Chapter 641
Meanwhile, the real patient, Brandon, who was slicing a pineapple diligently, carved the fruit into what almost looked like a work of art.
“Brandon wanted to eat some ch*ps. I was just tasting them for him…” Natalie murmured. Natalie picked up a tissue and wiped her mouth hastily after putting on her shoes. She nudged Brandon with her elbow, hinting at him to speak for her.
Johanna stepped forward and held Natalie’s arm.
“Stop bullying your husband. After all, he needs to rest right now.” She gently pinched the tip of Natalie’s nose and said in a reproachful tone, but her eyes were full of love for her daughter.
“Mom, I would never bully him.” Natalie leaned on Johanna’s shoulder, acting like a spoiled child.
Johanna adored her long-lost daughter and couldn’t bear to blame her. She smiled helplessly at Beal and said, “Okay, fine. You’ve won.”
Natalie pursed her l*ps, content to be surrounded by happiness and love.
“What are you and Dad doing here?” she asked, snapping out of her reverie.
Beal placed the gift they had brought on the table and complained, “It was your mother’s call! She was so worried about you that she practically begged me to bring her here.”
Raising an eyebrow at Beal, Johanna retorted hastily, “Was I the only one who was worried? Someone got furious when he heard that Brandon was on a business trip without his daughter. He immediately arranged for a plane to fly us home. And, enraged, he vowed on the plane that he would not let Brandon get away with mistreating his daughter.”
Beal didn’t expect Johanna to rat him out like that. He blushed with embarrassment and complained, “Honey, you’re not supposed to tell them! You… It’s… Never mind! Forget it!”
Johanna and Beal’s squabble ended with smiles. Natalie squinted her eyes, taking Johanna’s arm in one hand and Beal’s arm on the other, and said, “I know that you two care about me a lot, but who told you that I was here?”
“A young handsome man told us. He’s Brandon’s assistant.” Johanna couldn’t recall Sean’s name at the time. She pointed to the door and said softly, “He’s standing just outside. He was kind enough to bring us here.”
Sean stuck his head out of the door and said timidly, “Sorry, Mrs. Larson.”
“Sean, you’re being nosy.” Natalie complained.
Johanna furrowed her eyebrows at Natalie and explained, “Don’t blame him. It’s not his fault. If it weren’t him, your father and I would have asked someone else. Last time, Brandon suffered memory loss due to an accident, and he is currently in critical condition again. Of course, we were both concerned about him too.”
“Don’t worry! Brandon has almost recovered,” Natalie said.
“Besides, Brandon has fully regained his memory. To be honest, it was sort of a blessing in disguise for his situation.”
Both Johanna and Beal were surprised, “Really? Is this true, Brandon?”
Brandon went into great detail about what had previously occurred. He was aware that Johanna and Beal had come here out of concern for Natalie’s emotional state following his accident.
He stumbled out of bed before bowing to Johanna and Beal. In front of them, he made a solemn promise, saying, “I’m sorry to have caused you trouble when I was suffering from amnesia. Give me one more chance, please. I give you my word that I will make it up to Natalie for all the pain and suffering I have caused her.”
“Honey, what are you talking about? My parents never blamed you for what happened,” Natalie said to him lovingly. Just as she was about to walk to Brandon, she was pulled back by Johanna.
Johanna calmly exchanged a glance with Beal and said, “Brandon is usually haughty and short- spoken. I can’t believe he’s apologizing to us.”
Not knowing what her parents were going to do, Natalie said anxiously, “Mom, Brandon shouldn’t be out of his bed.”
“It’s just a bow. Don’t worry.” Johanna nearly found it amusing that her daughter was so quick to defend her spouse from criticism. In a serious tone, she turned to face Brandon and added, “I understand that you had experienced memory loss at that time and as a result, you neglected your feelings for Natalie. But going forward, you must be kind to her.”
Natalie quickly rushed to hold Brandon when Johanna let go of her.
Johanna and Beal were ready to leave the hospital, relieved to learn that both Brandon and Natalie were safe and sound.
As the two of them left, Natalie ran out and stopped them.
“Dad! Mom! There’s something I need to tell you.”
Johanna was puzzled.
Biting her lower l*p, Natalie paused for a while and said, “The truth is, someone was deliberately trying to hurt me this time. The only reason why Brandon got injured was because he jumped right in front of me to keep me safe from harm’s way.”
“You should have told us about it right away.” Johanna rushed to Natalie, clasping both her shoulders as she examined her from head to toe.
“Were you hurt? You scared me.”
Natalie took a deep breath.
“Mom, don’t worry. I’m here, aren’t I?”
“But what if the person who did it actually poisoned you? We wouldn’t know until the effects are visible and what if by that time it’s already too late? You need to be carefully and thoroughly checked. Wait a minute, I’ll call the family doctor over now.” Beal was ready to call their family doctor.
A myriad of emotions flooded his ch*st all at the same time. He had been taking his wife on vacation around the world, utterly unaware that their precious daughter was in danger!
“Dad, I’m really fine. I told you because I want your help for something else. I really want to find the person behind all this but I can’t do this alone.” Natalie stopped Beal and told him what had happened. Johanna’s face was serious when she asked, “How was your investigation going? Do you already have a suspect?”
Natalie nodded, pulling out a document to hand to Johanna.
“This is the information about Vivian and the places she had been seen before. I want your help.”
Natalie was certain Vivian was the one who plotted to hurt her but she had no substantial evidence.
Ever since Johanna found Natalie back, she had never heard her ask for anything until now. She took Natalie’s hands in hers and said, “We’re family. If you need help with anything, just come to us. I was so excited when you reached out to us that I almost cried. You finally need us, my dear daughter.”
Guilt was obvious in Natalie’s voice as she said gently, “I didn’t want to involve you in this at all. I thought I could handle it, but alas.”
She considered something for a while before adding, “Dad, Mom, this matter also involves the Turner family. It might get troublesome for the White family. I’m afraid you’ll be in trouble.”
The Turner family and the White family had always kept their distance from each other.
“I never thought there would come a time when we would oppose the Turner family. But they have to pay for hurting my daughter!” Johanna was famous for her hot temper in her early years. She was unstoppable until Beal came into her life.
Gently stroking Natalie’s cheek, she said, “Let us deal with it. You just take good care of yourself. That’s the only way we can rest assured.”
“I will take good care of myself,” said Natalie. She stood, clinging to Johanna and Beal’s arms. She leaned on Johanna’s shoulder. She wasn’t expecting Johanna to be this protective of her. A warm feeling spread across her heart. Having a family to rely on felt so good.
Johanna was still angry when they got into the car.
She took a deep breath and said, “Who is that Vivian girl anyway? Do we know her background? How dare she hurt my daughter!”
“As of now, all we know is that Luke AND Catherine adopted her. I already requested someone to dig for more information about her. We’ll find out who she really is soon. Calm down and don’t overexert yourself.” Beal sq***zed Johanna’s hand. He kept his head level as he planned how to deal with the Turner family once he had the evidence.