I Saw the Comments, Then Cut Him Off

I had just reunited with my biological daughter when my husband and I had to fly overseas on a business trip. I was about to send my son his living expenses when a barrage of comments suddenly floated across my vision. [Don’t go! Your son’s girlfriend will come straight to your house and take over! She’ll pocket every cent you send him!] [Your two daughters will be abused so badly that they’ll be forced to eat tree bark with their bare hands, and they’ll think you allowed it!] [Both your adopted daughter and your biological daughter will come to hate you. Your son will manipulate them into helping him seize control of the company!] [In the end, your son will turn against his entire family for that gold digger. You’ll die alone on the street, with no one to even claim your body!] My hand froze in midair right as I was about to transfer ten million dollars to my son. The next second, he came trotting over with an eager smile. “Mom, Dad, don’t worry about a thing while you’re away! I’ll take good care of my two sisters! Oh, and don’t forget to send me my living expenses before you leave!” A chill ran through me. I quietly backed out of the transfer screen. “I’m not going on this business trip.” Chapter 1 The smile on my son, Desmond Kinsley’s, face froze for a split second. Then he looked at me with concern. “Mom, did you forget something? I can mail it to you when I get home.” I shook my head, and his voice grew noticeably more anxious. “Then why aren’t you going anymore? You’re practically about to board. Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of myself and my sisters, just like I always do!” I said nothing. I simply stared at him. His eyes darted away. After an awkward chuckle, he asked, “Mom, did you… misunderstand something about me?” I remained silent, then I lowered my eyes to my phone. My husband, Sebastian Kinsley, had finished putting away the luggage. He stepped in with a smile, trying to smooth things over. “Come on, honey! We need to board. Desmond has always handled the living expenses, and Wendy’s a good girl. You can put your mind at ease.” When I did not move, he looked completely baffled. “You never used to worry about these things. What’s gotten into you today?” I tightened my grip around my phone, feeling my heart turn cold. He was right. I never used to worry. Every time I went on a business trip, all I had to do was send my son his allowance on schedule. He always made sure everything at home looked perfectly fine. My adopted daughter, Wendy Kinsley, was so well-behaved that I never had to worry about her. Only now was I beginning to remember that every time I came home from a business trip, Wendy looked a little thinner and became a little quieter. I had always assumed she was simply growing up, which was why she was becoming more reserved and more conscious of her appearance. Maybe she was trying to lose weight. After all, I gave each of them one million dollars a month for living expenses. Surely, she could not have been losing weight from hunger. However, after seeing those comments today, I realized there might have been something else going on. While I was away, my daughter might have been abused. Worse, she might have believed I had allowed it. The thought of it, and the cautious, timid look on my daughter’s face, made my heart ache. Then there was my biological daughter, Nicole Kinsley, whom I had only just brought home. She had grown up running wild in the countryside, lively and energetic. She had only been home for a morning when she started following Wendy’s lead and treating Desmond with the utmost respect. I swallowed my rising fury. I was not about to tear the family apart until I had proof. “I just got a call about something urgent at the company. I need to go take care of it first.” The relief on Desmond’s face was obvious. “Mom, send me the living expenses first. I need to make some arrangements. I’m keeping an eye on Wendy’s and Nicole’s expenses.” I gave him a flat look. “No rush.” With that, I got into the car and left. I did not go to the company. Instead, I went straight to investigate a few things. … That evening, I returned home early. I had just reached the corner of the second-floor hallway when I stopped. Desmond was on the phone. His voice was low and urgent. “Plans have changed. She suddenly decided not to go on the business trip. The money never came through!” “What are you freaking out about?” A woman’s voice came from the other end, sweet and syrupy. “She’s easy enough to fool. Just sweet-talk her a little more. Besides, your eighteenth birthday is right around the corner. When the time comes, won’t that old woman happily hand everything over to you?” A cold laugh nearly escaped me. That voice belonged to Linda Hamilton—the girlfriend my son was always going on about, the one from a supposedly respectable, scholarly family. He told me her family was spotless, that they were a perfect match, and that he would introduce me to her sooner or later. Now, it seemed that