"Didn't you go shopping? Why are you back so soon? I wasn't expecting you back until later."
Sitting on the sofa, Yulia was immersed in her own thoughts, full of fear. She was worried about what she saw and didn't want to talk about it. When Nelson walked into the living room with Gavin's help, he saw Yulia alone.
Nelson knew that she and Melinda went out together, and they had gone shopping. He hoped that they could get along well with each other, so he encouraged them to spend time together.
Gavin helped Nelson sit down on the sofa, poured him a cup of tea, and then retreated to a corner. Yulia was still in a daze until Nelson put the cup heavily on the tea table. He startled her to get her attention and show his authority.
"Ah. Grandpa. I am back,"
Yulia greeted him nervously. Her hands locked together and her eyes were darting around. She didn't dare to look into Nelson's eyes. She knew he would be upset with her and didn't know how best to handle it.
"What are you doing? I asked you something, but you didn't answer me. Didn't you go out with Melinda?" He was visibly agitated and unsure of why on earth she would be back so soon. "Why did you come back alone? Where is Melinda?"
Nelson asked unhappily. Yulia's eyes were wide open when she heard Nelson ask about Melinda. She had run away and was totally unaware of what was going on now. Things had started to get bad quickly and she thought it best to get away.
Besides, she didn't think Jonas could defeat the three men. There were some guys that started bullying Melinda. Jonas came to help and things escalated. She was fearful and fled.
"I...decided to leave. I didn't want to stay. I felt a little uncomfortable so I came back first. Melinda is fine. She happened to meet a friend, so they went shopping together,"
stuttered Yulia. Though Nelson was old, he was wise, so she dared not look at him at all. He could sense her lying and didn't like it one bit.
Nelson heard the fear in her voice and snorted. He didn't believe that Yulia was telling the truth. She was lying and it was obvious. He knew Melinda well. If Yulia was really sick, Melinda wouldn't go shopping with her friend on her own.
"Your sister-in-law went shopping with a friend. Is the friend more important than you?" he questioned her more. Pressuring her to tell the truth.
Yulia was totally confused and took it for granted that Nelson was blaming Melinda for not taking good care of her. At this thought, she could not help feeling happy in her heart.
"Grandpa, Melinda also has her own friends. I shouldn't bother her," she said coyly.
Yulia pretended to be annoyed and blamed Melinda. She was trying to win his favor by throwing Melinda under the bus.
"Yulia, do you think I'm a fool?" Nelson barked angrily. He was beginning to lose his patience. "Tell me where she is at!" he demanded.
There was anger in Nelson's voice. Yulia finally realized she'd best tell the truth and she stammered, "She was stopped by a group of people. And Jonas appeared to protect her. So... I came back. I didn't want to be there. Things were getting heated so I left."
Hearing this, Nelson was almost speechless. He couldn't believe that Yulia came back after she saw that Melinda was bullied. He was angry with Yulia and her selfishness.
"Gavin, please send someone to help Jonas as soon as possible," he ordered.
Lowering her head, Yulia didn't dare to speak a word. 'If I had known this, I wouldn't have come back,' she thought. She was frustrated by the situation and didn't know what to do.
"Yulia, if anything happens to Melinda and Jonas, it will be on you," he told her sternly.
Then he pointed at Yulia and angrily added, "Thank god, Jonas appeared to help. You ran away and left Melinda alone! What if Jonas was not there?" His voice was rising as his anger overcame him.
The more Nelson thought about it, the angrier he became. He stood up and walked back and forth on his crutch. Yulia was still there, full of resentment and silently fuming.
"Mr. Nelson, don't worry too much. Mr. Jonas will handle it well."
Gavin tried to comfort him. Nelson sighed and finally sat down. He was old and tired.
"How is there such an irresponsible person like you in our Gu family? How could you only think of yourself? It's so shameful. Yulia, don't contact Melinda anymore."
Yulia was angry but she dared not to say anything. She bit her lip and sat there. Nelson asked Gavin to call Melinda, but the phone had been turned off, which worried him more.
"What about Jonas's phone?"
"No one answered,"
Gavin said. Nelson was more worried than before. Thinking of the scene before she left, Yulia began to get worried. She weakly said, "Jonas said he had called the police. Everything should be fine."
"Everything should be fine? Do you think it is reasonable for you to run away and leave them there as long as everything should be fine? If you called us earlier, things would be better than now."
It would be best if Yulia didn't speak. Her words almost drove Nelson mad. Gavin stood aside, indicating that Yulia should stop talking and leave quietly.
They still couldn't get in touch with them. Fortunately, Gavin arranged people to come to the place soon. There were signs of fighting and some bloodstains, but no one was there. It was empty.
"Send someone to the shopping mall and check the security monitor. I want to know who is bullying our Gu family!"
Nelson pounded the ground with his crutch, but the sound was muffled by the soft carpet.
In the hospital, the smell of disinfectant was powerful. Melinda walked in with Jonas, whose whole body was draped on hers. Melinda was very tired, and with the help of a nurse, she took him to have a surgery examination and treat the wounds.
Only when Melinda sat on the chair did she feel relieved. Then she remembered that she did not see Yulia. She didn't see her leave. She had slipped away quietly without a word.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Forgive My Ex-husband