Chapter 95 : Call Me Heartless
Just as Nigel thought she was about to soften, Allison’s tone changed. It became calm and distant. “If you really want to make me happy, it’s very simple. Do you want to know how?”
Nigel’s eyes lit up instantly, like a fool ready to agree to anything the moment she spoke.
Looking into those bright eyes, Allison felt a deeper chill settle in her heart. He played the part of a good brother flawlessly. Yet in his world, even blood ties could be weighed and traded.
She sneered, and her voice turned sharp when she answered, “Give me back my identity. Make Sherrie return it. Then I’ll forgive you.”
Nigel didn't move, but the light in his eyes faded, replaced by something cold and indifferent.
A few seconds later, Nigel’s face darkened, and his tone was filled with anger. “Why are you still fixated on Sherrie? You’re about to marry into the Lopez family now. Jareth is backing you. What more do you want? Why do you insist on fighting her?”
The way he said it made it sound like marrying Jareth was the greatest blessing in the world. It was as if he had already forgotten that just days ago, no one believed this marriage would ever happen.
Allison chuckled softly. “That ID was mine to begin with. It was never given to me by any of you.”
“So what if it was yours?” Nigel said through clenched teeth. “You almost killed Sherrie. This is your compensation to her.”
Allison let out a cold laugh. “Then what about the three years I spent rotting in a mental asylum? Wasn’t that punishment enough? Even prisoners are allowed to keep their identities. Was I really so vile that mine had to be taken away?”
Nigel fell silent for a moment, the words stuck in his throat.
Watching the mix of embarrassment and anger on his face, Allison felt pathetic herself. She knew exactly what kind of person he was, yet she had still asked, foolishly hoping for a different answer.
“Forget it, then,” she said and turned to leave.
Driven by rage, Nigel caught up to her and grabbed her wrist with his bloodied hand. His voice shook with resentment. “I’ve paid the price for you, and I’ve accepted it. My hand is ruined because of you. I’ll never be able to operate again. And the jewelry box you’ve always wanted, I was willing to make a new one for you. Why are you so heartless? Why do you never see what I’ve sacrificed?”
Allison shook his hand off. “Was that hand injured for me? You took that knife for Sherrie, not for me.”
Her anger finally came out. She stepped closer and made him look at her. “And these sacrifices you keep talking about, what are they? One injury, and you think it makes up for the thousand days and nights I spent suffering in that asylum?”
She grabbed the saw from his hand and slammed it against the walnut wood beside them. “These bits of wood…”
Allison let out a cold laugh. “Who cares about things that can be replaced so easily? The only reason you won’t give my identity back is that you know it can’t be replaced.”
Her laughter was sharp and bitter. “Between Sherrie and me, you would choose her often. But it doesn’t matter anymore. I don’t see you as my brother now. And you don’t need to keep pretending, only to turn around and call me heartless.”
Pain and anger twisted Nigel’s face. “So what you said the other day wasn’t just said in anger. You really want to cut ties with the Rogers family?”
“That’s right,” Allison replied coldly. “I’m already someone without a name, without a home. Even if I don’t officially cut ties, I have nothing to do with the Rogers family anymore. Isn’t this exactly what you wanted, Nigel?”
Nigel clenched his fists. Blood dripped quietly from between his fingers, as if he no longer felt the pain. He restrained himself again and again, until his hatred finally burst out in a glare sharp enough to wound.
So this was how it was. Now that she had climbed higher, she dared to cut ties with us? Did she really think marrying Jareth meant she could trample over the Rogers family? No way!.
Allison turned around and walked away without looking back.
Behind her, Nigel lashed out in fury and kicked over the pile of precious walnut wood.
Forget the jewelry box. I won’t finish it anymore.
Outside the room, Nova rushed over the moment she saw Allison come out. She had been waiting nervously by the door the whole time, afraid Allison might get hurt.
Back in Allison’s hospital room, Nova poured her a cup of water, sneaking glances at her with a conflicted look.
Allison noticed her reaction.
“You think I’m too cold-blooded, too?” she asked softly.
“Of course not…” Nova whispered. She only felt a little sorry for Nigel. After all, he had really doted on Allison once. But now…
Allison’s voice drifted softly through the quiet room.
“He suffers once, and everyone feels sorry for him. But during those three years, I don’t even know how many times I went through the same thing. No one ever thought that was strange. No one ever thought I had the right to be angry.”
Nova’s eyes reddened immediately. Thinking about what Allison had endured, she felt ashamed for ever pitying Nigel.
She asked in a trembling voice, “Ms. Rogers, you were just a girl. How did you survive in that asylum?”
Allison’s eyes drifted away, as if she had fallen back into those dark memories. She had been only eighteen when they threw her into that hellhole. Too weak to fight. Too fragile to run.
If Kingsley had not protected her, she might not have survived at all.
Allison lifted her head and gave her a faint smile. “Maybe I’m just good at taking a beating.”
Allison was clearly joking, but Nova’s nose still stung, and tears nearly slipped out before she could stop them.
She turned away to wipe her eyes and muttered under her breath, “Nigel really is scum. In those three years, if he had even gone to see you once, you wouldn’t have suffered this much. And what was all that today? He deserved every bit of it.”
As if something came to mind, Nova added, “Oh, right. When Nigel was hospitalized, I saw the director of Rogers Hospital come to see him. His expression was terrible. I don’t know if something else has gone wrong.”