After His Sweetheart Moved In, He Came Home Every Night-Chapter 104: Get Rid of That Demon
The Sterling residence was full of prying eyes and ears. Alice York gestured for Owen Sterling to stop talking. If the wrong person heard him, she was a dead woman.
"Alice, I’m sorry. I was just so worried about you." Owen Sterling’s tone was tinged with self-reproach.
Alice York naturally understood Owen Sterling’s good intentions. "Owen, I know what I’m doing. Besides, I’ve never harbored any illusions about him."
Her words—that she’d never harbored illusions about Wyatt Sterling—rekindled the light in Owen Sterling’s somber eyes.
He remembered that night under the streetlight, the moment Alice York had thrown herself into his arms. The whisper of the wind filled his ears as the world fell silent around them. His vision narrowed, forming a circle that contained only her, shutting out everything else.
She had held him tightly and told him many things she had kept hidden in her heart.
She said she had secretly been in love with him for many, many years...
’All these years, her life with the Sterlings has been so difficult, worn down time and again by the family’s strict rules. Yet every word of her confession to me was so passionate and sincere. I must be her only guiding light.’
’But what about me? What am I even doing now?’
’Just because I saw her being defiled by Third Uncle with my own eyes, because I heard him bullying her with my own ears, I’ve been walking around like a soulless ghost every day. Where has all my old confidence and energy gone?’
At these thoughts, Owen Sterling was filled with regret and self-blame. "I was wrong."
Alice York was taken aback. She didn’t understand why Owen Sterling’s mood was swinging so wildly.
"Owen, you..."
Owen Sterling suddenly looked at her, and Alice York’s unfinished words died in her throat.
His expression was much softer than before. In a self-deprecating tone, he said, "Spending three years abroad must have made me a fool."
Alice York was confused. "Huh?"
Owen Sterling smiled at Alice York. "Alice, you’re the one who snapped me out of it. And you made me realize what I need to do next."
After saying this, Owen Sterling turned and left.
After just a few steps, he turned back and said to her in a very soft voice, "Alice, wait for me a little longer. Just a little longer..."
’I’ll work hard to get more from Grandpa.’
’I will free you from that demon completely.’
’I’ll protect you with my own strength.’
Owen Sterling kept these thoughts to himself. He didn’t say them aloud, afraid he would worry Alice York. But he was determined to make them a reality, one by one. He would never betray the love and admiration she had suppressed for his sake for so many years.
-
「The next morning.」
Alice York was woken by a knock on the door.
She opened the door and saw the maid who worked for Mindy Vaughn. Her drowsy eyes instantly sharpened. "Is Uncle Sterling back?"
Her guess was spot on. The maid nodded. "Yes. The Second Master went straight to the ancestral hall after he returned and found out. The Old Master isn’t up yet."
Alice York asked, "Is Nathan awake?"
"Not yet. The Little Young Master is still asleep," the maid said, shaking her head.
This maid was one of Mindy Vaughn’s trusted confidantes. She had helped Mindy Vaughn hide many things and had never let a single secret slip, so she was considered loyal.
Alice York had instructed this maid beforehand to come get her as soon as Silas Sterling returned. She had been waiting hopefully for two days to no avail, so she hadn’t expected him to return so early this morning.
"Stay here with Nathan. Don’t tell him when he wakes up, and even if he finds out, don’t let him go to the ancestral hall."
After speaking, Alice York went inside, threw on a jacket, and came out looking rushed. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂
"Grandpa has delayed dealing with my mom entirely out of respect for Uncle Sterling. I’ll go over first and sound out Uncle Sterling’s attitude."
The maid asked anxiously, "If the Second Master doesn’t take their past relationship into account, does that mean things will be grim for Madam?"
Alice York thought for a moment and nodded. "Probably. That’s why I need to confirm Uncle Sterling’s attitude first."
The maid’s eyes reddened with anxiety. "You must put in a good word for her with the Second Master. Remind him of the old days. Madam has placed all her hopes on you."
Alice York had just stepped off the stairs when she heard the maid’s words and turned back. "The greater the hope, the greater the disappointment. I’m not that capable. I’ll do my best."
With that, Alice York hurried to the ancestral hall.
The ancestral hall was quiet inside and out in the early morning. As Alice York drew near, she heard no sounds of quarreling.
She was about to walk in when a servant stopped her. Silas Sterling’s voice came from inside: "Who’s there?"
Alice York replied, "Uncle Sterling, it’s me, Alice York."
After a moment of silence, Silas Sterling appeared before Alice York.
Compared to his peers who were growing stout, Silas Sterling had been worn down by illness and medicine over the years, leaving him tall and thin. Although his face had wrinkles, he didn’t look old in the slightest.
A linen shirt hung loosely on him, giving him an otherworldly air.
Alice York hadn’t seen him since he returned from Washington. She’d heard he rarely stayed at the old residence lately, and she had no idea what he was doing on the outside. Alice York had never asked, nor could she guess.
She inclined her head and said, "Uncle Sterling."
Silas Sterling gestured for the servant to let her in. As she crossed the threshold, the first thing Silas Sterling said while sizing her up was, "I didn’t expect you to come back from Washington in one piece."
Alice York replied, "It’s because I’m useless. I failed to catch the Churchill Family’s eye."
Silas Sterling stared at Alice York for a long moment, then sighed. "I’m very happy that you were able to come back, Alice. There’s no need to say such things."
Alice York gave a perfunctory smile and looked around, but she didn’t see Mindy Vaughn.
Silas Sterling knew who she was looking for and told her directly, "I haven’t been back for the past two days, so I didn’t know such a major thing had happened at home. Father is always strict and rigid; he can’t tolerate even a speck of dust in his eye. Mindy suffered a little. I’ve already had a servant take her back to wash up and rest."
Alice York couldn’t hide her surprise; it was written all over her face.
On her way over, she had prepared so many things to say. She wasn’t asking for Silas Sterling to forgive her mother’s grave mistake, just that he might consider their past relationship. A divorce and expulsion from the Sterling family would be better than torture.
"Are you very surprised, Alice?"
Silas Sterling asked her with a smile.
Alice York nodded. "I thought you would..."
Silas Sterling finished her sentence for her, "...thought I would fly into a rage, that I’d vent my anger by hitting and cursing Mindy."
Yes, that’s exactly what Alice York had thought.
It might have even been more severe than she had imagined. Silas Sterling could be quite ruthless when he lost his temper. She had been worried she would walk into the ancestral hall and find her mother covered in wounds. Thankfully, that hadn’t happened.
Silas Sterling’s attitude was also unexpectedly gentle.
"Alice, I’m not the same person I was before. I’ve learned to cherish the people around me now."
Silas Sterling turned to face the ancestral tablets and burning incense in the hall. "To be honest, I already owed Mindy far too much. How could this incident be her fault alone? It’s my fault, too. I was the one who neglected her, who wasn’t by her side. My neglect is the root cause of all this. I don’t blame her. I only blame myself."
Alice York quietly watched Silas Sterling’s back, feeling as if the man before her had been completely transformed.
’But what if he was just hiding his demonic nature too well, and this was all a carefully constructed facade?’
"Alice, come."
Silas Sterling turned sideways and held out a hand toward Alice York.
