Chapter 331 A Face from the Past
After being discharged, Marilyn had stayed with the Brooker family ever since.
Her health had declined. She couldn’t do much anymore. The truth was, the Brooker family had taken her in–given her a quiet life to grow old in peace.
Elliot’s face twisted with disbelief. “Marilyn, don’t lie tee. Lauren always treated you like her own mother. If you’re here, there’s no way she isn’t.”
“She’s still mad at me, isn’t she? That’s fine. I can wait. I wait here until she’s willing to see me.”
Marilyn looked at the man in front of her–haggard, wild–eyed, broken.
The once–proud eldest son of the Bennett family, who used to make Lauren’s life a living hell, now looked like a stray dog–desperate and pathetic.
New he realized he was wrong?
Now he wanted to make amends?
Wasn’t it ten years too late?
Lauren had been gone for a decade.
If even one member of the Bennett family had treated her with basic human decency, maybe she would still be alive today.
Marilyn’s eyes welled with tears at the thought, but she quickly forced the emotion back down, burying it deep.
She inhaled sharply, composed herself, and turned her face cold.
Without another word, she turned away.
Elliot gripped the iron bars of the gate, his knuckles going white. “Marilyn, don’t go–please. Just let me see her. I know I was horrible, I know I was the worst. I didn’t deserve her. I don’t deserve forgiveness.”
“But these ten years–I’ve regretted it every single day. I think about her constantly. If I could see her one more time, I’d do anything. I swear,”
His voice broke. Tears ran freely down his face, his body trembling like a man finally crushed under the weight of his own guilt.
Marilyn’s heart ached. She could still remember every injustice Lauren had suffered in that house–every bruise, every word, every silent cry. It was like a knife twisting in her chest.
“Some wounds never heal,” she said coldly. “Some mistakes can’t be undone.”
“There’s no such thing as a second chance. And she wouldn’t have wanted your apology anyway.”
With that, she slammed the door shut.
Elliot screamed, banging his fists against the gate. “You don’t get to decide! You can’t keep me from my
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Chapter 331 A Face from the Past
“Open this gate! I’m her brother! We’re family! That never going to change!”
But no matter how loud he yelled, no one answered.
He dropped to his knees with a thud, his forehead resing on the cold ground. “Marilyn… I know this apology doesn’t change anything. But it’s all I have left”
“Please for Lauren’s sake.. just give me a chance. Let me say what I need to say.”
“If she won’t forgive me, that’s fine. But let me see her just once. Please, Lauren… please.”
The silence was deafening.
No one came.
He stayed there, kneeling in the rain, unmoving–like if Lauren wouldn’t come out, he’d stay there forever.
The sky opened up above him. Rain poured down, hard and fast, drenching him in seconds.
Water streamed down his hair, his face, soaking his clothes until they clung to his body like a second skin.
Still, no one came.
Until a car rolled to a stop in front of the estate.
A girl stepped out, holding a black umbrella over her head. She paused in front of Elliot.
He lifted his head slowly.
And when he saw her face–Lauren’s face–his lips parted in disbelief.
“Lauren you came out to see me. You’re here.”
He grabbed the girl’s arms, clutching her tightly, his eyes filled with remorse and desperation.
But the girl frowned and tilted her head. “Sir… do you know my mom?”
Mom!
The word hit him like ice water.
Elliot blinked, finally seeing the truth.
This wasn’t Lauren
She looked so much like her–enough to stop his heart–but she was younger. Too young. Just a girl.
And now that he was looking closer, the differences became clear.
Lauren had grown up with nothing–no warmth, no love. She was always hunched in on herself, brittle and quiet, her eyes filled with unease. Her hair had been thin and dry, her skin pale and malnourished, her body practically bones.
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Chapter 331 A Face from the Past
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But the girl standing in front of him now had thick, glossy black hair. Her skin was smooth, radiant–like fine porcelain. Her cheeks were healthy and full, her eyes bright. She radiated confidence, grace. This girl had grown up loved. This girl had grown up safe
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