Chapter 209 Collecting Evidence
Hotel. Sawyer came back looking completely dejected.
Flynn stood up, walked over to Sawyer, and asked anxiously, "How did it go? Did she agree?"
Sawyer shook his head, his face full of bitterness. "Flynn, let's not bother her anymore. She doesn't need our apology."
"How can this be? We're her real brothers!" In the end, Flynn couldn't continue. He slowly crouched down, holding his head in his hands, shutting himself off.
Sawyer shook his head. "She's living happily now and doesn't want us interfering. We should respect her choice."
If Sophia wasn't happy, they would have every reason to bring her back.
But now, Sophia was doing well.
Without them, without the Brown family, she would only be happy.
So they had no reason to disturb her anymore.
But Flynn seemed obsessed, still stubbornly clinging to his own thoughts. "That's not right, Sawyer, that's not right. I just want to make up for it. I was the one who did wrong before."
"When I think about when she was just born, she was so adorable. I loved sitting by her cradle, and I could stay there all day..."
Back then, he would brag to everyone about having a cute little sister.
But later...
Later...
How could he have lost his own sister because of an outsider?
He was such a terrible person!
He didn't deserve to be Sophia's brother!
Flynn slapped himself across the face, his eyes red.
Sawyer crouched down and patted Flynn on the shoulder. "Don't think too much about it. If she doesn't want us around in the future, we can do things for her secretly. Consider it making amends."
"Secretly?"
Flynn looked up questioningly.
Sawyer nodded. "Yes, but I haven't figured out exactly what to do yet. No matter what, she's still our real sister."
"Sawyer, you're right." Flynn sniffled and wiped away the tears from his eyes.
The Brown Villa.
Isabella kept dialing Flynn's number over and over.
But she could never get through.
Actually, she had noticed something was wrong a long time ago. At some point, Flynn had started distancing himself from her.
He used to bring her all kinds of strange and interesting things when he came home, but lately, that hadn't happened at all.
Now, she couldn't even get through on the phone.
For some reason, Isabella suddenly felt a sense of panic and helplessness.
She found Sawyer's number and called him.
It was answered quickly.
A deep voice with a cold edge came through.
"What is it?"
Isabella had called with such anticipation, but now it felt like cold water had been dumped on her.
She couldn't believe her ears. Was the person on the other end really the Sawyer who had doted on her for over ten years?
Why did he sound so unfamiliar?
"Sawyer, it's Isabella. I finally got through to you. I thought I did something wrong and you were mad at me." Isabella curled up on the bed, sobbing softly in grievance.
At the hotel, Sawyer rubbed his temples.
If it were before, hearing Isabella cry so sadly, he would definitely have comforted her.
But now, that strange feeling rose in his heart again.
After a moment of silence, he finally figured out what was wrong.
He had been trapped in the mountains for several days, there had been heavy rain, and when Isabella called, there wasn't a single word of comfort or concern—just constant crying.
"Do you need something? If not, I'm hanging up." Sawyer impatiently moved the phone away from his ear, ready to end the call.
Isabella quickly said, "Don't hang up! Sawyer, I need your help with something."
"What is it?"
"You probably don't know yet, but Sophia played an audio recording at my engagement party, and my reputation in our circle is ruined."
Sawyer listened patiently and finally understood the purpose of this call.
"You want me to help you clear your name?"
Isabella's cheeks flushed slightly, her voice cautious. "Can you? Sawyer, I know you care about me the most. Please help me this once."
"Isabella, I can help you, but you need to answer one question for me."
Hearing this, Isabella felt a spark of hope. "What question?"
Sawyer tightened his grip on the phone, his voice low. "Were those audio recordings real?"
"Of course not! Sophia was deliberately framing me!"
Realizing her voice was too shrill, Isabella panicked and immediately returned to her usual gentle and understanding demeanor.
"I know she hates me for taking away her life, so I don't blame her. It's just... acting is my dream, and I don't want to give it up."
"I see." After hanging up, Sawyer let out a scornful laugh.
After Flynn arrived, he had told him the results of his investigation at home during this time.
Before coming here, Flynn had secretly talked to the household staff. Under his pressure and persuasion, some of them revealed everything Isabella had done to Sophia.
Some people had been careful enough to keep evidence.
If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Sawyer would never have believed that Isabella, whom he had cherished for over ten years, was actually like this behind the scenes.
"Sawyer, what are you going to do?" Flynn sat on the edge of the bed and, after a long silence, finally spoke slowly.
"Kick Isabella out of the Brown family." Sawyer's face was dark.
Now that their biological daughter had been found, they absolutely couldn't continue raising someone else's daughter.
Flynn laughed coldly. "Isabella, you're being too naive. Mom and Dad are completely wrapped around her finger now, especially Mom. I don't know why she insists on keeping her."
Sawyer pressed his lips together, deep in thought. "I'll have someone watch Isabella and collect evidence first. When we have solid proof, she won't have a chance to defend herself."
Flynn nodded. That was the only option.
Back in Silverlight City, Isabella looked at the disconnected call, feeling a sense of panic.
She didn't know if it was her imagination, but Sawyer's attitude toward her seemed much colder.
No matter what, she absolutely couldn't just sit and wait anymore.
She had to make a comeback.
...
Sophia and Cillian returned with a full harvest, having picked many medicinal herbs in the mountains.
If Sophia hadn't stopped him, he would definitely have kept going deeper.
"This is already plenty. How much are you planning to eat?" Looking at him using his clothes to carry the herbs, his chest so full it could barely hold anymore, Sophia rubbed her forehead helplessly.
"However much you make, I can eat! Besides, I have a bunch of friends who practice singing and dancing all the time. They're covered in injuries."
His reminder made Sophia remember that he used to be the captain of a boy band.
Later, following the company's arrangements, the boy band disbanded.
Cillian was the most successful one from their group. The others were either struggling or had already left the entertainment industry.
Sophia had heard about these things from Sean before. She had instructed people to handle it properly.
It seemed the staff had been slacking off.