12dz Chapter 1226: A Rift Growing Between Siblings
Chapter 1226: A Rift Growing Between Siblings
Richard Shaw took his son’s phone and returned to the bedroom, a cold and desolate place. After showering, he casually wore a cotton robe, his chest muscles subtly visible.
The man sat on the bed, holding Casimir Shaw’s phone, replaying Leah’s conversations with his son slowly.
The sweet, gentle female voice, with a rising intonation when chatting with the young boy, was sweet and charming. She only spoke like this when she acted coy with him.
Richard Shaw’s cold and hard facial lines softened slightly, and a faint arc appeared at the corners of his thin lips. The mother-son conversation didn’t last long, perhaps because Griffith Squire found Aurora Coldwell. The young girl from the Coldwell Family remained unconscious, and Griffith asked Leah to bring some clothes and daily necessities to the hospital.
Leah chatted for just a few minutes before hanging up the phone.
Richard Shaw listened back and forth five or six times, and later, his blood vaguely agitated. He held his son’s phone, clicked on her WeChat avatar, and left her a message: "Good night."
Leah quickly replied: "Good night, mua!(*╯3╰)".
Richard’s muscles tensed up completely, staring at those words and the kissing emoji. Though shamelessly sent from his son’s phone, it was Leah’s first interaction with him in months. He pretended it was meant for him.
The man’s rough fingers gently rubbed the phone screen, then said in a low, hoarse voice: "Good night."
His gaze was as dark as ink.
Richard Shaw placed the phone on the cabinet, closing his eyes to sleep the most peaceful night he had in months.
Leah went to the hospital, delivering the girl’s needed daily items and clothing. Seeing Griffith Squire waiting outside the ward, his handsome, wicked face showed no smile, and his eyes were bloodshot, indicating several sleepless nights. She clicked her tongue in sympathy, walked over, and calmly said, "It’s the first time I’ve seen you worry about a girl like this, so am I about to have a sister-in-law?"
Griffith Squire leaned against the stark white wall outside the hospital, noticing Leah had lost weight since returning from the sea, her skin now a delicate honey color––or champagne, looking just like his. Her peach blossom eyes, once vibrant like roses, now had a touch of calm amidst their riotousness.
Griffith reached out, gently patted Leah’s shoulder, and said in a low, hoarse voice: "A life owed must be repaid with one’s own."
"Mm." Leah nodded, mimicking him by leaning against the white wall, taking out a pack of ladies’ cigarettes from her bag, lighting one, and taking a shallow drag. The white smoke, fiery red lips, and alluring peach blossom eyes exuded an indescribable seductive beauty.
"If you like her, marry her home. I know all these years you’ve walked this path because of me, but going forward, I don’t want your life’s focus to be solely on me. Griffith, you should have your own life, not live for the Cox Family." Leah gently exhaled smoke rings, calmly saying, "Frankly, we owe you and your mother."
Leah recalled past events, also the stories Griffith had told her about years ago. In the previous generation’s grievances, her parents and herself owed everything to Griffith’s mother and son.
"It has nothing to do with you; this path is one I chose for myself." Griffith reached out to tousle her silk-like straight hair, teasing it into disarray. Upon seeing Leah glower coldly, ready to stomp her foot, he smirked, saying, "Mother died in the Golden Triangle; that land must be stained in blood to settle my heart’s hatred."
No one knew that the warlord’s tyrant who rose from the bottom only yearned for the simplest justice in his heart.
When the Buddha doesn’t help the masses, he becomes a demon to do so.
"What about the Cox Family? Must revenge be taken?" Leah asked, lowering her eyes and continuing to take a drag of her cigarette, calmly saying, "I was raised by the Shaw Family. When Casimir grows up and asks, ’Mom, why did you kill Dad and Great-grandmother?’ How should I answer him?"
Griffith was startled by her words, took a glance at her expressionlessly, and took her cigarette from her fingers, extinguishing it.
"Father was framed, leading a pure life to such an end, burdened with a thousand-year smear; can it be ignored?" Griffith coldly retorted.
"Brother, no matter how much you do, he won’t see it. We can’t change our last name to Cox. He lived purely, but we’re full of tarnish," Leah’s eyes moistened, her voice low, "I like Richard Shaw and hate how he treated me all these years, but I will not turn back. I’ve walked away from it. When will you do the same?"
"In a few days, I plan to leave with Hawk Howard." Leah said softly, observing Griffith’s urge to speak yet remaining silent.
Griffith’s expression fluctuated, saying nothing, only silently watching her.
After years of mutual dependence between brother and sister, differences began to emerge in the revenge matter, subtly trending towards separation.
"So, because the Shaw Family raised you, you like Richard Shaw, and now you’re forced to part from him, are you also going to part from me?" Griffith’s voice was dry, his fingers clenched into fists. Human hearts are made of flesh; he should have realized earlier. The efforts of the Shaw Family, Richard’s subtle influence, not everyone could turn against that.
Leah said nothing more, turning to leave. Brocade City in summer was flourishing as its name, yet she felt inexplicably like crying. She had deeply retaliated against the Shaw Family, negated her previous life, buried her emotions—this was her way.
The next morning, Aurora Coldwell awoke but was physically weak and needed a long recovery.
Upon hearing this, Leah sighed in relief, packing her suitcase. With the young Coldwell girl around, she wouldn’t worry about Griffith making rash decisions.
"Are you really planning to go to the United States with Hawk Howard?" Delphine said, helping her pack and sighing, "If you leave like this, Griffith will surely resent the Shaw Family."
"My ten-year US visa hasn’t expired; it’s perfect for visiting Hawk Howard’s home." Leah calmly replied; whatever she did, Griffith would resent the Shaw Family.
"Delphine, have I really made a mistake?" Troubled by her fallout with Griffith, Leah was internally distressed.
"Everyone has different standpoints. For Griffith, his lifelong fight is about clearing his father’s name. Now, suddenly, you’re leaving, asking him to abandon vengeance, which feels like betrayal. You, having received years of favor from the Shaw Family, cannot seek revenge for Casimir’s sake; doing so would ruin the child’s life." Delphine sighed, seeing Leah’s character. Without the previous generation’s grievances, Leah would not have given up her feelings for Richard Shaw.
"Only you understand me." Leah buried her head in her shoulder, hoarsely saying, "Delphine, take care of my brother for me."
That night, Leah followed Hawk Howard to Los Angeles in the United States.