.
“I don’t have the time, and I’m not interested in your so-called truth.”
Attempting to sidestep Hertha, she made to leave, but Hertha stopped her in her tracks.
“Hailey, if you’re hell-bent on marrying Cedric without a second thought, then be my guest,” she said, pulling out a voice recorder. “But you should know the truth.”
She thrust the recorder into Hailey’s hand.
“This is proof of what I was forced to explain after Latonia threatened me.”
The cold recorder in her hand sent a chill up her spine.
“So you’re saying your previous explanation was coerced by his mother?”
“Yes,” Hertha answered, expressionless, nodding her head. “If I hadn’t complied, I would have been attacked and my parents would have been hurt.”
To prove her point, Hertha lifted her shirt, grabbed Hailey’s hand, and placed it on her own ribs.
“Feel for yourself, several of my ribs are broken, and…”
Hertha extended her limp ring finger in front of Hailey’s eyes.
“My finger was permanently fractured.”
Then, she pulled back her high-collared shirt to reveal a patch of bruised skin on her neck for Hailey to see.
“All these marks, they were made by Latonia’s bodyguards.”
When Hertha said this, her eyes flash with defiance, her lips curled in a mocking smile.
“I was just involved with her son, and she went all out against me. She did all this to help her son win you back… Hailey, in this competition, you won, I lost…”
Hailey suddenly pulled her hand back from Hertha’s ribs after hearing these shocking words.
“I don’t believe you.”
She said she didn’t believe it, but her hand gripping the voice recorder tightened unconsciously.
“Just give it a listen,” Hertha said, her eyes full of sympathy for Hailey.
Hailey stared into her eyes for a few seconds, then returned the recorder.
“The recording can be faked. How do I know you’re not just trying to scam me?”
“If you think the recording is fake, confront Latonia. She’s always been one to take responsibility.”
Faced with Hertha’s determination and solemn vows, Hailey’s mind was full with confusion.
Seeing her lost expression, Hertha smirked internally, but outwardly she pushed the recorder back into Hailey’s hand.
“I had the recorder ready before they came to see me because I did have sex with Cedric that day. I anticipated they would come after me, so I thought I’d better cover my back. Little did I know it would actually come in handy…”
Upon hearing that she and Cedric had been intimate, Hailey’s heart raced, then she felt like she was falling into a bottomless pit.
After standing there dazed for a moment, she grabbed the recorder, turned on her heel, and quickly exited the hospital ward.
Outside in the garden, Hailey sat down on a bench and turned on the recorder.
The sound of Latonia’s orders, Hertha’s screams for mercy, the rough movements of the bodyguards…
All these sounds poured from the recorder, chilling Hailey to the bone.
So, the so-called explanation, the so-called truth, the so-called reality, were all just a mother’s love for her son.
And Cedric…
“Cedric might have forgotten because he was drunk. He thought he didn’t do it, so he kidnapped me to get the truth from me. But what I said was the truth, he just doesn’t believe it…”
Hertha, who had been trailing Hailey, adopted a nonchalant attitude and sat down next to her.
“He doesn’t believe it, his mother doesn’t believe it, so they have to admit to things that didn’t happen…”
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: A Second Chance At Forever novel (Eleanor and Bernard)
Loved the story, many times caught in so much actually crying with the situation. Wish had more chapters to a better ending....
It's weird that the story went from narrative to slang use. Good story so far though...