Chapter 118

Just then, Mr. Kelleigh's urgent tone rang out from the other end of the phone. "Why aren't you asking Grace to rush to the police station and withdraw the case so our children can be released?!"

"Released? Why should they be released? They committed an evil act; they should be locked up for as long as they deserve!"

"They're your own children! Do you have to do this for someone who doesn't share our family name?"

"What are you talking about? She's my daughter's daughter! Her mother isn't here, so this old woman must support her!"

"Are you doing this so no one will care for you when you're old? Or are you going to depend on your granddaughter—who has been to prison—to provide for you and attend your funeral?"

The two elderly people continued their argument, seemingly forgetting the call was still connected. A moment passed before Grace's grandmother realized the phone was still on. "Grace, are you still there?"

"I'm here," Grace replied.

"I'm relieved you're fine. Your uncles, aunt, and cousins must have been blinded by money to commit such an immoral act. You don't have to withdraw the case. Lock them up for as long as they deserve!" Grandmother declared stubbornly, then immediately hung up.

Grace clutched the phone and sobbed uncontrollably. "I thought Grandma was calling to ask me to drop the incident, to tell the police station to release them. I never expected her to support me!

"It's just like when I was young, and Dad left me at Grandma's. I was bullied, and when I cried, Grandma would pull my hand and ask me to take her to find the bullies.

"'Grace,' she'd say, 'don't cry. Grandma's here. Grandma will support you. We shouldn't bully others, but that doesn't mean we should be bullied!'

"She'd reason with them; if that failed, she'd roll up her sleeves and act like a crazy woman! I found it adorable. To others, I was just a kid who'd lost her mother, a child from a previous marriage. But to Grandma, I was always her darling.

"'When Grace grows up,' she always said, 'I'll live in comfort!' And yet, I went to jail just when I could have given her that comfort.

"When she heard about my incarceration, she was stricken with illness. She only recovered a little last year.

"Grandma knows that by standing by me, she'll oppose Grandpa. She risks falling out with the family, losing her home, but she still chooses me."

Tears streamed down her face, dripping onto her hands and the bedcovers.

When Jason entered, he saw Grace hugging the phone, crying incessantly. He frowned, hurrying to her bedside. He held her face and asked, "Sister, what's wrong? Are you ill?"

Her tear-filled eyes studied him; she shook her head. This only worried him more. "Sister, what happened? Tell me. No matter what, I can help you solve it."

He wiped her tears. As his fingers touched them, he felt a burning sensation. "Her tears are so hot," he thought.