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"Father, that's all in the past. Before marrying Daryl Mallory, I had completely cut ties with
that man!" Karen knew that denying her past was useless now, especially since the other
party had brought out the photos.
Even though that man's appearance had changed significantly over the years, Karen had
taken good care of herself. Her appearance was not much different from her younger days.
Hence, anyone could easily tell it was her in those photos.
Old Master Mallory took a drag of his cigar, exhaling slowly with a hint of disgust in his
weathered, sharp eyes. He did not easily get deceived by Karen.
"When your family and the Mallory family arranged the marriage, you assured me that you
were a good woman with no messy relationships. You said you'd pass the background
check and that you were worthy of Daryl. I still remember those words.
"I believed the Ruiz family's nonsense and arranged the wedding without investigation.
This led to misunderstandings between Daryl and me over the years. He has been abroad
all this time while you were here, using Daryl as an excuse for your actions.
"Karen, what do you take our Mallory family for? Are you playing games with all of us?"
Previously, even though means of communication were not as advanced as they were
now, if Old Master Mallory had investigated, he would have discovered Karen's past
entanglements with several men.
However, the Ruiz family had a good reputation in A City at that time, and Old Master
Mallory chose to trust them.
After he saw the news report, he suddenly recalled how Daryl used to fool around and the
way Daryl hesitated to speak when he tried to educate him.
Perhaps Daryl had known about Karen's true nature all along. That was why he used this
situation to get back at her.
Otherwise, Daryl would not have turned out the way he did.
"Father, I swear, I haven't done anything to hurt Daryl since we got together!” Karen
raised her hand and swore. She was emotionally worked up. “If I ever did anything to
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtbetray Daryl Mallory since we tied the knot, may the heavens strike me down!"
Even when Daryl wronged her in the past and left her alone, she endured it.
After all, she had her fair share of screw-ups back then.
When Daryl went abroad and had an affair with that woman, she felt lonely, but she never
thought about being with other men.
It was because she had to maintain her position in the Mallory family.
If she had been with someone else and Old Master Mallory found out about it, he could
have her kicked out of the Mallory family at any moment.
Karen could not imagine what kind of life she would have had outside the Mallory family.
That was why she endured the loneliness and never did something like that.
Old Master Mallory trusted Karen previously.
Even though she was emotionally unstable and prone to trouble, he trusted her.
However, that trust crumbled when he saw the news. Old Master Mallory put out his cigar,
as it was no longer helping him to maintain his composure.
"For all these years, I never had someone keep an eye on you. I don't know if there were
other men besides this one. Now, the Mallory family's reputation has been tarnished
because of you.
"Karen, tell me honestly, are Percy and Pierre really Daryl's sons?" Old Master Mallory's
voice was deep. He questioned her with a voice filled with anger and suspicion.
Karen's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately rose to her feet. “Father, I've told you
before, I severed ties with that man before marrying Daryl. I didn't cheat or do anything
like that!"
"Are Percy and Pierre really descendants of the Mallory family?" Old Master Mallory did not
want to hear her explanations. He only wanted to know if he had unknowingly raised
someone else's grandchildren.
A wave of humiliation surged within her, and Karen clenched her fists. "They're both Daryl
Mallory's sons! If you don't believe me, you can have them undergo a DNA test!"
Karen was resolute about this point.
For one, both Percy and Pierre resembled Daryl.
Secondly, she did not cheat on her husband. The two kids must definitely be Daryl's.
Old Master Mallory did not want to doubt this either, especially since the two grandsons
had many similarities to Daryl.
However, he could not help but feel uneasy when he thought about how he had favored
Karen all these years due to his guilt.
That man even mentioned that he had tried to contact Karen after she got married.
However, she acted all high and mighty and pushed him away...
Daryl was never a womanizer back then. His sudden change was surely because he found
out about Karen's past!
Old Master Mallory had been kept in the dark the whole time.
"I've endured loneliness all these years just to get Daryl Mallory back..." Karen covered her
face, on the verge of tears. She slumped on the sofa, feeling wronged. However, she did
not realize that her tone sounded stiff when she mentioned Daryl's name.
Old Master Mallory did not have much contact with Daryl, who was overseas now.
However, when he did mention him, he did not refer to him so formally by calling him his
full name.
However, Karen's way of addressing Daryl made it seem like she was talking about a
stranger.
Old Master Mallory's gaze darkened. He showed no interest in Karen's performance.
He lowered his voice and warned her, "Karen, for the sake of the two heirs you've given
the Mallory family, I won't kick you out because of this. But this has already damaged the
reputation of the Mallory family.
"You must resolve it immediately. If that man continues to capitalize on this and spread
rumors online, don't blame me for not being lenient with you!"
Karen was startled for a moment. She understood that this was Old Master Mallory's final
warning.
She could deal with a poor man in many ways, but if he had been bought off by Luke,
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmthere was nothing much she could do about it.
Karen's eyes reddened as she hesitantly said, "Father, it might be that Luke found out
about those things and got this man to leak the news to get back at me..."
She only said that in hopes that Old Master Mallory would help her resolve the situation.
The matters between the Mallory family and the Crawford family required the elders to
intervene without causing a public feud.
Old Master Mallory let out a cold snort. "That's your problem. I warned you not to provoke
Luke Crawford, but you didn't listen. Now, you've brought such embarrassment upon us!
Where can I put my reputation now?"
He used to praise Karen at various business functions and gatherings with old friends,
saying how helpful she was for being able to handle both the company and household
affairs.
Now, the number of compliments he had given her seemed like a source of
embarrassment.
"Father, I..."
Karen's words were cut off by Old Master Mallory's ruthless interruption. "Don't you think
I'm unaware of the things you've done behind me, collaborating with others to mess with
Luke Crawford?
"I thought you weren't that foolish, but it turns out you really are. Now, you've dragged the
Mallory family into this.
"I've already given you plenty of leeway by not severing the mother-son relationship
between you and your sons and not making Daryl come back to divorce you.”
Karen closed her mouth. She did not expect Old Master Mallory to know about what she
did.
At this very moment, burning resentment smoldered within her against both Old Master
Mallory and Luke.
If Old Master Mallory had stopped her from going after Luke, she would not have ended up
in this mess.
However, he did not stop her. He just issued a warning!
What good was a warning? She would not have listened anyway...
If Old Master Mallory did not want the Mallory family to lose their reputation, he should
have fiercely obstructed her path right from the beginning!
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