A Caged Songbird's Escape: Into the Arms of a Predator novel Chapter 639

Rex, who had spent the most time around her recently, instantly caught the profound confusion etched across her face. He quickly shot a pointed look at his mother.

Suzanne had come here with only one desperate thought: seeing Elissa. Now that the girl was walking toward them perfectly safe, she couldn't contain her overwhelming joy.

Catching Rex's warning glare, she finally realized how overwhelming this must seem. She quickly reached out her hands toward Elissa. "I heard Laurel and the boys were coming to see you, and since I had some free time, I decided to tag along."

"Thank you for thinking of me, Suzanne."

Elissa felt a genuine wave of warmth in her chest. She walked over and sat down beside Suzanne, then looked over at the elders, greeting them with perfect politeness. "Old Mr. Wilkinson. Old Mrs. Wilkinson."

Hearing those formal titles felt like a knife twisting directly into the grandparents' hearts.

Old Mr. Wilkinson managed to maintain his composure, but his wife's eyes instantly filled with tears. She started to lunge forward to pull Elissa into her arms, but Laurel firmly gripped her elbow, dropping her voice to a harsh whisper. "What did you promise before we got in the car?"

"I..."

Old Mrs. Wilkinson looked at Elissa's pale complexion and forced herself to sit back down.

Originally, Laurel had planned for it to just be her and Suzanne.

But Tristan had been in the room and demanded to come along.

Then, while the household staff was busy packing up the ridiculous amount of gifts, word had leaked to the rest of the family.

And that was how this massive, chaotic entourage had ended up in the Murphys' living room.

What had Old Mrs. Wilkinson promised before they left?

She had sworn to keep her emotions in check and not overwhelm their long-lost 'Vera' with a sudden, shocking confession.

But after decades of mourning, her actual granddaughter was sitting right in front of her. How was she supposed to act like it was just another Tuesday?

Janice had no idea why the older woman was suddenly so emotional, but seeing her calm down, she quickly smoothed over the awkward tension. "Elissa, they didn't just come to check on you. Look at all the things they brought."

Elissa followed Janice's gaze and her jaw practically hit the floor. The entryway console table was entirely buried underneath a mountain of obscenely expensive gift boxes.

Stunned, Elissa turned back to Suzanne. "Suzanne, just you coming to see me makes me so happy. These gifts are way too much, I really can't..."

She couldn't accept a small fortune from people she barely knew.

Before she could finish the sentence, Laurel, who was sitting on her other side, patted her hand and laughed easily. "You've known us for a while now. Don't you know how my mom operates? She practically thinks of you as her own daughter. If you make her take all these boxes back, she might actually cry the whole way home."

Rex blurted out without thinking, "Exactly! We're practically family, there's no need to be so polite."

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