Finnick was alone, fuming with unadulterated rage as he kicked a nearby stool and sent it flying.
Hunter smiled when he heard the loud bang behind him.
After the incident, no one had any spirit left to continue having fun. Thus, the cruise ship turned around ahead of schedule.
Later on, Vivian was back at the Morrison family with Larry, but Benedict was nowhere to be seen. She then found out from one of the maids that Benedict went to pick them up, so she quickly called him, thinking that they had missed each other on the way back.
“Vivian, where are you now?” Benedict sounded concerned through the phone.
“I’m already home, Ben. Come back.”
“You’re home!” Benedict was ecstatic for a brief moment before resuming his concerned tone. “Are you and Larry both okay?”
“We’re fine,” Vivian answered. She was surprised that Benedict already knew about what happened.
“Alright, that’s all that matters. I’ll go back now. Wait for me.” Benedict ended the call and immediately swerved the car around towards home.
Within ten minutes, Benedict reached the house.
“Uncle Benedict!” Larry smiled and dived onto Benedict the moment he saw him. Benedict, however, did not reciprocate the child’s smile. There was only worry on his face. He proceeded to inspect Larry closely, repeatedly asking whether the kid was injured or felt uncomfortable in any way.
“Ben, I told you, we’re fine. Stop worrying,” Vivian assured her brother once again.
It was by then that Benedict finally unfurrowed his eyebrows and expressed his relief. Seeing that made Vivian feel awful for always making her brother worry about her throughout the years.
After spending a few days at home, Larry had forgotten about the fright that he experienced. He went back to being the cute and lively kid he always had been. With that, Vivian could finally relax since she was afraid that Larry might be traumatized by the horrific experience.
One day morning, Vivian brought up something with Benedict during breakfast. “I want to go see my mother, Ben.”
She was curious about how Rachel was doing as she had never gone and visit since she came back to the country.
“Sure. Do you need me to go with you?” Benedict figured Vivian would feel uneasy if she visited Rachel alone.
Vivian thought about it, but she remembered that Benedict was swamped with work for the past few days.
“It’s okay. I can go alone. You have a lot of things to do at the company.” She decided to not take up her brother’s valuable time.
After breakfast, Benedict went off to work, and Vivian went to visit the hospital.
Even though she was not in the country, Vivian had still asked Benedict to hire some people to take care of Rachel William. She heard that Rachel’s health was deteriorating year after year, and there was still no suitable bone marrow donor so the surgery had been delayed for a long time.
With that in mind, Vivian felt guilty for not being a good daughter. She had never visited her mother after all those years.
In fact, she dared not come back since Finnick and Evelyn were here. She was perturbed by the thought of seeing them again, worrying that the old wounds she had might open up again. The pain was too unbearable for her to experience a second time.
In front of Rachel’s ward door, Vivian was in a dilemma about whether she should go in as a part of her was scared to open the door.
The hospital, the ward, the familiar scenery, and the joyous moments Vivian shared with Rachel. She could remember everything as though it was just the day before. Despite that, it had been five years since the two last saw each other, so Vivian felt a sense of unfamiliarity being there.
Eventually, she decided to knock on the door and not go in like how she usually did.
“Come in. The door’s not locked,” said an old yet friendly voice.
Hearing that made Vivian instantly tear up as her nose felt stuffy along with her throat. Even her heart ached.
