Chapter 9

“She hit her.” Aura pouted slightly and continued, “The moment she entered the room, she accused Nellie of offending me before she slapped her. I couldn’t stop her in time.” She even faked a distressed expression as she knelt and reached out to touch Nellie’s face. “It must’ve hurt so much, huh?” Nellie glared at her, eyes full of hostility, as she slapped her hand away and wriggled out of Joshua’s lap. She ran toward Luna and interlaced her fingers with hers. “You…are you okay?” Luna straightened her back, though the pain from the kick still lingered. “I’m fine.” Aura poured all her strength into the kick, and Luna still carried an old wound from the accident six years ago. The kick almost rendered her unable to stand. Nellie knew this all too well. She tugged at Luna’s finger anxiously and settled her down on a corner of the sofa. “Does it hurt?” The little girl’s concerned voice and attitude made Joshua furrow his brow slightly. “Aura, you said she hit Nellie?” Aura’s hands curled into fists on her side. She did not expect the little brat would be so nice to a mere servant. “I find it strange, too. Why is Nellie so nice to her even though she hit her?” Aura pursed her lips. “Maybe Nellie thinks that as long as she’s nice to the maid and doesn’t expose her for hitting her, she can then blame me and make you mad at me.” With that, she forced a few drops of tears out of the corners of her eyes. “Anyway, the three of us were the only ones present. The servant won’t admit it, and Nellie won’t admit it, too. No matter how hard I try, no one will believe me.” The woman’s words made Nellie widen her eyes in shock. “You did hit me!” Nellie had enjoyed a good life overseas, well-protected by her family, and this was the first time meeting an adult who was such a good liar! “Whatever you say, I’m not going to argue with a little girl.” Luna squinted her eyes as she glared at Aura; that woman was calmer than she expected. It was apparent that Aura was the one who hit Nellie, yet she acted like the forgiving victim, turning truth into fiction! “Nellie, I’m sorry,” Aura sniffed, sounding so sad and pitiful. “I didn’t hit you, but since you want me to bow to you, I will.” Nellie’s big, dewy eyes widened in shock. “But you did hit me!” “Let’s do this.” Aura raised her hand and slapped herself lightly. “Since you said I hit you, I’ll hit myself, too. Let’s call it even.” With that, she wiped at her tears. “Nellie, let’s just put things to rest here, alright? Don’t make it hard for your dad because of a small matter like this.” Nellie’s whole body trembled in anger! How could this woman act like this?! She was the one who hit and her cheeks still ached, but this woman made it seem like she was acting out! The little girl bit her lips as she pouted prettily. Eventually, she could no longer hold it in as tears streamed down her eyes. “You’re the bad guy! You’re clearly the bad guy! You were the one who hit me, and you tried to shift the blame to Auntie! You’re the worst!” Nellie’s body trembled, wrecked by her sobs. After all, she was just a six-year-old child, thus she was nothing compared to the devious Aura. Lips formed into a thin line, Luna reached out and pulled Nellie into a hug and comforted her softly. “Ms. Gibson, you said I hit Ms. Nellie?” Aura turned her face to the side. “I said this issue ends here. I already apologized, and I won’t comment further. Don’t mention this anymore; I don’t want Nellie to be hurt.” The woman hugging Nellie lifted her lips up in a slight smile. “But what if I insist?” Joshua sat on the sofa as he studied Luna’s face coldly. She smiled and let go of Nellie before she revealed a recorder pen from her pocket. In an instant, Aura’s face turned pale as a ghost. A flash of terror passed through her eyes. Instinctively, she rushed forward, wanting to grab for the pen. Luna calmly avoided her as her fingers held the recorder pen, calmly switching off the recording and winding it back to the part when she just entered the house. “I hit her.” “Want to take revenge for this little brat?” “I can’t hit her just because she’s young?” “The little brat deserved it for running around calling random men as her father.” Her cold, arrogant voice drifted out from the recorder pen clearly. Aura stood there and looked as if a paint palette had been poured over her head, turning white at one moment, then black in another, green an instant, and red the next. After the recording was played, Luna calmly put the recorder back in her pocket. “Ms. Gibson, we have both witness and physical evidence, yet you still insist that I hit Ms. Nellie?” With that, she lowered her head and examined the palm print on Nellie’s face, and her heart ached uncontrollably. She bit her lip. “This slap was very strong, and the outline of the palm can be clearly seen. “Ms. Gibson, shall we compare our palms with the slap print on Ms. Nellie’s face?” Aura was rendered speechless. She bit her lip and turned her head in panic. “Joshua, I...” Behind her, the tall and stern man remained seated gracefully on the sofa, but the air that emanated from his body turned colder and heavier, like an iceberg that remained unmoving for thousands of years ready to break apart, swallowing humans in an avalanche in an instant. “Mr. Lynch, you should be clear now who hit Nellie.” Luna sucked in a deep breath and stood up, pulling the teary-faced Nellie into a hug. “Since I’m not responsible, I’ll bring Ms. Nellie upstairs and apply some ointment on her wound.” With that, she hugged Nellie in her arms and walked upstairs. Joshua narrowed his dark gaze and looked at the woman’s back. “Joshua...” Aura gritted her teeth. “Actually, I...” “Nellie is my daughter.” His low voice was cold and distant. “I don’t know how she spent the last six years, but I’ll try my best to give her a better life.” His bottomless eyes glanced at Aura’s face that was red and swollen from Luna’s slaps. “Since the servant has paid you back for hitting Nellie, I won’t do anything to you.” Overjoyed, Aura hurriedly leaned forward. Before she could speak, she heard his cold voice again. “But in the future, you don’t have to come to Blue Bay Villa again.” The woman’s heart plummeted to the bottom of her chest, and she bit her lip silently. “But Joshua, I’m still your fiancée in the eyes of the public regardless, and if you ask me not to come here again...” “You know it’s just for show.” The man stood up as he turned his tall figure back on her. “I agreed to act with you as a fake engaged couple because of Luna. Now, you hurt our child. “I think if she knows what happened today, she won’t allow you to meet Nellie again.” Afterward, the man raised his leg upstairs indifferently. “Send her off!” “Ms. Gibson, please.” Aura bit her lip. She stared viciously in the direction of Luna and Nellie’s getting away.