GoodReadPanic struck Heather as she desperately pounded against the barrier in front of her.
“Oh, come on, Amanda! You've got to help me! Everett is mine, he belongs to me!” “You know, Jonathan would still be fond of you if you didn’t mess this up. I've sung your praises to him more times than | can count. But you just had to go and let yourself down! Did you ever think about me when you were plotting your tragedy with Everett? He's the only son | have! ” Did Heather ever think about her, seeing her only boy covered in blood, lying in an ambulance? The mere thought made Amanda's hands tremble uncontrollably.
Heather pledged hastily, “There won't be a next time! | swear I'll take good care of him. I'll handle his business affairs, and | won't hurt him anymore, Amanda... | truly regret it!” “Regret won't fix anything now. Just stay put for the time being. If | can smooth things over with Jonathan, I'll let you out. If not...
well, you might just have to pay with your life.” Amanda was about to leave with that. She felt utterly disappointed about Heather.
How many times had she gone against the wishes of her husband and son to support Heather? "Take your time," she had always advised, "the Lopez family only recognizes you as their daughter-in-law. What do you have to fear?" Heather, who realized she was truly going to be left to her own devices, suddenly called out, “Amanda! You remember what happened with Dorothy’s mom, don't you?” Amanda froze, then slowly turned to face her, “What now, you want to threaten me?” “No,” Heather said, peering through the slats of the railing. “ want to remind you that we thought we had destroyed all the evidence and dealt with everyone involved. But when | went back to double-check the flash drives with the security footage, | noticed one was missing!” “What?!” Amanda's heart started to race. “Do you know if someone took it?” Heather shook her head, “I have no idea! That's why I'm telling you. I'm afraid Dorothy might have gotten her hands on it.” “Why didn’t you say something sooner?” Amanda was genuinely panicked now.
This meant that their cleanup might not have been as thorough as they believed. Maybe the flash drives was really lost, not to mention that the footage was already erased. But what if Dorothy really got the flash drive?! With Heather's recent actions already straining Amanda's relationship with her husband, the last thing they needed was for Dorothy’s mother’s case to resurface. The consequences were unimaginable.
“I didn’t dare tell you. | was afraid you'd scold me for incompetence!” Heather's voice broke into a sob. “Amanda... | truly see you as my own mother. Even if | hadn't married Everett, | would still respect you deeply! | made a mistake, and | deserve to be punished. You can yell at me, hit me, even kill me, but please... please forgive me. | was utterly hopeless back then. Seeing him rush to save Dorothy without a second thought, I just lost it!” “You...” Amanda wanted to continue her reproach but found herself at a loss for words, “I understand your feelings, too, but I'm getting old, and Everett is my only son. And you are the only girl in your family. How could you not think of that?” “I told you that | was totally insane! | was out of my mind!” “Alright, I'll look into the missing flash drive. As for you... just stop causing trouble. Stay here quietly and don’t provoke Jonathan's anger anymore.”
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