Chapter 13

All was quiet in the living room. A few of the servants were dumbfounded as Tiffany kicked Jessie to the ground. Tiffany regained her ladylike stance and straightened out her skirt carefully. She had acted so rough just now that she almost ruined her dress. The embroidery on the dress was sewn on by her grandma stitch by stitch. It was the only one of its kind in the world, and it would have hurt her to tear it. Her grandma was getting on in age, and it took her quite a few nights to get the embroidery done. If she knew it got torn, she would stay up all night to work on it again. Tiffany was not about to give her grandma any extra trouble. She carefully examined the dress and found that nothing had been torn, and her mood brightened. Holding Jessie up, Avery shouted angrily, "What are you all standing around for? Capture her and lock her in the small dark room. What a disgrace for such a young girl." A few servants looked at each other, but the bodyguards reacted more quickly and surrounded Tiffany. Tiffany was afraid of damaging her clothes and held up her hands. "Don’t touch me. I'll go on my own." The Youngs had a basement that used to be a storage room. It had been sealed for all these years and had never been opened. Many of the servants had never understood why this door was never opened, but now they did. It was not that it had never been opened but more because the girl who used to be locked up in it was no longer living at the Young family’s house. The iron door closed with a clang, and immediately afterward, Tiffany heard the sound of the lock. Tiffany turned on her phone’s torchlight to dispel the darkness. It was a small, square room with nothing in it. The darkness was like viscous water, blanketing and drowning her, leaving only a tiny ray of light in her hand. Tiffany approached the wall, which was covered with all sorts of childish scribbles. There was the sun, the moon, the stars, adults, and children, as well as a family of three… The iron door was not smooth. Under the reflection of the light, countless indentations and marks were revealed, along with bloody scratches and palm marks. Tiffany recalled knocking over a cup at home when she was still little. She then got locked up in this room by her stepmother. As she was scared, she kept banging on the iron door crying for mercy until she was exhausted. Still, no one came to save her. That day, it was because she broke a cup. The next day, it would be because she dirtied her sister’s dress. The day after that, it would be because she addressed that woman as ‘Aunt’... Each time she was sent in, her stepmother would smile gently. "Baby girl, I’m doing this for your own good. Now that your mother is no longer here, I’m your mother, and you’re the young lady of the house. You mustn’t be reckless with your words and actions. I’m punishing you so you can learn your lesson. You understand my good intentions, right?" Later on, she did not even bother putting on a fake smile anymore. "If you can't get such a small thing right, go and stay in the dark room. "I'm the only one who won’t turn my back on someone as stupid as you. You’d better be more obedient from now on. "As a stepmother, I just can’t win. Everything I do is for you. After all that, you won’t even call me mother, you scoundrel.” ... When the alarm rang, Tiffany felt like she had had a long and complicated dream. The dream was full of shadowy figures that were both grotesque and multicolored, reflecting all kinds of ugliness among mankind. She used to dislike the darkness, but now, she could not stay away from it. She glanced at the time. It was already five o'clock in the afternoon. The phone call was from Micah. "Where are you?" "The Young family’s house." "Come back at once." "I can’t go back." It took a long time before the man's annoyed words sounded from the other end of the line. "Don't put up an act." He thought Tiffany was purposely waiting for him to pick her up, just as she had done last night at the police station. If he had not just returned from a business meeting and gotten hounded relentlessly by his grandmother on why Tiffany was not with him, he would not have called. Tiffany rested her head on her knees and carefully gathered the hem of her dress. "I’ve been locked up." About an hour later, the iron door opened. A tall, strapping man came in with the light behind him. Although she was in a poor state, she managed to smile. She reached out to him with arms wide open. "My legs are numb. Can you lift me up?" Reluctantly, Micah lifted her into his arms. She was much too light and petite. She curled into a tiny ball in his arms. He unceremoniously placed Tiffany on the sofa. She straightened out the hem of her dress, looking extraordinarily precious. He looked at this tiny ball of a person. Her hair was slightly disheveled, and her fair little porcelain face was covered in dust. She looked to be in a particularly sorry state. It did not fit her at all. She looked out of place. The dissonance filled him with anger. If the Youngs had not locked her up, he would not have had to waste time on this trip. Braxton had a smile on his face. "Mr. Blake, there must be a misunderstanding here." As angry as he was, the man still sat upright with a dignified posture, not revealing a tinge of emotion. "Tiffy, your mother said you went down to the basement to play as you haven’t been there for a long time. Then you lost track of time and fell asleep. Hurry and come explain yourself to Mr. Blake." Braxton gave her a meaningful look that carried a hint of warning. Tiffany straightened her back and put her hands on her knees. "If I went down to play, why would the door be locked from the outside?" Avery explained calmly, "The maid didn't know you were in there and locked it by accident." "Heh." Tiffany laughed coldly. "Avery Carlson, have you eaten so much butter that it’s clogged up your brain? Would someone as highly intelligent as Mr. Blake believe such a clumsy lie?" Micah had no intention of getting involved in the Youngs’ family affairs. When he saw everyone looking at him, he said stoically, "I don't believe it." Tiffany said, "I’m now part of the Blake family. Such a deed means you don’t even have the slightest respect for Mr. Blake.” Micah put his hand to his forehead, wishing so badly he could reprimand her by telling her to shut up. Braxton broke out in a cold sweat. "Mr. Blake, this really is a misunderstanding. The two of them were just playing around. This is how Avery has educated Tiffy since she was little. Tiffy was disobedient and rebellious as a child. If she didn’t get put in her place, she would have gone amuck.” Tiffany raised her hand and lowered her eyes. "So, you’ve always known that she used to lock me up, huh?" "Your mother was doing it for your own good." Tiffany smiled and stared at Braxton, making him uncomfortable. She then got up and walked out. As she walked away, Micah got up after her. "Mr. Blake, do stay for dinner before you go." "There’s no need." Micah put one hand in his pocket and took one big step outside. When he saw Tiffany turn back, he paused his footsteps ever so slightly. Tiffany walked up to Braxton. "Why did you call me back?" Braxton’s expression changed right away. "You haven’t been home for a long time, so naturally I missed you." Mockery was written all over Tiffany’s face. "I know it's because of yesterday's hot news. You wanted to scold me for embarrassing you by committing fraud, and you wanted the hundred million, right?" "What are you saying? Is this really the kind of person you think I am?" Braxton was somewhat furious at Tiffany for seeing right through him, but he remained unfazed for the sake of saving face. After all, Micah was still around. "Besides, you’re still so young. You wouldn’t know what to do with all that money. You should give the money to me. The company has a lot of expenses. You should lend it to me to help with turnover. Once I make a profit, I’ll return it to you with interest." "Do you want the money even if it was cheated off someone? "Also, stop making empty promises. Your empty promises killed my mother, and I don't want to make the same mistake." Braxton's face froze. Tiffany gestured with her hand. "Tell me, if I use that money to buy a bomb, will it raze the Young family’s house to the ground?" Braxton's face darkened. Tiffany turned around, her footsteps brisk. The hem of her dress flew up, and the white cranes embroidered on it lifted their wings to fly.