Chapter 176 Twins
After returning to the city, lan put a hold on his work and visited Cherry with some imported health products from overseas.
During this period, Cherry had been living alone in a small villa in the suburbs. She’d requested this herself. Originally, Chandler had arranged a luxurious mansion in the city for her, but Cherry politely declined.
She stated that living in a city reminded her of her missing daughter, and it would only make her absence even more pronounced. She preferred living in the remote suburbs and leading a leisurely life. She would tend to her plants and keep herself busy by having a pet dog while waiting for Erin to come back so that she could take good care of her health when she came back.
lan arrived just in time for lunch. Cherry cooked an extra dish of beef and potatoes and had lunch with her former son–in–law in the living
room.
Looking at the gray hairs that became more and more obvious on Cherry’s head, lan suddenly felt uncomfortable in his heart. He held his spoon but didn’t move. He felt as if he had a golf ball stuck in his throat, making it hard for him to swallow.
“lan, why aren’t you eating? Is the food not to your liking? You really should have called me in advance to let me know you were coming. I could’ve gone to the market to buy the ingredients to make your favorite dishes,” Cherry said.
Cherry looked haggard with severe dark circles and swollen eye bags. It made her look at least ten years older than her current age which wasn’t that young to begin with.
Hearing her words, lan put down his spoon gloomily and said, “Cherry, there’s no need to be so distant. Although Erin and I are divorced, you’re still my mother–in–law no matter what.”
What he said made Cherry look somewhat conflicted. After all, she’d already acknowledged Chandler as her son–in–law, so lan’s identity as her former son–in–law had silently faded away over time. It was not easy for her to face a man who had once hurt her daughter deeply and was no longer loved by her. Treating him with courtesy was already the best she could do.
After Erin disappeared, Cherry found solace in religion. She tried to get herself to think positive thoughts every day. When she was alone. she would read the Bible, praying for Erin to return safely as soon as possible.
Cherry also put down her cutlery and said with a sigh, “lan, your relationship with Erin is in the past. It’s time to let go.”
“I won’t force you to continue accepting me. I respect your choice. But I haven’t given up on finding Erin. I haven’t given up for a single
day! If there’s any new information, I’ll make sure to inform you first.” lan meant what he said. Although he didn’t have the same level of power and influence as Chandler, he was using all of his connections to find Erin.
Even though he and Erin were now exes, their bond remained. At least lan hadn’t given up yet.
Cherry suddenly burst into tears and thanked him. “Thank you! Thank you for still thinking about Erin-”
When it came to Erin, Cherry still couldn’t control her emotions. lan quickly realized that it was better not to mention Erin, especially since
he’d come with a purpose this time..
He walked to the living room and took a few tissues from the coffee table, then he returned to the dining room and handed them to Cherry. lan casually asked, “Are you going to let Gavin stay abroad and continue his studies? It would be good if he could be with you.”
Cherry shook her head. “There’s no need. Gavin is now attending the college of his dreams. I can’t hinder him, and I don’t want to put Chandler’s good intentions to waste. Even if Gavin were by my side, he wouldn’t be of much help in finding his sister.”
“Why don’t you get Grayson to accompany you? It would be nice to have him take care of you-” This was something lan had been wondering about. Ever since Cherry came back, he hadn’t seen Grayson at all.
Unexpectedly, as soon as Cherry heard lan mention Grayson, she became agitated and started cursing angrily, “Don’t mention him to me! That despicable man who can’t change his ways has gone off with that wretched woman, Charlotte. He even managed to take back the house he’d given me! It turns out the property certificate he gave me back then was fake! Charlotte kept saying she wasn’t interested in Grayson, but she contradicted herself in just a few days-”
Cherry suddenly stopped cursing. She wiped her tears away jerkily and choked apologetically, “I’m sorry for making you listen to such crass family affairs.”
lan felt a little awkward as he comforted her, “It’s ok. Since Grayson is that kind of person, it’s better to be away from him”
“Let’s not talk about him. Why did you suddenly think of coming to see me today, lan? Is there something going on?” Cherry had a
questioning look in her eyes. If there was any news about Erin, lan would have told her long ago and not dragged it out till now.
lan’s expression became somewhat solemn. Taking a deep breath and gathering some courage. he asked, “Actually, I have something to ask you today. Does Erin have a twin or a younger sister?”
This sentence made Cherry suddenly stand up abruptly in shock. lan dug up the deepest wound that had marred the innermost part of her heart for many years. Her entire face trembled and fell instantaneously.
With an expression of disbelief, Cherry asked, “How did you know about this?”
The way she countered with a question like that undoubtedly confirmed the fact that Erin indeed had a sister or a younger sister.
lan immediately replied earnestly, “I’m sorry for bringing up this matter suddenly, but I really want to know the truth from back then. That’s
why I came to ask you in person.”
Seeing Cherry standing shakily with a vacant look in her eyes, lan quickly stood up to support her. However, Cherry waved her hand to
indicate that it wasn’t necessary before she sat back down.
Cherry remained silent for a full five minutes before finally speaking again. “I guess Steven told you about this, didn’t he? Or maybe it was Charlotte. Besides the two of them, only Ms. Zinn, the doctor who was responsible for the delivery at that time, and a nurse, knew about. this. Erin did have a younger sister. I was pregnant with twins back then, but when they were born, Erin’s sister was declared stillborn on
the spot by Ms. Zinn. She informed me that Erin’s sister didn’t have a heartbeat-”
At this point, Cherry couldn’t contain her sobs and wept bitterly. “She was so little, and I only got a glimpse of her. How could my daughter,
whom I carried for ten months, only live for a moment?”
This excruciatingly painful wound went deep into Cherry’s core. It ran so deep that Cherry didn’t dare to revisit it throughout the years. As
time went by, she’d chosen to seal and forget about it as if she was suffering from amnesia.
It was simply too much for her to bear. Such irreversible tragedy made Cherry give all the love she was capable of giving to her only surviving daughter, Erin. With Erin gone and her whereabouts unknown, Cherry had contemplated jumping off a building and ending it all more than once. What ultimately stopped her was the thought of how heartbroken Erin would be when she returned and couldn’t find her.
On top of that, her son Gavin was still in school. How could she, as a mother, take her own life so carelessly?
Cherry’s overwhelming motherly love for Erin kept her going all the while. She knew that she couldn’t die so easily, not until her daughter
was found!
Crying until her eyes were swollen and her voice became hoarse and weak, Cherry calmed herself slightly and revealed something she’d kept to herself for many years. “I won’t hide it from you. The real reason for the divorce between me and Steven wasn’t because he minded. that I wasn’t a virgin when I married him. It was because Steven secretly had Ms. Zinn dispose of Erin’s sister without my knowledge-”
In an aggrieved tone, Cherry expressed her grief. “She may have been a baby, but she was a person! Yet, he casually dealt with our daughter’s body. I will never forgive him for this! I understand that he was also devastated back then, but how can the intensity of his feelings of loss compare to a mother like me? My poor deceased daughter was treated like garbage and disposed of without even a proper coffin. Steven was inhumane to have allowed that!”
Seeing Cherry’s so emotional that she started trembling, lan no longer kept her in suspense and went on the reveal everything. He said seriously, “Please don’t be saddened anymore. I can now confidently tell you that Erin’s sister is alive and well. She didn’t die!”
