Chapter 342
When Daniel agreed to marry his granddaughter into the Brown family, Aiden had been so enthusiastic. Now, Daniel's decision was causing him immense pain.
Isabella, such a wonderful girl, was now being mistreated by his grandson Michael.
She had endured so much and was constantly the subject of gossip.
Aiden regretted it deeply.
If he hadn't brought Isabella into the Brown family, maybe none of this would have happened.
Ultimately, it was his fault. He had let Daniel down.
He had brought Daniel's granddaughter to this point.
In front of everyone, Aiden shakily placed the flowers and spoke a few words to Daniel's photo.
Then he wiped his moist eyes and turned to leave.
Before leaving, he signaled to the Wilson family members not to see him off.
Isabella, thinking of the gemstone pendant around her neck, quickly followed after informing Atticus.
"Mr. Brown."
Aiden was walking slowly, so Isabella caught up to him in a few steps, taking a deep breath as she stood in front of him.
With many guests around, Isabella didn't waste time. She took off the gemstone pendant and handed it to Aiden with both hands.
"Mr. Brown, it's not appropriate for me to keep this. I want to return it to you."
Seeing Isabella return the pendant, Aiden's body trembled, unable to bear the implications behind her actions.
"Isabella, did that brat Michael ever tell you that this pendant was left by his grandmother for his future wife?"
Even now, Aiden hoped that Isabella and Michael could reconcile.
But Isabella's next words shattered his hopes.
"It doesn't matter anymore. I just want to return it to its rightful owner."
Aiden's eyes showed emotion, but in this setting, he couldn't say anything more to persuade her.
"Mr. Brown, it's no longer appropriate for Michael and me to continue. This should go to his future wife."
She handed the pendant to Aiden, and quickly walked away.
She didn't dare stay any longer.
She didn't want Aiden to see her tears or hear her cry.
In her heart, she had always seen Aiden as her own grandfather.
No matter what happened between her and Michael, Aiden was still her family.
But what Isabella didn't know was that after she left, Aiden looked at the pendant in his hand, and his already aged body seemed to grow even older.
Watching Isabella's thin figure, he shook his head.
He knew that this might be the last time he saw her as his granddaughter-in-law.
Some things just couldn't be forced.
"Isabella!"
A deep, familiar voice suddenly called out, and Isabella instinctively stopped. She hadn't expected him to come.
But when he appeared, her heart still stirred.
However, she wouldn't deceive herself anymore.
With Aiden personally attending, Michael, as Daniel's nominal grandson-in-law, couldn't be absent. It was a matter of etiquette and basic respect.
In short, he wasn't here for her.
Just as Isabella took a deep breath to compose herself, Michael had already walked up to her.
"Do you need something?"
From the moment he had an affair with Bianca, Isabella and he were over.
Now that her grandfather had passed, there was no need to hide their divorce.
As Atticus had said, all that was left between Isabella and Michael was the divorce papers.
"Isabella, do you have to be so cold to me?"
Michael sighed softly. If there weren't so many people around, he would have wanted to hug her tightly.
"Is there any warmth left between us?"
Halfway through her sentence, Isabella was shocked by what she saw.
In just a few days, how had he become so haggard? His eyes were dark, and he hadn't shaved.
Even his figure had thinned significantly.
What had happened to him?
Realizing she was being affected by him again, Isabella quickly looked away.
He had Bianca now. How he was doing had nothing to do with her anymore.
"If there's nothing else, I'm leaving."
"Isabella."
Having finally seen her, Michael couldn't bear to let her go and instinctively grabbed her wrist.
"How have you and the baby been?"
Before coming, he had thought of many things to say to her, but now that he saw her, his mind went blank.
He just wanted to look at her quietly, to feel the beauty of her presence, and do nothing else.
"We're fine. Anything else?"
Isabella's response was calm, and her gaze held no emotion.
To her, Michael's words were insignificant. If he wanted to express his love for the baby, she would accept it calmly.
"If there's nothing else, I need to go help greet the guests."
Isabella didn't want to get entangled with him, especially on this special day.
Seeing Michael reminded her of what Daniel had said to her and the scenes she had witnessed when she was kidnapped.
Seeing Isabella about to leave without hesitation, Michael stopped her again.
"Isabella, I have one more question. I hope you'll answer honestly."
"After you escaped that day, Bianca disappeared too. Did you hide her?"
Since that day, his people had been unable to find any trace of Bianca.
And the people around Bianca had erased their identities completely, leaving no clues for him to follow.
In Evergreen City, if his people couldn't find any trace, it was either the Adri family's doing or the Wilson family had intervened.
If it was the latter, he hoped Isabella would tell him the truth. Bianca's background was too deep, and he didn't want Isabella and the baby to be in any danger.
But he forgot how ambiguous his relationship with Bianca was.
Isabella couldn't help but sneer.
So this was the real reason Michael had come.
He still cared about Bianca.
"Michael, weren't you with her that day? Why are you asking me?"
Talking about this, Isabella couldn't help but remember the scene of him and Bianca embracing and kissing.
Her heart felt like it was being squeezed, and she clenched her fists in pain.
But she should be so weak. Since she had decided to let go, she shouldn't think about him anymore.