Chapter 79: I Am Not a Saint
"Mrs. Linda, have a seat!" Wilson's voice was cold and distant. He had lost all respect for Linda.
Linda trembled. She glanced at Wilson and immediately avoided eye contact. Wilson's gaze was chilling. She didn't have the courage to look him in the eye. "Mrs. Linda, sit down!" Wilson's voice became colder.
Linda twitched at his voice. She dared not disobey Wilson's order and sat on the edge of the sofa uneasily. She looked up at Wilson and quickly lowered her head. "Mrs. Linda, are you 52 this year?" Wilson seemed like he was asking a question, but in fact, he already knew the answer.
"Yes, Mr. Wilson!" Linda felt nervous.
Wilson reached in and took a cheque out of his pocket. He quickly signed his name on the cheque. With a poker face, he pushed the cheque in front of Linda.
Seeing the cheque, Linda burst into tears. "Mr. Wilson, don't, please don't dismiss me!"
Wilson was indifferent to Linda's tears. He said nonchalantly, "Mrs. Linda, I thought that after so many years, you should understand me well."
Linda cried even louder and began seeking for pity. "Mr. Wilson, you know my situation. My mother has been paralyzed and confined to bed for more than 20 years. My daughter has cerebral palsy. Although she is in her twenties, her intelligence is stuck at the level of a two or three year old child. She has no ability to take care of herself. For more than 20 years, thanks to Miss Rosalie and Mr. Wilson's care for me, I have enough money to hire a caretaker for my mother and my daughter."
Wilson was unmoved and his expression was still grim. A mocking smile appeared on his face. "It's my negligence. I should have dismissed you earlier. In this way, you will have more time and energy to take care of your mother and daughter!"
Hearing Wilson's words, Linda stopped crying and immediately pleaded, "No, it's not like that, Mr. Wilson. Over the years, I am extremely thankful for your care and support. Although Miss Rosalie has passed away, you haven't dismissed me from my job. I'm very grateful to you."
"Linda, take the cheque and leave. I don't want to see you here anymore!" Wilson lost his patience and stood up.
Linda was desperate. Just as Wilson stood up, she rushed over and knelt down at Wilson's feet. She begged in tears as she held onto his pant's leg.
Alina went downstairs and saw Linda kneeling before Wilson, trying to stop him from leaving by holding onto his pant leg.
She frowned.
Although Alina knew that she wasn't smart, she understood what had happened today. It must have been Linda who leaked the information to York. She came to know about Alina's marriage to Wilson when she came to deliver breakfast in the morning. Otherwise, if York had known only about the news when it was announced in the afternoon, she wouldn't have been kidnapped so soon.
Alina was not a saint, so when she saw Linda kneeling in front of Wilson, she showed no compassion and did not intend to plead for her.
There was a group of people in this world who did not deserve sympathy. Despite being friendly and kind to them, they would just turn around and backstab you.
Seeing Alina, Linda immediately let go of Wilson and turned to Alina. She wrapped her arms around Alina's leg and begged in tears for mercy. "Miss Alina, I beg you. Have mercy on me, please help me. Miss Alina, my mother is in her 80s and is confined to bed. My daughter has cerebral palsy. My family's financial situation is really dire. I really need this job with Mr. Wilson. I really need the money. Please, don't let Mr. Wilson send me away!"
After that, she raised her head and looked at Alina with pleading eyes.
Alina calmly said, "Mrs. Linda, let go of me first!"
"Alright!" Linda immediately let go of Alina's leg. She knew that Alina would be easier to convince.
Wilson frowned silently. Was Alina going to plead for Mrs. Linda who caused her harm? She had been hurt so badly, but was she still going to be softhearted to the people who had tried to backstab her? Alina walked to the sofa and sat down. She glanced at the cheque on the table. It was for a million dollars.
Linda peered at Alina and then quietly looked at Wilson. She was waiting for Alina to intercede for her. However, she didn't.
Alina said to Linda, "Mrs. Linda, take the cheque and leave." She didn't say anything else.
Hearing Alina's words, Linda was shocked.
A look of approval flashed through Wilson's eyes. He was very satisfied with Alina's words.
A person should be shrewd and decisive. In that way, she would not always be taken advantage of.
After saying this, Alina took a look at Wilson. "I'm going to prepare dinner!"
It was late for their dinner at seven o'clock.
Although the shock from today's encounter made her feel physically ill, she felt at ease when she was around Scumbag.
He would always come to her aid like an angel and save her whenever she was in danger.
Seeing that Alina was going to prepare dinner, Wilson reached out his hand to stop her. He said gently, "Let's go out for dinner. We can eat at home another day!"
Seeing as she had been completely ignored, Linda gritted her teeth and glared at Alina fiercely. She took the cheque on the table, stood up, and bowed to Wilson. "Mr. Wilson, I'm leaving. Thank you for your care. If you need me at any time, just give me a call. I'll be there!"
Wilson ignored her.
