Chapter 15
Camila lifted her gaze, looking up at him with an expression as distant as the moon. A faint smirk tugged at her lips, laced with cold mockery. “Mr. Jackson, if your stomach hurts, you should be calling a doctor–not me.”
At that moment, Harry swore he heard the sound of his own heart shattering. Every bit of hope he had clung to crumbled beneath the weight of her indifference.
Pain flooded through him, drowning out everything else. His legs buckled, and he sank to his knees. But even as his body gave out, his hands clung desperately to the railing, his gaze locked onto Camila through the gaps in the balusters.
She didn’t even look at him. Without hesitation, she turned away.
Her cold detachment sent Arthur into a rage. His voice thundered through the hall. “Camila! Get back here right now and get Harry his medicine!”
Belinda’s sobs grew louder as she pleaded, “Camila, you always took care of Harry when his stomach acted up. How can you just walk away now? He’s your family! How did things come to this?”
Even Agnes, emboldened, spoke up with feigned righteousness, “Camila, I know you still resent us after spending five years in prison, but you can’t just stand by and watch Harry suffer. You, more than anyone, know which medicine works best for him.”
Camila stopped walking.
The Jackson family thought they had finally gotten through to her. But when she turned back, they were startled to find her smiling, a smile as sharp as a blade.
She said, “So, you did see everything I did for you. You just never cared. It never mattered.
“Since that’s the case, I’ll take it all back. From now on, whether the Jackson family thrives or crumbles, whether you live or die–it has nothing to do with me.
“After all, you never truly cared about me, either. And now? I’ve finally run out of reasons to care about you.”
Her words hit like a sledgehammer, slamming into Arthur, Belinda, and Harry with merciless force.
Belinda sobbed harder, her tear–filled eyes desperate as she looked at Camila. “Camila, that’s not true! You’re my daughter–I carried you for ten months, waited every day to bring you into this world. How could I not care about you?”
Arthur’s face darkened, his anger boiling over. His voice was sharp as a knife. “How did we end up with such an ungrateful, heartless daughter?
“If I had known you would be so disobedient, so vindictive, so full of jealousy–always targeting Agnes–I never would have brought you back! Then we wouldn’t have to deal with the mess you bring.”
Belinda’s sobs quieted slightly as she tugged at Arthur’s sleeve. “Don’t say that about our daughter.”
Arthur scoffed, shooting Camila a cold glare.
Agnes, ever the performer, sighed softly, her voice laced with sorrow. “Dad, it’s okay… Camila has every right to be angry. After all, I took the place that rightfully belonged to her. I got the love and care that should have been hers.”
should ha
She sniffled, her voice trembling just enough to sound sincere. “Camila, if it makes you feel better, I can leave, I just hope you won’t upset Mom and Dad anymore. And please… don’t abandon Harry when he’s in pain.“”
Camila stood still, watching them with quiet detachment, as if observing a carefully rehearsed stage piay.
She waited patiently until every one of them had finished their lines. Then, in an unhurried tone, she said, “Are you done? Good. I’m going to bed.”
Her indifference ignited Arthur’s fury. He pointed a shaking finger at her, his voice thick with rage and disappointment. “You say you don’t care about this
1/2
16:16 Tue, 15 Apr
Chapter 15
family anymore? Then why did you even come back?
THE 3/10 –
“You’re nothing but a convicted felon who spent five years in prison. You’re the stain on the Jackson family name! Who gave you the right to return?”
His words were like daggers, each one sharper than the last.
He continued, “If you have any dignity left, you should leave immediately. No one will stop you.
+5
“Do you think we’ve been suffering in your absence? Let me tell you, life was peaceful–better, even before you came back. Yet here you are, acting like We owe you something.”
A sneer curled at the corner of his lips. “Let me make one thing clear. Just because your mother and I gave birth to you means we owe you not a damn
thing.”
