Chapter 19

The chaotic scene suddenly became silent as all eyes turned toward the sound of the voice. Seth walked in with a grim expression, his piercing eyes burning with a deadly flame that carried a terrifying and domineering aura. Even the woman was frightened by his commanding presence and stammered, "Who are you? What right do you have to interfere?" Seth replied in any icy tone, "I have every right when you're causing a scene and disrupting the class." The woman sneered. "This school is sponsored by the Parker family. My husband is a good friend of the CEO of Parker Group; even Mr. Danes wouldn't dare to cross me. Who the hell do you think you are?" The crowd murmured in agreement. "Mrs. Langford has connections with the CEO of Parker Group. It's best not to cross her, or your kid's future might be affected." "Yeah. If her son managed to get into the gifted class, she must have ties with the Parker family." The woman, named Christine, raised her chin proudly. "Hear that? Stay out of my business, or I'll make sure your kid is expelled from this school!" Seth, upon hearing this, curled his lips into a smirk. "And who is your husband?" Christine laughed. "Why? Scared now? My husband is Aaron Langford, the financial director of Parker Group. He could have you removed from this school in minutes!" In face of her threats, Seth remained calm, took out his phone, and dialed a number. "Bring Aaron Langford to me now." Seeing this, Christine scoffed. "Hah! Who do you think you are? As if my husband would listen to you. Unless you're the CEO of Parker Group…" Just as her words fell, Aaron burst into the classroom. He grabbed Christine by the collar and slapped her hard across the face. Through clenched teeth, he scolded, "You stupid woman! You've just offended Mr. Parker! Apologize to him right now!" Startled by the slap, Christine held her cheek and stared at Aaron in disbelief. "He's your boss?" "Of course he is! I just went to the principal's office for five minutes, and you've already created this mess. Just wait until we get home!" Aaron had asked Christine to take Simon to class while he met with Horace to transfer Simon to a regular class, as suggested by Layla. However, he was suddenly interrupted by a call from Seth's assistant saying that his wife had offended Seth and was causing a scene in the classroom. He rushed over from the principal's office in a panic. Christine's face turned pale. She had often heard from Aaron that his boss was ruthless and unforgiving, and that anyone that crossed him would suffer the consequences. Bowing her head, she apologized, "I'm sorry, Mr. Parker. I was wrong. I didn't realize who you were. Please forgive me." Looking at the red marks on Layla's face and hand, Seth's tone turned even colder. "A parent disrupting the school's order, verbally assaulting a teacher, and physically attacking her in front of students. Mr. Danes, how would you handle this?" Horace was so frightened that beads of sweat formed on his forehead. "According to the school's policy, the parent must publicly apologize to the teacher and seek the teacher's forgiveness. Otherwise, the student will be expelled." Christine hurriedly ran over to Layla, gripped her hand desperately, and pleaded, "Ms. Jenkins, I was too impulsive just now. I shouldn't have hit you. I sincerely apologize! If you're still upset, you can hit me back. Please don't let my son get expelled; he really loves this school." Layla's gaze remained cold, devoid of sympathy. "Mrs. Langford, when you were insulting my daughter and calling me vulgar names, did you think of the consequences then?" "I'm sorry. I was wrong. I apologize to you and your daughter. I shouldn't have said those things. Please, forgive me. Don't take this out on my son." Christine's pitiful appearance moved some of the other parents, and they began speaking up for her. "Ms. Jenkins, she knows she was wrong. Just forgive her. This was all just a misunderstanding." "Yeah. Don't punish the child for the parent's mistake. He's innocent and doesn't deserve to be dragged into this." Layla's expression hardened. "Well, did my daughter deserve to be dragged into this? When Mrs. Langford pointed at her nose and called her a mute, and when she stomped on her picture, did anyone think that she was also innocent? "Why didn't anyone speak up then? Now, you want me to be the bigger person? Just because I'm a teacher, does it mean I don't have the right to defend my own child?" Layla's words silenced all the parents in the room. Facing the crowd, Layla continued, "If you want me to forgive her, tell me who's behind this. I don't believe that after being here for only two days, I've already earned so much hatred." Upon hearing this, Christine was the first to show panic. She quickly shook her head and said, "No, it was my own fault for overreacting. I've always been jealous of anyone who got close to my husband. Ms. Jenkins, it's all my fault; no one else was involved." Layla sneered. "Is that so? It was your husband that came to pick Simon up yesterday, so how did you get that photo? Who sent it to you?" "A friend sent it to me." "And is that friend's name Clarissa Price?" At the mention of Clarissa's name, not only was Christine taken aback, even Seth's gaze darkened instantly. He glanced at Layla's solemn face and asked, "What did you say?" Layla met his gaze, her tone laced with mockery as she asked, "What's wrong, Mr. Parker? Do you think I'm lying? Or are you trying to protect your fiance?" Seth gulped. "Ms. Jenkins, why would you think that?" Layla smiled bitterly. Seth truly was so good to Clarissa, believing her no matter what. When Layla was suffering from depression, he demanded a divorce, ignoring the harm he would cause her. But when Clarissa was in danger, he used Layla as a shield to protect her. To be willing to hurt another person for the sake of one, how much love did that require? Layla's fingers trembled slightly, but her tone remained resolute. "Mr. Parker, you can go find out yourself whether or not what I'm saying is true. Of course, if you want to protect your fiance, I believe you're capable of finding a hundred reasons to absolve her from the blame. "But if it comes down to that, I will use the evidence I have and every legal tool available to seek justice for myself."