Linda took the cheque and hurried to the elevator.
Wilson held Alina's hand and watched the monitor beside the elevator. After he made sure Linda had left, he led Alina to the elevator.
The elevator slowly descended. When they walked out, Wilson turned around and pressed some buttons. He informed Alina, "I've changed the password, it's now 151126."
"Okay." Alina nodded and bit her lower lip. The password was precisely the day they registered their marriage.
After walking out of the apartment's entrance, Wilson changed the password again. "Remember, the password is 151126."
Alina nodded and the two of them left the apartment.
Along the way, Wilson held Alina's hand.
Wilson chose a restaurant that was only a few hundred meters away from the apartment. He didn't drive, so he walked over to the restaurant with Alina.
On the way, a man brushed past them. Alina couldn't help but shrink back.
Wilson felt Alina's uneasiness. He gripped her hand tightly and said gently to her, "Don't be afraid. I'm here!"
"Yes." Alina nodded. Her unusual meekness made Wilson feel a little distressed.
The two of them arrived at the restaurant. Originally, Wilson wanted to book a private room, but when he remembered that Alina had a harrowing experience in an enclosed room, he said to the restaurant manager, "We will have a table in the hall!"
The restaurant manager was slightly astonished at this request. He glanced at Alina and nodded.
Wilson brought Alina to a table in the corner of the hall and sat down. He sat down next to her. Wilson knew that Alina was feeling particularly insecure at his moment.
Tommy Martin, the manager of the restaurant, noticed Wilson was being very attentive to Alina. It was obvious he doted on her. Tommy quickly brought the menu to Alina and said with a wide smile, "Please have a look at the menu!"
This fancy restaurant was owned by the Scott Group. Sometimes, if Wilson had no appetite for home-cooked food prepared by Linda, he would come over to the restaurant for dinner. The restaurant manager was familiar with Wilson's food preference and he would recommend dishes suited to his taste.
Alina flipped through the menu and ordered two dishes. Then, she looked at Wilson and asked, "What about you?"
Wilson shook his head. "It's okay, Tommy will order for me!"
Alina nodded and returned the menu to the manager.
The manager quickly sent the orders to the kitchen.
Wilson still didn't let go of Alina's hand. He said to her in a soft voice, "From now on, you should take two hours every day to practice self-defence."
Alina looked up at Wilson in astonishment.
Wilson stared deeply into Alina's eyes. "There will always be times when I won't be around to save you. I don't want to see you hurt again."
Alina bit her lower lip, and her tears welled up in her eyes.
Wilson was stunned by her tears. He immediately took out a tissue and clumsily dabbed it around Alina's eyes. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I wasn't attentive enough and let Mrs. Linda take advantage of the situation."
Alina gently shook her head. Images of that incident flashed across in her mind. When she was reminded of York's hateful eyes burning with anger, her body began to tremble unconsciously.
Wilson looked at Alina and felt a pang of pain in his heart. He held her in his arms and patted her on the back to comfort her. "This won't happen again."
He knew that this time around, Alina truly had the shock of her life.
To be fair, she was very brave. After the experience with Michael's injury and the fact that she was almost hit by a big tree, she did not overreact. However, this time, the trauma she went through was too great. Alina reached out and wrapped her arms around Wilson's waist for security. Her body was still shaking.
Wilson kept stroking her back. "The sooner you start learning self-defence, the better. I will be more at ease as well. Jayden will teach you personally. He is very professional. However, you may find it tough at first. Promise me that you will stick to it, okay?"
"Yes." Alina replied.
Hearing Alina's answer, a gentle smile spread across Wilson's face.
Alina managed to recover her composure, and she let go of Wilson sheepishly.
She had always been a brave and strong person. Alina wasn't used to seeking comfort from other people if it weren't for such a traumatic experience.
After calming down, she asked Wilson, "When can I start learning self-defence from Jayden?"
She thought that no matter how hard it was, she would learn it well. Alina was determined to not be as helpless as she was before. She wanted to be able to fight back when needed.
Wilson said gently, "Take a few more days of rest and heal your wounds first. I'll get Simon to apply leave for you!"
Alina shook her head. "It's okay, I can go to work!"
She now had four million dollars of debt and owed Scumbag a lot of favours. How could she sit back and take it easy?
"Can you handle it?" Wilson questioned.
"Yes." Alina's tone was resolute.
Wilson obliged and said, "If you want to start learning tomorrow, I'll let Jayden know. Decide on a time and place for your lessons every day so that I can inform him as well. In the beginning, it will be more theoretical, so you just have to memorize your lessons."
Alina thought for a moment and asked, "Is half an hour sufficient time for dinner?"
"Yes." Wilson nodded. He had already guessed what Alina was thinking. She was going to prepare dinner for both of them in the future. All of a sudden, Wilson looked forward to having her home-cooked meals at home for dinner.
He continued, "Alright, I'll inform Jayden that your self-defence lessons will start from eight to ten every night."☐☐☐☐☐☐☐