The Mocked Miss’s Hidden Crowns novel Chapter 975

If Lottie’s grandmother really was the founder of the genetic research institute, then she must have known the cure’s formula. But if that was true, why did it feel like the answers were slipping further and further away?

Anthony held Charlotte’s hand, his eyes searching her face. He seemed lost for a moment, his brow tightly knit in worry. Lottie’s grandmother was gone. Nora didn’t know the formula either. Did that mean the cure was never written down? Did something happen all those years ago, or were they just wrong about everything?

Anthony’s serious gaze didn’t go unnoticed. Samantha glanced between them, confused. “Anthony, is something wrong?”

He blinked, snapping back into the moment. “It’s nothing.” He managed a small smile, then gently patted Charlotte’s back before pouring her a glass of orange juice.

Charlotte accepted it, wrapping her hands around the cup and taking a couple of slow sips. She let the tart sweetness ground her.

“Tomorrow’s the weekend. You don’t have class, so why not stay here tonight?” Samantha smiled at her, her voice warm.

Charlotte nodded. “Okay.” The idea sounded comforting. Besides, she needed to figure out if Mrs. W and her grandmother were actually the same person. If they were, and her grandmother really did have the formula, why hadn’t she left it behind? She had to know her own daughter would inherit the same genetic condition. Why didn’t she leave a cure?

Questions kept tumbling through Charlotte’s mind, her thoughts tangled and restless.

After dinner, Anthony joined Donald, Roger, and Kenneth in the front hall, their voices drifting through the house. Charlotte slipped upstairs to the second floor to play chess with Robert.

When the timing felt right, she looked up from the chessboard. “Grandpa, can you tell me about Grandma?” She tried to sound casual, not wanting to make it a big deal.

Robert paused, his hand hovering over the chess piece. He seemed to freeze for a heartbeat, then he set the piece down and reached for Charlotte’s hand. His expression turned serious. “Come with me.”

“By the time I found a matching organ, her body was too weak for surgery. She died when your mother was just six months old.”

Robert’s shoulders shook. He turned to Charlotte, his eyes red and glassy. “Lottie… I’ve never done anything to hurt anyone. I swear it. But first your grandmother, and now your mother…” The grief in his gaze grew heavier, as if he was being crushed under the weight of it. He hunched over, his whole body trembling.

He hadn’t been able to save his wife. He hadn’t been able to save his daughter either.

“Lottie, I was so useless. I failed your mother. I’m so sorry.”

Charlotte’s heart twisted at his words. She moved closer, kneeling in front of him. She gently took his hands and looked up, her voice soft and steady. “Grandpa, don’t say that. You were a good husband. You’re a wonderful father. You did everything you could.”