Chapter 220
After Leia was taken away by the police, Rennen followed to give his statement. The others stayed behind at the house, the atmosphere heavy with
shock.
No one had expected it.
The one who’d poisoned their father turned out to be Leia–the girl whood grown up with them under the same roof for eighteen years.
Kimberly had been through one blow after another. She looked like she’d aged ten years in a day.
Everyone insisted she rest, but she was back downstairs less than thirty minutes later, insisting on going to the hospital to be with their father.
With no other choice, they had the driver take her.
Thankfully, the hospital soon delivered a bit of good news: Vincent had regained full consciousness and was recovering well. He could even speak normally again
For the Anderson family, still reeling from betrayal, this glimmer of hope was like a breath of fresh air.
Later that evening, the Anderson siblings gathered again.
Eli scratched his head in frustration. “What the hell kind of twisted drama is this? Lela must’ve lost her mind. Why couldn’t she just talk things out like a normal person! Poisoning someone? Seriously? She completely lost it. Thank God Dad’s okay now”
He paused, then turned to Charlie. “By the
way,
PIP
you tell
Aurel So he should be on his way back by now, right?
Charlie replied flady. I called him earlier. He’s booked a flight and should be back tonight”
“Good” Eli nodded, then looked around the room with a frown. “Wait, where’s Damon? And Noelle? Don’t tell me he’s blaming Noelle for Leia getting arrested…”
That thought made Eli instantly tense up.
more
Charlie sighed. “Relax. Damon hasn’t blamed Noelle for anything in a long time. Even when Noelle grabbed Lela by the throat, Damon was mu worned about Noelle getting into trouble than about Leis being the one attacked.”
Eli blinked. “Huh….you’re right.”
He calmed down, then added, “Now that I think about it, when did Damon’s attitude toward Noelle start to change? I didn’t even notice it at first, One day I just realized–hry, everyone seems to have accepted her already”
Charlie’s expression remained neutral. “Who knows.”
Even he hadn’t expected it.
In just a few short months; they’d all gradually come to accept Noelle.
Eli glanced at him, picking up on his tone. “So…. you’ve accepted her too, huh? Come to think of it, you’ve been pretty protective of her lately“–
He raised an eyebrow, clearly teasing.
“When Reyna wanted to sue her, you came straight to me asking for details..
When Leia tried to pin the Nicolas incident on Noelle, you stood up for her.
Everi after Bennett scratched Noelle’s hand, you were the first to warn her about him,
“Sure, that all sounds like what a good older brother should do,” Eli continued, grinning, “but coming from you, Mr. Cold–and–Distant, it’s kinila
obvious.
Charlie gave him a cool, unimpressed look. “I just stated the facts. Nothing more. I wasn’t taking sides.”
“Oh, come on,” Eli Laughed. “You really expect me to believe that?”
He wasn’t stupid.
Charlie hated clingy people. He always kept his distance. But N
Noelle? Noelle stuck to him like glue and he let her.
5.58 AM &
Chapter 220
If it had been Leia trying that, she’d have been frozen out on the spot.
Charlie was just as awkward as the rest of them–he just hid it better.
“Sure, sure. Totally objective and impartial” Eli teased.
Charlie, for all his usual calm, looked ever so slightly embarrassed. To avoid the topic, he shifted the attention.
“What about you?” he said. “You’re not exactly subtle either. You’ve defended Noelle against Leia more than once”
“Me?” Eli blinked, then folded his arms with mock indignation. “I am the definition of fairness and objectivity”
“If Leia hadn’t constantly been messing with Noelle, playing all those little mind games. I wouldn’t have said a word. But she made mistakes and refused to own up to them. Of course I wasn’t going to be nice about it.”
“Noelle, on the other hand–she’s like a clueless puppy. Always smiling, even when people are mean to her. She gets tricked and doesn’t even realize it. As her brother, how could I not look out for her!”
What Eli didn’t say out loud was that he’d liked Noelle from the very first moment he saw her.
She had this dazzling smile. She looked like a doll when she wasn’t talking–but the moment she opened her mouth, she was adorably dumb.
Even when he was cold to her, she never took it personally. Every time she saw him, she’d beam like sunshine and greet him with that cheerful
voice.
And honestly, what kind of normal person wouldn’t like someone like that?
Back then, out of respect for Leia’s feelings, he’d tried to keep his distance.
But now that he saw Leia’s true colors, it was no contest. His loyalty had quietly shifted.
Thinking of Noelle again, Eli looked around. “Seriously, where did those two go? I’m gonna find them”
