When Two Winters Met (Henrietta and Yosef) novel Chapter 271

After a round of trying to console herself, Artina Harmon finally felt a little better. But deep down, she knew she was at a dead end, completely out of options. All that was left was to film the movie obediently, follow Henrietta Sargent’s every command, and do her best to please her without causing any more trouble. That was her only path forward now. If she hadn't used Henrietta’s name as a shield today, she never would have made it out of the Nash estate in one piece. That vicious old woman, Zelina Gilmore, turned out to be a real piece of work—utterly devoid of sympathy. Henrietta hadn't imposed any real consequences. Even Yosef’s sister, Leticia, had shown her a sliver of sympathy. Even Jethro Nash… hadn't seemed inclined to blacklist her. But that damn old woman had been the one to fly into a rage and come down the hardest. Artina must have been insane to go to her in the first place. 'Just you wait, you old hag,' she seethed. 'You're not getting any younger. The sooner you drop dead, the better!' After her furious cursing, Artina didn't dare delay, rushing to drive to the set. She cried the whole way, mourning how her life had suddenly become so miserable and weeping for the Jethro who had loved her, the man who was now gone forever. She also cried for her shattered dream of marrying into the upper class. From now on, she would be stuck under Henrietta's thumb, forced to watch her reign from on high, arrogant and untouchable. Artina cried her heart out, as if determined to shed a lifetime of tears in one go, nearly causing a car accident in the process. The close call terrified her, making her cry even harder. But she still forced herself to go to the set. As soon as she arrived, she had her assistant grab some ice for her swollen face and eyes. Then, she went to find Charlotte Tatum herself. Charlotte was in the middle of a scene and made her wait for over twenty minutes. This time, however, Artina didn't dare utter a single word of protest, let alone act arrogantly.. 'Now what's wrong with you?' Charlotte asked impatiently when she finally came over. Artina, wearing oversized sunglasses and a baseball cap pulled low, took them both off. Charlotte flinched, her brow furrowing. 'You got hit again? Can you even film your scenes this afternoon and evening?' Artina quickly replied, 'I… I brought ice packs. I should be able to.' Her attitude was unprecedentedly cooperative and professional. Charlotte eyed her suspiciously. Artina added, 'I'll... I'll wait on set. If makeup can cover it this afternoon, we can shoot. If not... I'll just have to trouble you, Director Tatum, to reschedule the scenes.' Her words and demeanor stunned Charlotte, who took a few seconds to process before nodding. 'Oh. Okay, then.' Artina nodded back and, astonishingly, gave Charlotte a submissive nod before heading to her trailer. Charlotte's eyes widened. 'What the hell? Is this bitch planning something big? Why is she acting like a completely different person? Was she possessed, or did she have a complete personality transplant?' Charlotte stared after her, then immediately grabbed her phone to call Henrietta. Meanwhile, Zelina was gleefully recounting to Henrietta and Yosef Nash how she had beaten Artina that morning until her face was bruised and unrecognizably swollen. She was having the time of her life. Henrietta paused, her movements faltering slightly. Yosef also stopped and looked at her. Seemingly oblivious, Zelina saw their reactions and asked, 'What is it, Henrietta? Should I not have hit her?' Before Henrietta could speak, Yosef began, 'Well, you certainly…' '...did the right thing!' Henrietta finished, smiling at Zelina. 'You handled it perfectly, Mother.' Zelina blinked, looking a bit embarrassed. 'Really?' 'Yes,' Henrietta nodded. 'You handled it very well. She needed to be taught a lesson.' Yosef shot Henrietta a look but said nothing more. Zelina's lips trembled, her eyes welling up with emotion. 'But Henrietta, she's in your movie. With puffed up and badly bruised like that, won't it delay the shoot?' 'It’s fine, Mother. If we have to pause filming, we pause. It's not a big deal,' Henrietta reassured her. 'But I almost crippled her,' Zelina added. That truly startled Henrietta, a knot of tension forming in her stomach. 'What?' 'She brought you up, so I stopped before I really went through with it.' Henrietta breathed a sigh of relief. 'I'm sorry, Henrietta,' Zelina said, 'I didn't know your plan. But luckily, I was smart enough to figure it wasn't that simple, so I called it off at the last second!' Zelina seemed quite proud of herself. Henrietta laughed. 'Yes, Mother, you're so clever!' Zelina beamed, pushing a serving dish toward Henrietta. 'Eat more, Henrietta. You must eat more.' She had expected Henrietta to blame her, or at least show displeasure even if she didn't say anything. After all, Zelina knew she had nearly derailed Henrietta's grand plan. But instead, Henrietta had praised her. A daughter-in-law this good was one in a million. Yosef watched from the side, his lips pursed as he enjoyed seeing his wife charm his mother like a child. 'Henrietta,' Zelina said, 'what if—and I'm just saying what if—I had actually crippled her this morning? What would you have done?' Henrietta put down her fork and knife and said seriously, 'Mother, you don't need to feel guilty. You didn't know the whole story, so punishing her was perfectly fine. If she had been crippled, we would have just moved on to a different plan. It's not a big deal, so please don't worry about it.' Zelina’s heart swelled with comfort at those words, and she nodded repeatedly. 'I knew you wouldn't blame me, Henrietta! You really are the best daughter-in-law a mother could ask for! Come on, eat, eat.' Henrietta served some food for Zelina as well. 'You eat too, Mother.' Just then, Charlotte's call came through. Henrietta excused herself, stepping aside to answer. 'Henrietta,' Charlotte said, 'Artina showed up today with her face puffed up and badly bruised. It's puffed up at least an inch! And her attitude on set is bizarrely good. Not only did she offer to film, but she... she was actually acting subservient toward me! I'm starting to wonder if she's even the same person.'