Underneath his childlike and naive face, Justin's clever mind and sharp tongue couldn't be ignored. Every word he said was like a fist landing on Mary's nerves. Despite witnessing it with her own eyes, Mary found it hard to believe that such shrewdness and indifference could exist in such a small child. Although Justin might have gained the upper hand over Mary now, his actions would unfortunately bring himself trouble very soon.
"Daisy, is this the way you're raising your child? By letting him insult other people and doing nothing about it?" Mary snapped indignantly. Her dignity had been ripped off, thrown into the dirt, and trampled on. After getting nothing but humiliation from the boy, she started to lash out at Daisy, who had been sitting silently the whole time.
"I know my son. Under normal circumstances, he would be a proper gentleman. I think the problem in the way he treats you lies in you. I've always upheld the right of an individual's freedom of speech. Even if he's a child, Justin has every right to freely express his feelings to those he likes and dislikes. I'm in no position to stop him from doing that," Daisy replied calmly.
She wouldn't be so tolerant of Justin's impudent remarks if the person he was talking to wasn't Mary. But given that Mary had already shown so much hostility since she and Justin entered the cafe, Daisy didn't think it was proper to sit back and take in the verbal abuse silently. Therefore, she just let Justin exercise his right to express himself.
"So you mean that he doesn't like me," Mary said, and then turned to face Justin, "Hey, did I ever do something to offend you? Why are you always so mean to me? Every time we meet, you stir up trouble for me. Are you really expressing yourself or are you just holding a grudge because your mom told you to do so?" As she was talking to Justin, Mary shot a challenging look at Daisy from the corner of her eye to see how she would react.
Justin was enraged by her insinuation. "Since you asked, let me put it to you straight. It's not that I don't like you in particular; I just don't like any woman who goes after my daddy. And you happen to be one of them. My mommy has never put such thoughts in my head. Everything I say comes from my personal opinion. I do what I feel is right." Justin was a little worried that his mother would scold him for being so rude. He still remembered the stern look on her face when she heard that he had been using the computer too much on their way to the coffee house. He certainly didn't want to upset her again so soon. But from his mother's reply, he sensed that she approved of the way he was talking to Mary, so he tossed aside his worries and let himself say whatever he wanted to the woman in front of him.
His words soon took effect. Mary was seriously pissed. With clenched teeth, she pointed a finger at Justin furiously, but was unable to say anything to defend herself. After a few moments, she suddenly broke out into a smile. "You're afraid, aren't you? You're afraid that your dad will dump you and make you a bastard again, because your mom isn't nearly good enough for him. Am I right?"
Satisfied with her response, Mary let out a smug smile. A while ago, the arrival of an illegitimate child of the CEO of FX International Group stirred up much discussion among the staff at the company. The news was a big blow to Mary. She was upset that some other woman had a child with the man she adored. Back then, she had no idea that Daisy was that woman. Now that she knew, she was determined to take every chance to get back at her for stealing her man.
"Mary, have you forgotten why you asked me to come here? It seems l need to remind you of something. My son is not a bastard, and he never is. Edward and I have been married the whole time. Watch your language," Daisy replied steadily, every word she spoke carrying weight. She was tired of exchanging meaningless insults with Mary. She wanted to get what she had been promised and get out of the coffee house as soon as possible. There was something about the place that didn't feel right.
"What's the rush? I don't have them with me right now. Why don't we have a cup of coffee first?" At Daisy's reminder, Mary soon cooled down and remembered that she wasn't here to pick a fight with a little boy. However, nor was she here to merely deliver something to Daisy, as the latter had thought she was.
What do you mean you don't have them? Then why did you ask me to come here? Are you playing with me?" Daisy demanded. She was furious that Mary had tricked her to come here, but she was even more angry with herself. She couldn't believe that she had fallen for Mary's claim of having her late mother's belongings. Even worse, she had completely discarded her calmness and composure when rushing to this strange place.
"Come on, playing tricks on you? Who has the time for that? Since you're already here, we should talk about what you will do for me in exchange for the things you want." Mary had more than one goal today. Not only did she want Daisy to get her mother out of jail, she also wanted to destroy Daisy. In case something unexpected happened, she didn't bring the wooden case with her. It was her important bargaining chip. More importantly, the person who was going to bring it here played an important part in her plan.
"What makes you think that I would agree to negotiate with you? Because you have something I might want? Fair enough. I don't want you to feel that I'm taking advantage of you. Let's hear what you want from me. I hope it's something realistic,"
Daisy replied calmly. She didn't want to look too desperate. Before she arrived, she thought about what Mary would want from her in exchange for her mother's belongings. And if she was right, Mary would demand for Yakira's release. In that case, she would be perfectly fine with it. The police would release Yakira anyway if they couldn't find any solid evidence within 48 hours. She had nothing to lose in this deal. Besides, she would be doing Mary a favor, which would make her "the good guy".
I want you to call the police and tell them to release my mother immediately. After it's done, your things will be delivered here very soon." Tilting her head to the side, Mary shot a sideways glance at Daisy. She wondered how important the wooden case was to Daisy and exactly how much she would give to get it.
I can do that. I can make a call to have your mother released. But you didn't expect me to do all that before reassuring me that you actually have the things I want, did you? Daisy asked, leaning back in her chair and folding her arms. She was amuse to the unconcealed excitement on Mary's face the moment she agreed to the deal. I'm not stupid. Does she really think that I would trust her easily and comply with her demands without hesitation? I'm not even sure if she is lying or not, Daisy thought to herself. She decided not to do anything until she saw with her own eyes the items that Mary claimed to have.