Chapter 75
She skirted around the front of the car, ready to leave.
Patricia, not used to being ignored, instantly got her back up. She leaned a bit out of the car and hollered at Sophia, “What’s with the attitude? I’m still your elder, for crying out loud. Even if you and Brandon did split, I’m still an elder. Is that how you treat your betters? Ghosting me on WhatsApp and calls, and now giving me the cold shoulder in person. Who do you think you are?”
This topic always got Patricia’s blood boiling.
Ever since Brandon warned her to steer clear of Sophia, she had been too chicken to go see her. But after hearing from Yvonne about the divorce, she couldn’t help but be nosy and wanted to suss out if it was true. Not being Brandon’s biological mom, she often found it hard to get a straight answer from him. He’d just brush her off with a “nothing’s wrong,” leaving her no closer to the truth. Even getting Brandon’s dad to step in was a dead end-Brandon had always been headstrong, never one to take his parents’ two cents to heart. Recently, she heard Brandon was out of town on a business trip, so she snuck over to his and Sophia’s place, only to find the locks changed. After ringing the bell like a door-to-door salesman with no luck, she tried texting Sophia, only to realize she’d been given the boot from her contacts list. Patricia was so mad she could’ve keeled over right then and there.
Later, when she tried reaching out to Sophia on Daniel’s WhatsApp, she discovered he’d been axed too.
She figured that after the divorce, Sophia must’ve cut off the whole lot of them. On one hand, she was steaming about the lack of respect; on the other, there was a weird sense of relief.
She wasn’t even aware Sophia was in Wye City, nor was she looking for her, but since they’d bumped into each other and Sophia was still with Brandon, Patricia and Daniel thought they should have a chat with her.
But Sophia ignored Patricia’s rant as if she hadn’t heard a word, just kept on walking, eyes straight ahead.
Patricia, not one to let it go, flung open her car door and chased after her.
She was built sturdy and moved fast. Sophia, pregnant as she was, couldn’t pick up the pace, and it wasn’t long before Patricia had caught up. She grabbed Sophia’s arm from behind with a heavy hand, her voice tight with anger, “Sophia, are you even listening to me?” Sophia stumbled from the pull, nearly falling over.
She steadied herself and turned to face her, “If there’s something you want to say, spit it out. I’m in a rush.”
Daniel got out of the car, playing peacemaker, and pried Patricia’s hand off Sophia’s arm while offering an apologetic look to Sophia, “Don’t take it to heart, Sophia. Patricia’s just a bit on edge because we’ve been out of touch for a while. We have no clue what’s going on between you and Brandon, and we’re worried. Now that we’ve finally caught you, we just thought of a family meal and a little chat.” “No need,” Sophia cut him off softly, “Brandon and I are divorced. I’m not part of your family anymore. Let’s skip the meal.”
Daniel froze, suspecting was one thing but hearing it straight from the horse’s mouth was another.
“I know what you’re here for.” Sophia pursed her lips, looking at Daniel and Patricia, “Don’t worry, I won’t be bothering your son and Ms. Frost.”
With that, she nodded politely and without waiting for a response, she turned and left.
The autumn wind brushed her face, carrying a hint of chill, making her eyes sting with unshed tears.
Sophia sniffed and tilted her head back a bit, determined not to let the moisture spill over..
Making decisions had never been hard for her, but when it came down to it, there was still a faint ache.
When she got back to her apartment, Sophia called a delivery service to take the hotel key card back to the front desk, asking them to hand it over to Brandon. Then, taking a look around the long-unoccupied apartment, she sighed and dragged her suitcase out from a
corner.
Up on the rooftop of the Starlight Hotel, Brandon stood in front of the railing, one hand casually in his pocket, his expression blank as he watched the hustle and bustle of traffic below.
From over a hundred meters up, the view was expansive and unfamiliar.
The wind was strong on the rooftop, causing his clothes to billow.
Martin stood beside him, but with his back leaning against the railing, his elbows casually resting on it, and his long legs casually
crossed.
Neither spoke, each lost in the distance.
“Let me see that DNA test result of yours,” Brandon finally said, breaking the silence.
Martin glanced at him, wordlessly pulled out the DNA test results he had with Marian, and handed them to Brandon.
Brandon took them, glanced over the report, his eyes unchanging, and then turned back to Martin.
Printed in bold red on the DNA report was “No Blood Relation Confirmed.”