even he had no idea what kind of woman he had hooked up with. I quietly slipped back into my bedroom, my fingertips growing colder by the second. That very night, I called the family's attorney. “Void every inheritance document under my name.” The attorney was clearly stunned. “Ms. Gray, Desmond is turning 18 this year. Wasn’t it already decided that you’d give him part of your shares at his birthday celebration?” I cut her off, “Everything we agreed on before is being changed. He gets no shares. He gets no property, and that luxury yacht I ordered for him? Put it back under my name. Every document gets a strict confidentiality clause.” From this day forward, I would keep every last penny firmly in my own hands. After hanging up, I lay back on the soft mattress. The barrage of comments from that morning flashed through my mind again. Fortunately, it was not too late. This time, every cent would have to pass through me first. Chapter 2 Early the next morning, I went straight to Mr. Lane’s house. Mr. Lane was the Kinsley family’s retired butler. He had copies of the security footage from the Kinsley family villa stored at his home. Back then, we installed the cameras years ago to protect against anyone with ulterior motives. However, the Kinsley family’s security system was top-notch, so the footage had never really been needed in all these years. Besides me, only my husband and Mr. Lane knew about it. Now, it certainly made investigating my own son much easier. The first footage I pulled up was from my previous business trips. The more I watched, the colder my heart grew. We had never intended to hide the truth from Wendy. She had always known that she was not biologically related to the Kinsley family. We only kept her informed because we were afraid someone might take advantage of her not knowing and use her birth circumstances against her. What I never expected was that my 'well-behaved' son had been using it to torment her every single day. “Be a good girl, Wendy. Otherwise, I’ll have Mom and Dad kick you out! You eat our food and live in our house. Can’t you at least be grateful? You’re just some kid we picked up. Who do you think you are, acting like you’re on my level?” In the footage, she never dared fight back. She could only bite her lip and hold back her tears. Her pocket money was all snatched away by Desmond. Even the pretty dresses, jewelry, and tablet we bought for her were taken away. She had never told me a single word about any of it. I watched the videos one after another, my fingers trembling. Suddenly, I remembered something. One year, I bought her a brand-new schoolbag. Yet the next day, she showed up with that same old, tattered cloth bag. Her teacher had even tactfully reminded me that, as a parent, I should not be treating my child that way. When I got home, I brought it up with Desmond, and he quickly reassured me, “Mom, Wendy likes the color white. She doesn't like that pink bag you bought her.” I frowned, then I happened to see Wendy standing there with her little tattered bag. I could not help scolding her on the spot, “Do you have any idea how embarrassed you made me today? Your teacher actually had to say something to me! Can't you be more like Desmond and give me one less thing to worry about?” She wanted to say something, but in the end, she could only hold back her tears. Back then, I had thought she was being overly sensitive. Now, I finally understood that I had taken Desmond’s side and shut down the last thing she wanted to tell me. It was not that she did not like the bag. It was that it had not even been in her hands for a full day before it was taken from her. The person who stole it had been standing right beside me at the time. Moreover, I even told her to learn from him. I shut off the footage involving Wendy. My stomach churned. A moment later, I pulled up the footage from the day my biological daughter, Nicole, came home. Desmond cornered her against the wall when no one else was around, his expression vicious. “Blood doesn’t make you family. Know your place. This family doesn’t need some little nobody like you! If you want to stay here, then behave yourself. Don’t reach for things that aren’t yours.” Nicole was so frightened that she could only nod repeatedly, tears welling in her eyes. As though that was not enough, he added, “Just because you’re back with your real family doesn’t mean you can walk all over me. I’m the only heir to the Kinsley family.” I kept watching. The gifts I had given Nicole when we reunited—a bracelet, a necklace, and a bank card were all taken by my son. I checked the bank account. Every last cent had already been spent. I stared at the still image from the security footage, my chest tightening as though an invisible hand were crushing my heart. Mr. Lane could no longer hold back. “Ma’am, you need to keep a close eye on that woman named Linda who’s always around Desmond. Whenever you were away on business, he would give Wendy’s jewelry to her.” My hands curled into fists. My head throbbed with