6. I Am Not Interested

Grandpa’s voice thundered across the room, his hands shaking with the cane he was holding.

Then a pin-drop silence followed.

The couple standing behind him, Mom and Dad, only exchanged glances, while Xander shifted uncomfortably in the bed.

Quietly, the Physician excused himself.

“Not one month, not two! Three years!!! For three whole years, you preferred to live out there with no sense of shame!!! This isn't the girl I trained you to become!!! You finally had enough suffering! Do you think I will forgive you easily!!!” 

His words echoed, the tension rising inside the room.

The girl he trained me to be…?

He’d trained me to be far more miserable.

“Grandpa…” 

Strangely, when I spoke, my voice no longer trembled like before.

I could even make eye contact with the man whose anger would give me panic attacks in the past. 

“I only came here to see my brother. Not because I’m back.”

“You!” His eyes widened, his whole body shaking from rage. 

Suddenly, the old man raised his cane.

“No!” Mom rushed forward and shielded me, her arms wrapped tightly around me.

“Annalise,” she cried, her voice a trembling whisper. “Stop trying to anger your grandfather. Will you end this stubbornness please? Grandpa only wants the best for you. Please come home, Dear.”

“Why are you protecting her!?” Grandpa pointed the cane at Mom instead. “I spent years training her to become valuable to this family, but you supported her to disrespect me and leave home.”

“Elise never incited Anna, Father.” Dad sighed. “Please calm down.”

“Grandpa, please leave Big Sis alone!” Xander whined from the bed. “Big Sis has suffered enough. Please don't make her leave us again.”

The old man frowned.

And then he dropped his cane.

But the storm of anger remained in his eyes, his deep glare directed at me. “It doesn't matter whether you have come to stay or not. Your brother is now useless and the family’s business will soon be in trouble. Since your engagement with Andrew Hale still stands, you will marry him so he can shoulder the family business.” 

Andrew Hale…

Hearing that name not only brought back memories, but also a deep-seated trauma I’d suppressed many years ago. 

My fists clenched instinctively in an effort to stop my shoulders from trembling.

“Grandpa…” I stared at him, my voice no longer calm but raw with anger and suppressed fear. “I. Will. Not. Marry Him.”

The silence that returned lasted longer than a minute.

The tension reached its peak, and the old man’s face burned with fury.

Mom let go of me, blood draining from her face, and she staggered backwards, falling against Dad.

As he caught Mom, Dad’s face reflected raw fear as well. 

Three years ago, they all had this expression on their faces. 

It was as if we were back in that same evening,

The night I left…

“Annalise, I won't ask you for the third time,” Grandpa grumbled, his eyes dark. “You will marry Andrew Hale.”

I swallowed.

Still meeting his hard stare, I opened my mouth to reply,

But Xander’s voice interrupted quickly, “Big Sis is the brains behind the company’s success!”

All eyes turned to him.

“Grandpa, before you do anything, please hear me out,” he continued. “I didn't contribute anything to the company’s success. Big Sis did.”

Mom blinked in shock, and Dad gave him a confused stare.

Grandpa only looked skeptical. “What do you mean by she’s the brains behind the company’s success? That's ridiculous!”

“Grandpa, I have evidence.”

Not long after, Xander’s assistant appeared with a briefcase that contained different files.

“These are all the evidence from the investigations we carried out.” He showed the old man. “Ms. Sterling is really the brains behind the company’s success.”

“That’s right.” Xander went on. “When I took over the position of the CEO three years ago, I started receiving letters in an envelope. Every time, they tell me something new. Those strategies helped me revive the company. And after years of investigation, I recently found out it was Big Sis who sent them.”

For the first time, Grandpa stared at me differently.

Mom and Dad appeared as if they were in a dream.

After a long silence, the old man cleared his throat, exchanging glances with my parents before speaking.

For the first time in years, the old man addressed me in a soft tone. “The evidence doesn't lie. So you weren't bluffing when you said you could manage the company three years ago.”

“Well, it's not too late,” he continued. “Forget about marrying Andrew Hale. You will run the company from now on.” 

As his words landed, an inexplicable feeling filled my chest.

Then a dry laughter escaped.

“Grandpa…” My voice was light, too calm. “I am not interested.”