THE FORGOTTEN HEIRESS-Chapter 295: I Don’t Do “Rotten”

As Kathleen walked away with Jason, Linda saw the Mayor standing not too far away from her and her eyes lit up with hope like someone who had just seen her life saver.

She rose to her feet and as she approached him, the Mayor stretched out his hand and made an abrupt stopping sign, causing Linda to stop in her tracks.

"I’m sure you hate me by now too but..."

"I don’t need your explanations," interjected the Mayor.

"But..."

"What do you want to say? That you thought I loved you and that would make me believe whatever explanations you want to give for your shameful acts?" sneered the Mayor. "Did I ever tell you that I loved you?"

Linda bowed her head in shame as a stark realization hit her. He had never told her that he loved her, nor had he used the most common term "like" to describe what he felt for her, rather she was the one that always thought so from his constant compliments and the care he gave her.

"How can you be this daft? How is it even possible that you would think so?"

"I never loved or cared about you!" he announced heartlessly, causing Linda to open her mouth wide.

Now that he said he didn’t care for her it was more hurting than when he didn’t say anything.

"Since the day I heard how vicious you were, I knew you were not different from your mother."

Linda’s head jerked up. Although her mother had repeatedly told her that all what she did was for her, she never wanted people to associate her with her mother.

Her mother was a dark part of her life that she wanted to forget forever, if possible. "What do you mean?"

"It was all an act," Johnson released the bombshell, stepping into Linda’s view.

"You? An act?" Linda asked in shock, not finding anything funny at all.

"Remember the day I met you at the Mayor’s office?"

"What has that got to do with anything?" Linda’s green eyes turned cold and dangerous like that of a viper.

"Well, that day, I got to find out that the person who saved my mother’s life happened to be the same person whom your mother tried to kill," the Mayor answered instead.

"Tell me, what kind of feeling do you think I should have for the daughter of the person who wanted my mother’s saviour dead by all means?"

"Your mother’s savior? How?"

"Mm-hmm, and as for the how, you are not qualified to know the details."

"I was already displeased by the fact that you were her daughter, but you took that dissatisfaction to another level when you kidnapped her and tried to force her to release your mother from prison."

"What?!"

Linda was not the only person shocked by this revelation, although Linda’s shock came from the fact that the Mayor knew all along that she kidnapped Kathleen but he said nothing about it all this while.

"She is also a kidnapper?" A guest asked in disbelief.

"Not only is she a s**t that sets others up, and heartlessly defame them to tear their marriage apart, but she is also dangerous," someone else said.

"Like they say, a fruit doesn’t fall far from its tree. She is clearly her mother’s daughter," another smirked.

"You never thought I knew about that? I’m the Mayor of this city in case you have forgotten and I’m privy to some classified information."

He had decided to go all out today because the reporters present were people that Director Wyatt and President Hudson had specially selected to come. They dared not write or publish anything without their approval.

"Have you ever wondered why I never touched you throughout the time we were supposedly dating?"

"But you said..." Linda began, but again did not get to finish her statement.

"Yes, I remember what I said. That I’d help you keep your virginity till when we got married," he sneered.

"Virginity? Marriage? Tsk!" Someone spat out from the crowd.

"Did you for once think I’d believed your farce about being a virgin? Girl, you were looking more laid than a prostitute," the Mayor said and his lips turned down in disgust.

He walked around Linda and stopped behind her as if seeing her face would make him puke.

"For your information, I have an image to protect and the integrity of a city to preserve and because of that, I don’t do "rotten." he finished.

"Huh?!" Linda couldn’t help but exclaim before everywhere went agog.

"Somebody should wake me and tell me I’m not in a theater watching a movie titled: Dicing." Can this be real?"

"The Mayor is so awesome. I think I’m falling in love with him already." 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

"Did you hear the last part of his words?"

"I don’t do rotten!" Someone supplied almost immediately and another round of chatter broke out.

"I’m sorry for ignorantly castigating the Mayor in my mind before now for hanging out with such a despicable person."

"She is a disgrace to womanhood and should be banned from society."

"If it were in the past, it is this type that is usually banished from the land."

Linda: "???"

She couldn’t believe what was happening to her. How is this even possible? The only person she thought she could rely on and still walk tall in the city was actually...

’Wait, they were all in cahoots. No wonder...’

’President Jason, Shawn, the Mayor, old Mrs Hudson, Kathleen and Ms Moore- why were they all at the same place at the same time? Does it mean this party was set up just to humiliate me?’

’No, no, no, I can’t stand this shame.’

The person who was supposed to be in this situation was that cursed, Kathleen. How did everything turn around to be me?’

With that she faked a fainting spell but as if everything was against her, including nature, it refused to work today of all days.

’Damn! What do I do now? I need to get out of this place fast. But how do I leave with so many eyes trained on me? I wish they would all go blind and remain blind forever.’

’Even the useless Mabel had distanced herself from me just like before. I knew they could never be trusted. Bunch of spineless idiots. Once and if I ever get out of this mess, I promise to pay them all back one after the other.’

’As it is, I don’t know if I’ll escape the charges for kidnapping that misfortune of a woman that happened to my entire family the day she met Shawn.’

’If only Kathleen had not met Shawn in this life or even died in the plane crash, by now everything would be fine.’

’But it is already too late for wishes, what I need to do now is get out of here real fast before they remember to arrest me.’

With that, she had to force herself to walk out with her tail in between her legs.

"Hey! Stop right there."

She was forced to stop by the authority in that voice, but she couldn’t bring herself to turn around and face the disdainful looks in everyone’s eyes.

"You are not permitted to leave until I say so. You came to the banquet as my companion and it hasn’t even started. Wouldn’t it be impolite if you leave now?"

She had no choice but to turn back and make herself as invisible as possible, but who was she deceiving?

She was neither deaf nor blind so she still heard and saw everything that everyone said or did to make her life miserable.

She had never faced this kind of torture in her life, neither had she ever thought that a day like this would come, but in all, she had just one conclusion in mind. "Kathleen, you are vicious!"

At the security room, Jason turned to his sister with a huge grin.

"Do you love the surprises your darling husband prepared for you?"

Kathleen’s brows rose up, "What do you mean?"

"Don’t tell me this is Shawn’s handwork," she said in disbelief.

"Not just this one," Jason said, his grin getting wider.

"What do you mean by not just this one? Is there..." she trailed off.

"The video earlier... Was that also him?"

"What do you think? Isn’t my brother-in-law awesome?"

"Have you fallen in love with him?" Kathleen teased, seeing the way Jason was fawning over Shawn even in his absence.

"You can’t blame me, he is just too irresistible," Jason joked.

"Ms Moore must hear this," Kathleen threatened.

"Please sis, I was only joking. I’m straight you know," Jason quickly said, raising two hands in mock surrender.

But then, he frowned and cast his sister a queer look. "But why do I feel like you are jealous?"

"Jason!"

"Hey, calm down sis, you know today is your special day and we don’t want that fairy face of yours looking rumpled," he coaxed.

"I think I’m done with you. You are so impossible."

"Thanks for the compliment, Sis." Jason said and hurried after Kathleen who was already by the door.