rage. That evening, I went to check on Wendy and Nicole. Wendy was in the kitchen, carefully cooking a pot of stew. The moment she saw me, she instinctively took half a step back. “Mom, I was just really hungry. I wasn’t trying to sneak into the kitchen and steal food. Mom, please don’t kick me out.” Her head hung low, and her voice trembled so badly that the words nearly broke apart. Beside her, Nicole looked up at me with wide eyes, her voice trembling with tears. “Mom, I didn’t bully Wendy. I just came with her to make some stew. Mom, I don't want to be kicked out either…” In that instant, it felt as though something had lodged itself in my throat. I walked over and gently pulled them both into my arms, my nose burning with tears. “I’m not kicking either of you out. I'm here. No one can take you away from me.” Chapter 3 Yet both my daughters went completely stiff in my arms, too afraid to move. I sniffled and filled two bowls with stew for them. They waited until I had left before cautiously starting to eat, then they lowered their voices and whispered to each other. “Mom made us stew. What if Desmond finds out? Won’t he be mad?” “Shh! Don’t let Desmond know. Otherwise, we’ll go hungry again for two days!” My heart clenched painfully in my chest, squeezing the breath from my lungs. That afternoon, I dug through the financial records from top to bottom. Living expenses, education funds, money set aside for my daughters’ projects— every last payment had been secretly transferred by my son into Linda’s account. She used the money to buy cars, handbags, real estate, jewelry… It was all money I had given for my daughters, yet not a single cent had ever been spent on them. I stared at the transactions and let out a cold laugh. My own son had been bleeding the family dry right under my nose. Whenever he requested even a single cent for his sisters, he went through the motions of meticulously recording every expense. Yet when it came to sending money to Linda, he never hesitated, not even once. As I was investigating, two more comments suddenly floated across my vision. [Look into her! She’s the one who manipulated your son into transferring 300 million dollars!] [She doesn’t just want this little bit of spending money. She wants the entire Kinsley family!] I followed the trail and found out Linda did not come from a respectable, scholarly family at all. She worked in the nightlife scene, specializing in targeting wealthy families’ only sons. Her family was drowning in debt, and they were counting on Desmond as their personal cash cow. That whole 'proper lady' act of hers was completely fake. Her financial records looked neat at first glance, but the holes were obvious once you started digging. The funniest part was that my own son was still completely clueless, treating her like royalty. … That night, I gently pushed open the bedroom door. My two daughters shared a large bedroom. Wendy had not gone to sleep yet. The moment she saw me, she bolted upright. “Mom, do you need something?” I shook my head and sat down beside her. “No. It’s nothing.” She had just begun to relax when something suddenly occurred to her. Her eyes turned red. “Wendy, what’s wrong?” She suddenly grabbed my sleeve, her voice trembling. “Mom, I don’t want anything. Please don’t kick me out. I’ll be good. I’ll do whatever you say.” My throat tightened. Before I could say anything, Nicole woke up too and turned toward me. “Mom, I’ll get along with Wendy. I’ll be good to Desmond too. I won’t ask for anything. I’m easy to take care of. Please don’t kick me out.” My eyes burned with tears as I reached out and pulled them both into my arms. “I told you this just now. As long as I'm here, no one can kick you out.” Two pairs of tear-filled eyes looked up at me. “Really?” “Yes. I would never lie to you.” Wendy’s lips trembled, and she whispered, “But…” My heart felt like it had been stabbed. “This is your house. You make the rules. You're both my precious daughters.” Wendy stared at me for a long time before finally whispering, “Mom… I never hated pink.” My breath caught for a moment. She still remembered all of it. I pulled her tighter into my arms and said in a gentle voice, “I know. I trusted the wrong person back then. I love you both. I never allowed anyone to hurt you. Sweetheart, just wait a little longer. I’ll prove it to you soon.” I swallowed the ache in my chest, along with the fury burning inside me. Just a little longer. … The next day, Desmond came to talk to me about his birthday party. I agreed without hesitation. Of course, we were going to hold one. I was going to make sure he remembered it for the rest of his life. “Mom, don’t forget the birthday gift you promised me!” “I haven’t forgotten.” He left, already dreaming about those shares. I, meanwhile, began preparing his real birthday gift. Chapter 4 The night before the party, I finally finished compiling all the evidence—bank records, security footage, and witness statements. Page after page went into a brown envelope. For years, whenever