Chapter 458 The Meeting with Darell

“Meet him? Of course, I’ll meet him. I have my reasons, and if I don’t get answers, I won’t be able to sleep.”

“Alright, it’s up to you.”

Darell was in his hotel room. He had already showered. Wearing a bathrobe, he sat by the floor-to-ceiling window with his legs crossed. Outside, the lights of downtown Jeselton sparkled, but he hardly noticed them. His eyes stayed fixed on the glass of red wine swaying in his hand. Every so often, his brows furrowed without him realizing, showing the tension running through him.

He was waiting. And he was afraid. What if the person he waited for didn’t respond? What then? How would he face the dream in his sleep tonight? If he had that same nightmare again—trapped in fire, consumed by the flames—Darell feared it would follow him for the rest of his life. He feared it might never leave.

Finally, the phone rang. It was the room’s landline. Darell set down his wineglass, stood, and walked toward the desk phone. He drew a deep breath and pressed the button to answer.

“What is it?”

“Mr. Darell, there’s a young lady here who wishes to see you.”

The hotel’s conference hall. By the time Darell arrived, Tilda was already waiting. She stood near the window, gazing out at the garden below. The night in Jeselton was cold. It was November, and frost clung to the bare branches outside. The air was sharp, the garden silvered with ice. Inside the hotel, the warmth from the heaters wrapped around the guest, almost too comfortable compared to the freezing scene outside.

Darell pressed his lips together and spoke first. “I knew you would come.”

At his words, Tilda turned. Her eyes—calm and dark like still water—landed on him. To be fair, in their past life Darell had treated her better than the rest of her family. Unlike the others, he had never been fooled by Kyla. He was the only one in that family who doubted Kyla’s real intentions. The rest gave Kyla their full trust and spoiled her endlessly. Darell only pretended to be nice to Kyla for the sake of appearances. When it came to Tilda—the sister they had finally found after nineteen long years—Darell stayed cold and distant. He kept his pride, never letting her get too close. But he never got close to Kyla either.

He was the type who looked cold on the outside but carried warmth hidden deep. Even when he gave Kyla gifts, he never forgot Tilda. He treated both sisters the same, at least on the surface.

But in the end… He didn’t believe Tilda either. He chose to side with Kyla. He had stood by and cursed her, watching her burn until nothing was left but ashes. He had spat on her grave. And now, one of them was having dreams about the very death they caused? Hahaha! How laughable. Did they even deserve such dreams?

If the Jensons ever truly faced what they had done to Tilda in their past lives, they wouldn’t repent. No. They would simply claim she had it coming.

“Yes. Darell. Of course, I’ll meet you. Only because you’re annoying. I came here to clear something up. No matter what dream you had, that’s all it was—a dream. It’s the twenty-first century. Are you really going to hold onto something like that? I’ve already cut ties with your family. Whether you know the reason or not, I don’t care. But I don’t want you calling me by name or trying to get close to me again!”

Her words rendered Darell speechless. He stared at his sister in shock. He hadn’t expected Tilda’s first words to hit him like a slap.

“I don’t know what really happened. These days I’ve been stuck on set. But Tilda, I never did anything to you. So quit talking like your mouth’s full of garbage!”

Darell wasn’t the type to keep his cool. Getting blasted by Tilda for no reason? No way he could swallow that without firing back.

Tilda scoffed in disdain, “Well, now you’ve offended me for real. I like talking back. After all, I didn’t get that fancy elite education your family is so proud of.”

Darell rebuked, “What are you even complaining about? That you vanished the moment you were born? Tilda, Mom had searched desperately for you! I was old enough to see it. She cried herself sick over you. She collapsed more than once, and Dad couldn’t even calm her down. He was suffering too! The whole family drowned in despair because you were gone. If it weren’t for—”

Darell cut himself off.

“What’s wrong? Don’t want to finish that sentence? Fine. I’ll say it for you.”

Tilda stepped closer, her lips curling into a cold smile, her voice sharp as a blade. “If the family hadn’t taken Kyla in, you all would be stuck in that endless grief, right? Haha. You make it sound like life was so hard without me. But with Kyla as my replacement, you all seemed pretty happy. Let’s be honest. If you had never found me, you all would’ve lived happily ever after—never a shadow, never a scar.”

Darell gave a bitter snort. “That’s just jealousy talking!”

“Jealousy? Darell, take a good look at me. Do I look like someone eaten up by jealousy?”