“A married daughter is like water thrown out,” she muttered under her breath, more to herself than anyone else. “That’s what being someone’s wife means.”
"I worry about her working so hard on the case every day, and in the end, showing concern for her makes me the villain!"
If this were before, I might have thought Caroline didn’t want to return to the old house just to protect me. But now, knowing the truth, I couldn’t feel anything at all.
She didn’t want to go home because she didn’t want to deal with Karl in the guise of being my sister. She didn’t want me to mention the murder case in front of everyone and risk embarrassing Karl.
A chorus of voices echoed, praising Karl for taking such good care of her. They marveled at how youthful she still looked, despite traveling the world and enduring all sorts of hardships.
I was left standing at the door, forgotten in the cold.
The wind swept past me just as Caroline arrived. She wrapped her arms around me and lovingly touched the tip of my nose.
"Why are you standing out here? Did your parents scold you again?"
When Caroline entered, my mother-in-law softened her tone immediately. "How could I scold the eldest son of the Crow Family? Your husband is too precious. Please, go upstairs and rest."
Karl, ever the actor, feigned concern. "Mom, I’ve booked dinner at the hotel. It should be here soon. You should rest, don’t worry about any of this."
Carol’s relatives surrounded him, praising his thoughtfulness, while I was left to fade into the background.
Caroline gently pushed me into the bedroom to rest.
I turned around to explain to my mother-in-law that I was feeling unwell, hoping she wouldn’t take my behavior the wrong way.
But Carol’s relatives couldn’t care less. They weren’t interested in me. They were too busy praising Karl for being such a good son-in-law. Every few moments, I could hear their laughter, each burst of sound making the air feel even more suffocating.
When I finally tried to leave and find some peace, Karl appeared out of nowhere, his smile growing more smug when he saw my pale face.
"Long time no see, old classmate," he said with a mocking tone.
"Five years have passed, and you still don’t recognize me?"
He paused for a moment before adding, "By the way, I have to thank you. If you hadn’t taken me home that night, I wouldn’t have found my enemy."