Chapter 506
“Dad, are you really going to give up on her?”
…
Charles left Rosewood Estates, driving straight to Evelyn’s neighborhood. Ever since she moved in, he spared no expense, buying the apartments directly above and next to hers. The gate recognized his car, allowing him entry.
Charles parked beneath their building. It was nearly three in the morning. The neighborhood was silent, but his mind was anything but at ease. Unveiling Dahlia’s true intentions at Rosewood had stirred a storm inside him. It wasn’t about Dahlia-it was about his own ignorance and poor judgment.
The signs had been glaringly obvious. How had he missed them? From the moment Dahlia appeared, masquerading as Debbie, he was swept up in a wave of misplaced joy. The thrill of regaining something lost made him cling to her even tighter, especially when she claimed Ms. Josephine had passed away. He lavished upon Dahlia the affection meant for Ms. Josephine.
Countless times, Dahlia twisted stories to make it seem like Eve was the villain. Trusting Debbie’s facade, he backed the wrong horse, unknowingly enabling the injustice and causing Eve so much pain. For a decade, every misstep was a debt he owed Eve. His mistaken belief was no excuse. Those wounds were real, and he was painfully wrong.
Then there was Charlie. After Charlie passed, he was all too aware of Eve’s contempt for Dahlia and her unease around Sandy. Yet, blinded by his biases, he sided with Dahlia and her daughter, repeatedly crossing Eve’s lines and rubbing salt in her wounds.
Eve adored Charlie. And Charlie had craved his father’s love. But one call from Dahlia, his concern for Sandy’s illness, led him to break promises to Charlie. Charlie died with regrets. How much must Eve have hurt? How unjust was it for Charlie?
Eve had to watch the fatherly love meant for Charlie be given to Sandy, who had always tormented him. She saw him, clueless and stubborn, defend Sandy time and again, insisting on her innocence and urging Eve not to blame her. How powerless must Eve have felt?
Worse still, he knew Adam signed up for organ donation because Charlie died of kidney failure. Yet, to save Sandy, he pressured Eve to coerce Adam into donating a kidney. Even if it was a manipulation, and henever truly intended to hurt Eve, his intentions didn’t matter. The
moment he pressed Adam to sign, he was less than human.
Sitting in the car, clutching a small figure bearing Charlie’s name, Charles’s eyes were bloodshot, like they could bleed. The guilt was. suffocating, like a tidal wave threatening to drown him. He had failed Eve. And Charlie. Unable to restrain himself, Charles’slapped his own face, hard, twice. He was truly despicable. How could he have done such heartless things? Eve was right to call him a beast.
Suddenly, Charles swung open the car door, striding forward with purpose. He swiped his card,
entered the building, and took the elevator. Reaching Evelyn’s floor, he stepped out. At her door, Charles
paused. He didn’t knock or try the code. Instead, he dropped to his knees in front of Evelyn’s door.