my husband and I left town, Linda would move straight into our house. She wore my clothes, my jewelry, even my makeup. Desmond always made sure the blame, one way or another, fell on Wendy. Linda would beat her, make her kneel, force her to stand outside under the scorching sun… Sometimes, she would not even give her food for days. Wendy got so hungry that she had to dig bark out of trees with her bare hands and pick through trash cans for leftovers. Desmond told her it was because I thought she was being disobedient, so I had Linda discipline her for me. Little by little, Wendy stopped talking. She became so careful around me that she was afraid to say more than a few words. The millions I gave them for living expenses went straight into Desmond and Linda’s pockets. I was so furious that I immediately arranged with my assistant to go to the police station the next morning. … The next day, Desmond had decorated the house like he was holding his own coronation. Half the wealthy families in the city had been invited. He stood there with a glass of wine, grinning smugly as he went on and on about Kinsley Corporation. He thought that once today was over, the shares, the properties, and the inheritance would all be his. The stage was already set. Today, I was going to clean the house and deal with the rot in the Kinsley family. That morning, I walked into the police station with all the evidence. Every incident, every piece of evidence—it was all officially documented. The officer looked at me. “You’re certain you want to press charges against your own son?” Before I could answer, my phone suddenly started ringing nonstop. It was the new maid I had just hired. “Ma’am! You need to come home right now! Linda took all the jewelry you just bought for Nicole! They’re forcing the two girls to…” The call abruptly cut off. Then Mr. Lane called. “Ma’am, Desmond…” His call was cut off too. I rose to my feet. “Handle it by the book. No private settlement!” As I spoke, I headed for the door with the police officers. Before the car had even come to a full stop, I heard Linda’s shrill voice coming from the yard. “Sit up straight on your knees! Say it! Say you’re just some bastard we picked up! If we don’t put these two little brats in their place today, how are you supposed to inherit the Kinsley family?” I stormed into the yard and froze in my tracks. Wendy and Nicole were kneeling on the ground. They were soaked from head to toe, their faces streaked with tears as they were forced to repeat the words over and over. Nicole had only just been reunited with us, yet she was trembling with fear. Desmond stood nearby with his arms crossed, watching his two sisters being humiliated right in front of him. Somehow, he still had the nerve to smile. Whatever last bit of affection I had left for him disappeared. “It’s them!” The police stormed through the door. I strode into the yard, my voice exploding from my chest. “Who gave you the right to lay a hand on my girls?!” The entire yard fell silent. The gemstone necklace slipped from Linda’s hand and hit the ground. The smile on Desmond’s face froze. “Mom, didn’t you have something to take care of this morning? Why are you back so early? You didn’t even tell me to come pick you up…” I ignored them completely and turned to the officers. “Please investigate everything thoroughly.” The officers stepped forward and handcuffed Linda and Desmond. That was when Desmond finally panicked. He fought desperately against the cuffs. “Mom! What’s going on? Did you misunderstand something?” I looked at him and smiled. “No. Every word of it is true.” He struggled free enough to rush over to me, his expression suddenly earnest. “Mom, Linda and I were just joking around with Wendy and Nicole! They’re not even upset about it!” I yanked my hand away. Suddenly, Lilian Brown, the Kinsleys' old matriarch, rushed over and stepped between us. She shielded Desmond behind her. “Desmond is my only grandson! Can't you just talk things out? Do you really have to bring the police to his coming-of-age party and humiliate our entire family in front of everyone? Tell the police this is all just a misunderstanding!” With her backing him up, Desmond immediately regained his smug expression. “Exactly, Mom! What’s gotten into you? I’m your own son!” The relatives swarmed around me, all talking over one another. “Ms. Gray, you can’t let your emotions get the better of you!” “Blood is thicker than water. Family problems should stay within the family!” “He’s the Kinsley family’s only heir. Whatever he did, you can discipline him behind closed doors!” “Besides, if Desmond gets arrested, who’s going to inherit Kinsley Corporation?” Hah. That was exactly why Desmond had always felt untouchable. He knew all these people would protect him. I clenched my fists. No matter what happened today, I was going to see them taken away. Right then, a cold, commanding voice came from the doorway. The entire room fell silent. “What? Has Ms. Gray’s word stopped carrying any weight in her own home?”