The Princess and the Pauper (Arabella) novel Chapter 1844

In the living room.

A crowd gathered around Bernard.

"Grandpa, please, wake up." Chasel's tone was filled with concern and worry.

"With your level of mental fortitude, why bother to watch the video?" Sean hadn't expected the old man to be so frail that he'd pass out right after the video ended.

Next to them, Cornelia closed her eyes in grief, letting her tears flow unchecked.

"Granny, don't cry over it. Let's just pretend we never had that granddaughter. Shedding tears for someone like that isn't worth it," Belinda Griffith consoled her, patting her back empathetically.

Cornelia was feeling too upset and too angry.

She had thought their granddaughter’s return would add warmth and joy to the household. But she could never have imagined... never in her wildest dreams, that Serena could do such heinous things behind their backs!

Had they not seen the video today, they'd have remained unaware of the hardships Bella had endured!

At that moment, one of the sharp-eyed servants spotted Arabella, as if seeing a beacon of hope, her eyes lighting up.

"Ms. Bella's here!"

Everyone turned as Arabella made her entrance, her strides brisk yet graceful. Despite rushing, her cool and confident presence still managed to turn heads.

As Bernard's blurry vision cleared and he recognized Arabella, his emotions overwhelmed him again, and tears streamed down his face.

"My child, this family has wronged you." he grasped Arabella's hand, visibly shaken.

"Grandpa, please take deep breaths. Your health is what's most important," Arabella soothed him gently, "This family hasn't wronged me. On the contrary, I've received so much care and warmth here I can't even count. The ones who did wrong are Serena, Erik, and Martha. They've been fanning the flames, leading her down the wrong path. There's no need for self-blame; this isn't your fault."

"If we hadn't been so blind to people's true natures, you wouldn't have suffered here for so long, my poor granddaughter."

Bernard, ordinarily resolute, couldn't help but embrace Arabella, crying like a child, "We're so sorry, we've been fools, keeping such people close. You must be so upset, my child, I'm so sorry."

Arabella patted his back gently, "I'm not the one who should be upset. Serena is the one who should be. She had everything going for her but she squandered it. Now she must be filled with regret."