Chapter 287: Not the Biological Child of the Getty Family
Tristan smiled, pinning Harriet against the bed, his eyes darkening. "Mrs. Lancaster invited me so warmly, how could I refuse?"
Harriet quickly pushed against his chest. "This is someone else's house, don't mess around!"
"So I can't have sex when we're at someone else's place?"
Harriet said seriously, "I'm not comfortable having sex in someone else's house."
Tristan had been holding back and was already frustrated. He immediately protested, "Then let's not stay here. We'll go back to the hotel."
"Stop it." Harriet laughed. "I'm being serious. Really, we can't. There are bodyguards outside."
"They've already gone to rest at this hour." Tristan kissed the corner of her lips. "Even if something happens, I can protect you."
"Still can't mess around!" Harriet complained. "We had sex for so long last night, I'm still sore today."
"That's because we hadn't had sex in too long. A little more sex will fix that."
Harriet fell silent.
She couldn't figure out why Tristan, who looked so cold and reserved, had so many cheeky remarks behind closed doors.
"Really, no." Harriet dodged his kiss. "This is someone else's house, it bothers me."
Tristan had to give up. "Fine, then let's sleep."
Harriet kissed his handsome face. "Good boy."
Tristan's eyes darkened. "Mrs. Lancaster, if you keep teasing me, you really won't get any sleep."
Harriet quickly lay down and wrapped herself tightly in the blanket.
Tristan chuckled softly and leaned down to kiss her forehead. "You sleep first. I'll go finish up some work."
"Okay, don't stay up too late."
"Okay."
The next morning.
Harriet was still asleep when she was woken by an urgent knocking.
She sat up. "Who is it?"
"Ms. Getty, it's me." Caspian's anxious voice came through. "My mother just woke up and she's very unstable. I can't calm her down. Can you come take a look?"
"I'll be right there!"
Harriet immediately got up, got dressed, opened the door and went upstairs.
In the third-floor room, Sloane was curled up on the bed, trembling all over as if frightened, constantly muttering to herself.
"Baby... my baby is gone... I lost my baby..."
"Mrs. Romanov." A maid nearby reached out to comfort her, but the moment she touched Sloane's shoulder, Sloane screamed as if she'd been shocked.
"Don't touch me! Give me back my child!"
"Ms. Getty, my mom's been like this since she woke up. She won't even let me touch her." Caspian said anxiously. "If she won't let you touch her either, I'll have to get a doctor to give her a sedative."
Harriet walked forward and sat down by the bed, gently holding Sloane's hand.
Sloane flinched and instinctively pulled her hand away.
She looked up, and when she saw Harriet's face, she froze for a moment.
Then a light appeared in her eyes, and she suddenly hugged Harriet. "Baby, where did you go? I looked for you for so long! Baby, don't be scared! I'll protect you!"
Harriet could feel her trembling.
It was a fear that came from deep within her bones.
Harriet's heart felt like something had pricked it, spreading a dull pain.
She didn't understand why she would feel this way.
This woman was clearly Lark's mother. Even if she didn't blame her, she shouldn't feel sorry for her.
Harriet raised her hand and gently hugged her back, patting her back lightly. "Mrs. Romanov, don't be afraid. It's okay now."
Sloane's emotions gradually stabilized.
Harriet breathed a sigh of relief. "Do you want to sleep a bit more?"
"No!" Sloane immediately said nervously. "If I fall asleep, the baby will be stolen..."
"Okay, then we won't sleep. Let's go downstairs for breakfast, okay?"
"Is the baby hungry? Want to eat?"
"Yes, we're both hungry." Harriet helped her up. "Let's go."
When Harriet returned to her room to wash up, Sloane followed her every step.
Tristan was already up. Everyone went to the dining room together for breakfast.
Harriet placed a sandwich in Sloane's bowl. "Eat this sandwich yourself, and then we'll go sit in the sun together, okay?"
Sloane picked up the sandwich and ate it in small bites.
Harriet poured her a glass of milk. "Take your time."
Sloane quickly finished the sandwich and said proudly, "All done!"
"Good." Harriet smiled. "Want to eat anything else?"
Sloane shook her head.
Although it was daytime, after last night's incident, Harriet didn't dare take her outside easily. They just went to the sunroom upstairs.
The flowers were blooming beautifully. With nothing else to do, Harriet started pruning the branches while Sloane kept her company.
At the entrance to the flower room, Caspian watched this warm and harmonious scene, his heart filled with mixed feelings.
A phone rang.
Harriet took out her phone, saw who was calling, and didn't answer.
Soon, the phone rang again.
Harriet hesitated, but she still answered.
"Harriet, what's your problem?" Xanthe demanded. "You blocked my number, you don't answer when I call from the landline, but you answer when I call from Jasper's phone. Do you have something against me?"
"Aunt Xanthe, if you have something to say, just say it." Harriet said calmly.
"What else would I be calling you about? You said you went abroad to find Elowen, and there's still no news. What kind of job are you doing?"
"Aunt Xanthe, I've only been here for two days." Harriet said. "And I already sent you a video of Elowen. She's not in danger, you can relax."
"Relax?" Xanthe was furious. "In the video you sent, Elowen is clearly being held captive. You want me to relax?"
"Tristan is so powerful and capable, can't he rescue her right away!"
"I'm telling you, if anything happens to Elowen, I will never forgive you!"
Harriet's slender fingers gently touched a blooming rose in front of her as she spoke unhurriedly: "Since you think I'm not trying hard enough, I have to tell you the truth."
"Elowen didn't get married abroad at all. She's being kept by a married man. She became his mistress."
"What!" Jasper's trembling voice came through. "Harriet, is what you're saying true!"
