Chapter 421

Hearing Evelyn’s unusually quiet and dejected tone on the phone, Teresa felt something wasn’t right. Evelyn’s flight landed at ten in the morning. Teresa went to pick her up, handing Isabel over to her. The moment Isabel was in Evelyn’s arms, she started bawling.

“Sweetheart, did you miss me? I’m so sorry for coming so late to get you,” Evelyn said, full of guilt.

“Mommy, I thought you didn’t want me anymore,” Isabel sobbed in Evelyn’s arms.

“How could I ever not want my precious girl?” Evelyn hugged Isabel tightly.

Teresa sighed. “Alright, let’s not just stand here. Let’s go to my place—Isabel’s luggage is there.”

Evelyn agreed.

When they got to Rosary Estates, Michael ran up and called out, “Grandma!”

Evelyn responded, “Mike, Isabel hasn’t torn up your notebook again, has she?”

Michael shook his head and glanced at Isabel. “Grandma, Aunt Isabel and I are good friends now.”

‘Kids really don’t hold grudges,’ Evelyn sighed, ruffling Michael’s hair. She felt that he was looking more and more like his dad.

Teresa brought over some coffee and asked Evelyn, “Did something happen? You sounded upset on the phone.”

After setting down the coffee, she turned to Mike and said quietly, “Mike, can you take Isabel to your room? I need to talk to Grandma.”

“Yes, ma’am!” Michael replied playfully.

Once the kids had left, Evelyn pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes. “I’m such an idiot,” she said.

“What happened? Don’t cry. Just tell me,” Teresa urged.

Choking back her sobs, Evelyn said, “The whole 1.5 million is gone.”

Teresa’s eyes widened. “What?”

Evelyn’s lips moved as if searching for words. She’d wanted to make a little extra money, so she invested 2.6 million dollars in a project. Cautious at first, but since her psychologist had recommended it, she let her guard down. Only then did Teresa know what had happened. After Charlie scammed Evelyn out of everything and left her penniless, Evelyn had fallen into a deep depression. While she was in Fernlandia taking care of Isabel, she met a foreign psychologist who helped her work through her issues, and she really thought he was a good person.

Teresa was at a complete loss for words. After a while, she said, “Are you out of your mind? How many times have you let men scam you? Haven’t you learned your lesson yet? That wasn’t just a few bucks—that was 2.6 million dollars!”

Evelyn knew she was in the wrong and didn’t try to argue. “I just trusted him too much, never thought it would turn out like this. I swear to you, never again. I’m completely finished with men.”

She was heartbroken. “This is just my fate. I can’t seem to meet anyone who truly cares about me. I’ve accepted it. If Isabel weren’t so young, I might just want to give up entirely.”

Teresa felt a whirlwind of anger, pity, and frustration. “Okay, enough. How many times have you done such things? Just focus on taking care of Isabel from now on. I’ll make sure you get a share of Feresouth Group’s dividends every year. But please, no more crazy schemes.”

Evelyn shook her head. “Teresa, I can’t take your money anymore. The person I’ve let down the most is you.”

Teresa narrowed her eyes and stared hard at Evelyn. “What do you mean? Are you still hiding something from me?”

Evelyn kept dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief, and finally, she let out the truth. That 2.6 million wasn’t even hers. It was the money Jonathan had given to Teresa.

“When Jennifer got engaged, Jonathan came to me. He said he was leaving Nareigh and might never come back. He wanted to give you 2.6 million as a wedding gift if you ever got remarried. He asked me to keep it safe for you. I…” Evelyn couldn’t finish.

The news hit Teresa like a bolt of lightning.

After a while, Evelyn continued, “I thought I could double the 2.6 million and turn it into 5.2 million. It’s all my fault. It’s not like when I started my business—making money is so much harder now.”

Evelyn glanced nervously at Teresa, taking in her pale face and the deep disappointment, blame, and pain in her eyes.

Teresa snapped out of her daze and grabbed Evelyn’s shoulders, completely breaking down. “How could you do this to me? You spent Jonathan’s money. How am I supposed to face him now? I already can’t look him in the eye, and now you pull this? What kind of mother does something like this? Did you ever really love me?”

Evelyn whispered, “I’ll pay you back, bit by bit. I promise.”

“It’s too late.” Teresa quickly grabbed Isabel’s packed luggage and tossed it out. “Take your daughter and leave. I don’t have a mother like you. I was the idiot who thought you’d saved up a 2.6 million dollar engagement gift for me.”

“Teresa—”

Teresa slammed the door with a loud bang. Evelyn’s tearful, regretful eyes and her words continued to haunt Teresa’s mind.

‘If Donald gave Evelyn 2.6 million to pass on to Jennifer, would she have kept it a secret, too? And now, only now, does she tell me it was Jonathan’s money. How ridiculous,’ Teresa thought.

She leaned against the door, feeling as if all the strength had left her body.

At Forlisle Rose Estates in Nareigh, Donald stopped by to drop off some documents for Jonathan. “Jennifer asked me to bring this to you,” he said.

Jonathan opened the sealed envelope right in front of Donald. Inside was Teresa’s medical report, with a note at the bottom: [No obvious abnormalities on ultrasound.] Jonathan’s eyes darkened as he set the report down on the table. Donald caught a glimpse and was a bit puzzled and surprised. ‘What’s the deal with this report?’ he wondered.

Jonathan, nursing his coffee, poured Donald a cup and gestured to a seat. “Sit down.”

Only then did Donald ask, “Is this a pregnancy test for Teresa?”

Jonathan nodded. “Yeah. I suspected Teresa might be pregnant with my child. That’s why I came back to Nareigh—to find out for sure.”

Jonathan never fully bought Sanford’s story about the daughter. Once he learned Isabel was Teresa’s child, he believed Teresa’s explanation that it was all a misunderstanding. What mattered most to him was whether Teresa was actually pregnant.

Donald suddenly understood. “I see. The report says she’s not pregnant, right?”

Jonathan took a sip of coffee and looked at Donald, asking with meaning. “Donald, can I trust you?”

Donald glanced at the report on the table and gave a helpless smile. “You’re worried Jennifer would fake the results? She wouldn’t. I promise—she’s a really professional doctor.”

Jonathan didn’t say anything else. He just patted Donald on the shoulder with his broad palm. “If I can’t trust my family, who can I trust?”