Chapter 527
Donald added, “Grandpa, you’d better not go. We’ll handle it.”
Jonathan and Donald were on the same page. Sanford was specifically targeting Jonathan’s family. Given Hayden’s advanced age, and with the truth still uncertain, it was best that Hayden, with his volatile temper, stayed out of it.
Cathy stayed home to care for Hayden, while Donald took time off to accompany Jonathan and Irene. Jonathan said, “This isn’t your concern, Donald. You don’t have to come.”
Donald said, “Let me come with you. I’ve already taken leave from the hospital, and I can have your back on the way.”
Jonathan felt a warm glow in his heart. ‘Looks like all the times I looked out for Donald weren’t for nothing after all,’ he thought.
Hayden called out. “Wait, Jonathan.” Hayden then, with a trembling hand, plucked a few strands of his hair and handed them to Jonathan.
He said, “With your father gone, there’s no way to confirm if Sanford is really his. If necessary, use my hair samples to run a DNA test with him. That’ll get us to the truth.”
“Got it, Grandpa,” Jonathan replied.
At Shaville, Liora barely opened her eyes in her hospital bed and was immediately greeted by Sanford.
Sanford cupped Liora’s hand to his cheek and said with a pang of guilt, “I’m so sorry, Mom. I completely forgot about your heart condition. I shouldn’t have agitated you like that.”
Liora shook her head with a weary sigh. “My boy, I’m just glad you’re back. Please, stop obsessing over who your father is. Why won’t you ever listen to me?”
Sanford couldn’t fathom why Liora had spent so many years running from this.
Sanford argued. “How could any child not be desperate to know who their parents are? I’m almost thirty, and only today have I finally mustered the courage to say who my father is. What a joke!”
Liora looked at her son Sanford’s pained expression, her voice trembling as she said, “Sanford, I kept it from you because I didn’t want you to get hurt.”
Sanford’s voice was full of frustration. “Forget about whether I get hurt. What matters more to me is all the injustices you’ve suffered over the years. Mom, you’re just too cowardly. Why won’t you stand up to those who hurt you and confront them directly?”
Liora shook her head, her voice trembling with pain. “Sanford, believe me. Yorick truly isn’t your father.”
“How long are you going to keep favoring them? Irene’s son can carry the Lynn name, while you and I have to hide away, never able to return to our hometown. You say that Yorick is not my father, so who is my real father?”
Liora fell silent, her silence heavy with pain. She lowered her head in anguish, unable or perhaps unwilling to speak.
Sanford grew even more convinced that he was right. After years of piecing things together, he was certain that it was Yorick who had abandoned them. That explained why Liora never dared return to Naleigh.
“Now that Yorick is gone, his son Jonathan and that woman, Irene, will pay for it together,” Sanford said.
Liora clutched her chest and gasped. “No, that’s not…”
Her hand fumbled for the call button. The doctor rushed in and immediately reprimanded Sanford. “Don’t agitate your mother. Her heart can’t take this.” Sanford pressed his lips into a thin line, his fists clenching so tightly his knuckles turned white.
His phone rang. Sanford narrowed his eyes, his gaze darkening with intensity. “Hello? Okay…” Sanford answered tersely.
He hung up and turned to Liora on the bed. “Mom, Irene and her son are here in Shaville. Perfect, saves us a trip. I’m heading out.”
“Sanford, please,” Liora cried out, reaching after him helplessly as Sanford walked away without a backward glance. Her hand fell limply to her side.