Jennifer’s face was expressionless. “Why should I care about her? I just happened to have a prenatal checkup, so I dropped by to see her while I was at it.”
Teresa glanced at Jennifer’s barely noticeable baby bump and frowned, “You’re way too thin. You really need to take better care of yourself and eat more nutritious food, especially now that you’re pregnant.”
Jennifer’s arms were painfully thin, her whole body weighing only around 100 pounds. The corners of her lips twitched slightly as she said, “How rare for you to show concern. It’s been ages since we last spoke this civilly.”
The words were barely out of her mouth when Evelyn, having just finished her MRI, emerged from the room. Spotting Jennifer, a flicker of surprise crossed her face.
“Actually, she came here specifically to see you,” Teresa said.
Jennifer turned away. “Just passing through. Can’t you stop being such a worry to your daughters? You can’t even take care of yourself.”
Evelyn, unfazed, smiled warmly, gently taking Jennifer’s hand, then reaching for Teresa’s as well. Evelyn smiled warmly and said, “Having you both by my side makes me feel truly blessed.” Jennifer pulled her hand away abruptly.
Back in the hospital room, Michael didn’t say a word. He just threw himself into Teresa’s arms, sobbing so hard that his tears quickly soaked through her shirt. Teresa quickly pulled him close and asked, “What’s wrong, sweetie? Did Aunt Isabel pick on you?”
Michael shook his head, sniffled, and pointed first at his head, then specifically at his thick hair, his eyes brimming with tears. Teresa gently stroked and checked Michael’s head, her fingers carefully probing. “What happened to your head, sweetie? Did you bump into something?”
“That creepy uncle pulled out my hair,” Michael cried. Teresa froze. Jennifer and Evelyn, standing nearby, were equally at a loss.
Between Michael’s tearful stammering and Isabel’s babbling, Teresa finally figured out what had really happened. Jennifer’s brows furrowed as Teresa’s gaze instantly locked onto her.
“Sanford just loves stalking people. He must have followed you to the hospital. Now look what’s happened,” Teresa said.
Jennifer snapped, “I’m going after him.”
Teresa scoffed. “He’s probably already at the DNA testing center by now.”
“He can’t be that quick. He only got the kid’s hair, not yours. Who’s he gonna compare it with?” Jennifer said. With that, she rushed off.
Sanford was still driving when Jennifer called. He wasn’t surprised. As expected, she immediately demanded, “Are you following me?”
“Jennifer, I told you I’d never hurt you or Teresa,” Sanford said.
Jennifer snapped, “Then why did you take a kid’s hair? Don’t make things worse for me, will you?”
Sanford sighed, “That little boy is Teresa’s child, isn’t he? Even Isabel admitted it. Why are you still denying it?”
“Isabel? She’s just a kid. What does she know? If you insist on believing some snot-nosed brat, then fine, I can’t stop you,” Jennifer said.
Sanford chuckled at that. “Jennifer, I know you too well. If this really has nothing to do with Teresa, why are you being so defensive? You’re telling on yourself.”
Jennifer fell silent. She said to Sanford, “That boy’s situation is really complicated. I really shouldn’t have let you come to Nareigh…”
“Thanks to you, I got to meet someone special,” Sanford said.
“What the hell do you mean? What exactly are you trying to do?” Jennifer demanded when Sanford stayed silent, then cut straight to the point. “Where are you?”
“Fine, come find me then. I’m at the entrance of the DNA testing center,” Sanford said. After hanging up, Sanford pulled into the parking lot and parked his car.
He carefully placed Michael’s hair in a separate bag and his own in another, preparing for an expedited DNA test.