Chapter 5

Brooklyn texted Natasha to take Robert away and look after him for a few days. Only after sending him away did she finally breathe a sigh of relief. That night, the pain from her wounds kept her from sleeping. Brooklyn instinctively reached for her painkillers, but she couldn't find them. Beads of cold sweat rolled down her face. Just as she was about to call for a doctor, Samantha pushed her back onto the bed forcefully. "I threw out your painkillers. It's bad for your body to take too much of that stuff and will lead to drug dependence. Just deal with it if you're in pain." When the housekeeper came to deliver Brooklyn's meal, Samantha frowned and ordered it to be replaced with gruel. "Patients should eat a light diet." Brooklyn retorted. "Don't listen to her. Bring it over to me." However, Samantha crossed her arms and spoke to the housekeeper. "You should think carefully. Who do you think Christopher will listen to?" After a moment of hesitation, the housekeeper quietly turned and left. Although Brooklyn already knew the answer to that question long ago, she still felt a deep sense of shame when the housekeeper chose to walk away. Even an outsider could see his favoritism clearly, despite being unaware of the full truth. Christopher owed her too much! Samantha turned back to give Brooklyn a provocative smile. "When are you going to divorce Chris and leave the house? Chris belongs to me alone. I was already his woman once I graduated from high school." "What if I don't leave?" "Then get ready to bury your son's body. If I fail to poison him this time, there will always be a second or third time." Brooklyn let out a scornful laugh. "Christopher already slept with you back then, but still didn't marry you. Why is that? Is it free for the taking because you're his stepsister?" Samantha rushed forward and raised her hand to strike Brooklyn. However, a bodyguard suddenly grabbed her arm from behind and restrained her. Samantha tried the same intimidation tactic she used on the housekeeper earlier, but Brooklyn said coldly, "This is the bodyguard team I just hired. They're not Christopher's men. Throw her out this instant!" There was finally silence in the hospital ward. Brooklyn took out her phone, which had been on record the whole time. She tapped pause on the recording and saved the file. On the day of Brooklyn's discharge, Christopher had just returned from his business trip. He came to pick her up from the hospital. "Samantha thought you were upset about her making you eat plain gruel. So she has been eating nothing but gruel herself for a whole week up until now…" His tone was full of sympathy. "Samantha meant well. She just doesn't know much about nutrition and diet. She wants to make peace with you, so she threw a party to celebrate your discharge today. Try to be more gracious with her." Brooklyn was about to decline the invitation when she heard him add, "I've already arranged for someone to pick up Robert." He managed to get her where it hurt the most. Brooklyn's chest tightened painfully. Christopher leaned in to kiss her, but she turned her head away. He stuffed two gift boxes into her hands. "One for you, and the other for Samantha. She loves accessories such as earrings and necklaces. She'll be thrilled if you give this to her." However, Brooklyn merely looked out the window. She didn't say a single word to him the entire journey. Samantha ran up to them as soon as they got out of the car and clung to Christopher eagerly, her chest practically pressed up against his arm. "Chris, what do you think of the party set up?" Christopher nodded gently. "It looks great." Samantha pointed to her forehead. "I want a reward," she pouted coquettishly, clinging to his arm like a spoiled child. Christopher lowered his head and planted a gentle kiss on her smooth forehead. Then, he gave Brooklyn a pointed look. "This is just a kiss from an older brother to a younger sister." Brooklyn responded with a half-smile. Christopher was reserved and hated public displays of affection. Back then, they attended a cocktail party where someone jokingly asked Christopher to kiss her in public. He flat-out refused, even though it was just a peck on the cheek. In the end, he even lost his temper on the spot and cancelled his collaboration with that person's company the very next day. It wasn't that he hated being affectionate. Brooklyn just wasn't the right person. Brooklyn finally felt at ease after finding Robert. She wanted to leave immediately, but Robert said that he was hungry, so she took him to the refreshment area for some food. Just then, she heard Samantha's voice coming from nearby. "Chris, this doesn't taste good. You eat it." Brooklyn turned and saw Samantha holding a half-eaten piece of pizza to Christopher's lips. He opened his mouth and ate it like it was nothing to him. But all these years, Christopher never once ate Robert's leftovers. After Robert finished eating, Brooklyn waited for him to wash his hands before leaving. Suddenly, she heard Robert shouting in anger from the restroom. She rushed inside and saw Robert biting hard on Samantha's leg. He refused to let go like an obsessive dog with a bone. Christopher was hitting Robert to make him release Samantha, shouting sternly, "Open your mouth!" Meanwhile, Samantha was screaming and crying in pain. There were lipstick marks all over Christopher's lips, and Samantha had her lipstick smeared all over her face. Brooklyn staggered in shock from the sight. Then, she rushed forward to shield Robert. She trembled with fury as she shouted, "At least pick a proper time and place if you two insist on fooling around! Do you have any idea how much trauma you will inflict on the child?" Samantha's cries had attracted a crowd to watch. Everyone started exchanging suspicious glances when they heard Brooklyn's words. Robert finally spent all his strength. He opened his mouth and screamed through tears, "She's a bad woman! Bad woman!" His breathing grew more rapid, and he collapsed to the floor. Samantha covered her face and ran away. Christopher chased after her in panic without even sparing a glance at his unconscious son on the ground.