"Mom, I didn't know you were back!" screamed Claire happily. The moment she and Louisa walked downstairs, she saw her mother stalk out of the study angrily. She greeted her mother delightfully and did not notice the unhappy expression on her face.
"Yes. I just got back. And this is…" Shannon had planned to snub her. Her sister-in-law was missing and she seemed not to care about it at all. Like father, like daughter. However, she decided to at least be cordial, even if she had to hurry.
"Oh. Mom, this is Louisa. We met each other when we were studying abroad." Claire introduced Louisa to her mother proudly. She could not wait to introduce her. She knew her mother would like her.
"Nice to meet you. I'm sorry to bother you. I'm Louisa Ye. You can call me Louisa," Louisa said politely. She was trying so hard to behave in a gentle and ladylike manner. She wanted to leave a good impression on Shannon.
"Oh, Miss Ye! Welcome! But I'm a bit busy now. I'm taking off. Help yourself, please." Just then, Shannon took out her key and walked to her car. She had to try to find Leena no matter what. Otherwise, she could not just remain at home, calm, not bothered.
"Mom, you just came back! Leaving already?" Claire asked unpleasantly, reaching out and grabbing Shannon's arm. She would never let this chance slip away. It was her mother's first time meeting Louisa. First impressions were the most important ones.
"Yes I am. Didn't you know? Leena is missing! Why are you still here and not out there helping to find her?" Shannon looked at her unhappily. Yes, it was important to welcome her friend. But Leena, her sister-in-law, was also important. Why didn't she care about Leena at all?
"Huh! Missing? I don't think so. She ran away deliberately to make Kevin worry about her. That's all. We didn't drive her away. Besides, she's an adult, not a child. She'll find her way back here eventually. Oh yeah, she's probably too ashamed to come back," Claire teased, pursing her lips. She didn't worry about Leena at all because Kevin's wife was nobody to her.
What did you say? Why should she be ashamed? Why don't you tell me? What happened here when I was not home?" Shannon stopped when she heard this. Did Claire know something? Neither Kevin nor Nathan had any useful info, but maybe Claire could tell her some useful tidbit, anything that might help find her.
"Of course she should be ashamed! Mom, you know what? That woman slapped Louisa! That's why Dad ordered her to apologize. But she was not happy with that and ran away in a rage! That was really trippy," Claire pouted. She'd be extremely happy if Leena left here and never came back. It would definitely save her the trouble of concocting a plan to drive her away. She was missing? Great. Let her stay that way.
"Wait. What did you say? Leena slapped someone? Your friend? That doesn't make sense. How did she know your friend? You haven't brought her around here before, right?" Shannon reached out to rub her forehead. Now she was even more confused. It seemed that the plot was thickening. The more she found out, the more complicated this was getting.
"Mom, Louisa is the daughter of the commander of the army base where Kevin is stationed. Both of Louisa and Leena are from S city. They've known each other a long time. But somehow Leena slapped Louisa! What a loser! She's a miserable tramp. I don't understand what Kevin sees in her. Why not just let her go away? You're way too worried about this woman. If we mount a search, she'd get a big head." Claire kept complaining non-stop. The words kept tumbling out of her mouth like a waterfall. Once she started, she never stopped. Claire would never offer a hand to find her. It would be the best present she'd ever gotten if Leena left and never came back.
"That woman? Stop calling Leena that! Claire, do I have to remind you of your manners? Oh, Miss Ye. My daughter-in-law isn't like that. And I think you know that. I'm sure there's a reason she slapped you, and I think you know what that reason is, don't you? You'd know better than me!" The commander's daughter? So what? She was a nobody in Shannon's eyes. Her daughter-in-law was much more important than her. Now she started to get the whole picture. Louisa was the root cause of all the chaos. Well, she must pay more attention to her, to make sure she didn't foul anything else up. Although Claire hated Leena and always had problems with her, she didn't make such a huge mess. Louisa Ye? The first day she came to her house, Leena went missing, Kevin was searching for her aimlessly on the street, and Shannon and her husband were fighting. This was too much.
"Mom, how could you say that? Leena hit Louisa. Why blame my friend?" Claire puckered up her mouth and started her litany of complaints. Although she did not want to call Leena by name, she still changed it up because her mom said so. She dared not piss her mother off again. She was staring at her sternly.
"Claire, I'm talking to your friend now, not you. Don't interrupt! Miss Ye, do you agree with me?" Shannon locked eyes with Louisa. She did not allow her to shift her gaze in front of her.
"We've had some arguments, Auntie. But they were just minor ones. They shouldn't hurt anything. I didn't expect that she'd slap me out of the blue," replied Louisa. She dared not look into Shannon's eyes when she was answering her. She hadn't had imagined that Shannon would stick up for Leena like that. That was not something she was used to, but she'd have to accept it. She thought there was only Kevin alone who stuck up for Leena so much. Now she knew she was wrong. His mother also stood behind and supported that woman.
"I don't care who's right or wrong now. I just want to offer you a suggestion, that you should behave as a guest and don't cause any more trouble." Shannon cast a sidelong look at Louisa coldly. Was she implying that Leena did something wrong? She knew her daughter-in-law well and would never believe a false accusation like that. Her "suggestion" was less a suggestion and more a warning.
"I'm sorry, Auntie! I won't do that again." Louisa was hurt by this. But she did not dare to show how unhappy she was when Shannon stared at her with extremely cold eyes.
"Mom, Louisa is my guest! How could you say that to her in such a strict tone?" Claire pressed her lips to show her dissatisfaction. She felt extremely displeased when she heard her mother scold Louisa. She was ashamed as if she herself were slapped in the face.