"Uncle Jasper, I'm sorry. I originally wanted to keep it from you, but Aunt Xanthe is being unreasonable, so I have to tell her the truth." Harriet continued. "Elowen is being held captive by the man who's keeping her. I have to cure someone in that man's family before I can get Elowen back."
"You're lying!" Xanthe raised her voice. "My Elowen would never lie to me, and she would never become someone's mistress! You just can't rescue her, so you're making up this story to fool me!"
"Whether I'm lying or not, when Elowen comes home, you can ask her yourself. But what Apex Global Group investigated is definitely close to the truth."
"She's lost all of the Getty family's face!" Jasper could barely catch his breath. "What a disgrace... what a disgrace..."
"Uncle Jasper, what's done is done. Calm down first." Harriet comforted him. "Having her alive is better than anything. I'll let you know immediately if there's any news about Elowen, but I hope Aunt Xanthe won't call to harass me anymore."
"Harriet, I'm sorry for causing you trouble." Jasper sighed. "You must take care of yourself abroad, and protect yourself."
"Don't worry, Tristan is with me. Nothing will happen."
"That's good." Jasper hung up the phone and cried sadly.
"What are you crying for!" Xanthe said firmly. "You're listening to Harriet's nonsense. I know my own daughter. She couldn't possibly lie to me!"
"You still dare to talk!" Jasper said angrily. "If you hadn't spoiled her, would she have turned out like this!"
"You taught her to be vain, not to study or work properly, only thinking about taking shortcuts. Now look what happened - she's become someone's mistress, wrecking someone's marriage!"
"Not to mention she was a thief before, stealing Harriet's things! The Getty family has never had such a shameless person!"
"Why are you yelling!" Xanthe yelled back. "So when the child is good, it's your achievement, but when she's bad, it's my fault?"
"She's my only daughter. What's wrong with spoiling her a bit? Daughters are supposed to be raised with privilege!"
"Raising her with privilege doesn't mean letting her have no boundaries!" Jasper said angrily. "My parents raised Harriet with privilege too, wanted to give her the best, but Harriet has good values and inherited my parents' good qualities. Look at Elowen - does she have any good qualities? Not only does she have none, she's full of stains!"
"How dare you compare my Elowen to Harriet!" Xanthe got angrier. "You shouldn't have brought it up. Now I'm even more upset. Why did your parents only teach Harriet medicine and not Elowen?"
"If they had passed on their medical skills to Elowen the way they taught Harriet, Elowen would definitely be better than Harriet now! Elowen would be the one inheriting Timeless Medicine Clinic! Maybe even the one who married Tristan!"
Jasper's face turned blue with anger. "You're so stubborn! Did my parents not want to teach her? Forget about whether Elowen has the talent - studying medicine requires hard work. You think you can become successful just by memorizing a few herbs with your eyes closed? Dream on!"
"Harriet is where she is today not just because she's talented, but because she can endure hardship!"
"So Harriet is perfect at everything, and my daughter is no good at anything. Then go have Harriet's mom give birth to children for you!" Xanthe laughed bitterly. "She's so excellent, so why don't her real parents want her!"
"I say her parents were smart - they knew she was bad luck, so they abandoned her!"
"You!" Jasper raised his hand high.
"You want to hit me?" Xanthe was shocked. "You want to hit me because of Harriet?"
"You think your niece is so great? Your daughter was ruined by her!"
"If Harriet hadn't been so cold and heartless, refusing to help Elowen marry into a wealthy family, would Elowen have gone abroad? If she hadn't gone abroad, could she have become a mistress?"
"Even if you beat me to death, it won't change the fact that Harriet harmed my daughter!"
"You're hopeless!" Jasper lowered his hand. "I don't hit women, so I won't hit you."
He took out his phone. "I'm going to call Harriet. I'm going to tell her she's not the Getty family's biological child, and she doesn't need to do anything risky for Elowen."
"If Elowen can be saved, save her. If not, don't risk herself. If anything happens to Harriet, how can I face my parents!"
"Don't you dare!" Xanthe quickly grabbed his phone. "If you tell Harriet now, she definitely won't care about our daughter. Do you really want to watch our daughter not come back? Jasper, how can your heart be so cruel!"
"Harriet is also a child I raised and loved. If you hadn't stopped me, I would have told her long ago!"
Xanthe was furious. "You fool! She married such a good, rich man. If you tell her the truth, will she still remember the Getty family's kindness in raising her!"
"The money Harriet and Tristan have given us over the years is more than enough to repay that kindness!"
"I knew you had no ambition. That little bit of money is nothing to Tristan, and you're already satisfied?" Xanthe warned. "I've told you - if you dare tell Harriet the truth, I'll divorce you!"
"Not only will I divorce you, I'll go make a scene in your hometown and make sure your parents can't rest in peace!"
Jasper trembled with anger. "Shrew... you're just a shrew!"
"Better a shrew than suffering poverty with you!" Xanthe said coldly. "It's best if Elowen comes back safely. But if anything happens to her, I'll fight the Getty family to the death!"
"Fine, I'll grant your wish." Jasper was furious. "When Elowen comes back, I'll tell Harriet about her background right away, and then divorce you!"
"I've put up with you for so many years, and I've had enough! Even if Harriet doesn't acknowledge me as her uncle, I don't want to keep deceiving her!"
Harriet had no idea about the drama in Emberfall. She put away her phone and continued pruning the flowers.
"Ms. Getty." Caspian's voice came from behind. "I can let Elowen go."
"I know." Harriet had known he was behind her all along. She didn't turn around. "When I cure your grandfather, you'll naturally let Elowen go."
"I mean, I can let her go right now."