As Forsythia was lost in her thoughts, Gem Atkinson had already opened the car door.
His face was still as handsome and striking as ever. He looked a bit thinner than five years ago, which made his perfectly proportioned features even more distinct and attractive.
She had thought they'd meet as strangers, but seeing the man in a black shirt and black pants, Forsythia's heart still felt tight: she remembered he used to prefer white shirts.
The man, wearing custom-made Italian leather shoes, walked towards her with unhurried steps, the sound of his footsteps echoing on the road.
She had imagined countless times what it would be like to see him again.
Would she say: "Gem, I'm back."
Or perhaps: "Hey, Gem, how are you?"
Or even: "Hello, I'm Forsythia, what's your surname, sir?"
Of course, the most realistic one would be: "Hello, long time no see."
But however much she had imagined, she was still caught off guard when she suddenly saw him now. For a moment, Forsythia tensed up.
Gem stood before her, his bloodshot eyes fixed on her without moving.
Looking at those all-too-familiar eyes, which now only gave her an unfathomable feeling, Forsythia's sixth sense suddenly brought to mind the phrase: seeing red.
A woman's intuition is usually accurate, and immediately after, Forsythia bitterly laughed, as Gem's hand indeed gripped her throat tightly.
The man's grip grew tighter, making it harder for her to breathe. Just as she felt she was suffocating, he let go of her and pushed her to the ground.
Forsythia, gasping for air on the ground, continuously patted her chest and coughed.
"Forsythia, five years ago, I warned you." The man's voice was oppressively gloomy and filled with a majestic power, "I told you not to appear in front of me again, or else..."
It turned out that after five years, he still hated her and had never let go. All the scenes she had imagined for their reunion were much too kind, because those scenarios were based on the premise of putting aside hatred.
"Or else, are you going to kill me?" Forsythia had a temper too, and she had grown accustomed to being arrogant in front of others. No matter how hard she tried to stay calm, she could not. She got up, walked to Gem, and stared at him without blinking. She chuckled, "Mr. Atkinson, it seems like it's not me appearing in front of you, but you appearing in front of me."
The man's dark pupils seemed to be stained with ink as they paused for a moment. But then his cold voice warned her again, sealing her fate in River State, "Get out of River State."
"What gives you the right? Who do you think you are? Do you think River State belongs to your family?"
"Forsythia." The man's voice was close to a clenched-teeth growl. With anger in his heart, he kicked a nearby cleaning cart. With a loud 'bam,' the cart fell several meters away, and the cleaning supplies scattered with a clatter, covering the ground.
Tsking a few times, Forsythia said, "What's CEO Atkinson so angry about? Those things have nothing against you, why bully them?"
"Bully?" Gem snorted disdainfully, grabbing her by the collar, "I didn't know that a criminal would have such a good heart as to plead for inanimate objects."
A lump formed in Forsythia's throat, and she suddenly laughed, "So, CEO Atkinson was just venting his anger on those things, but his real goal was to confront me. Do you feel that these five years haven't been enough to make up for the harm I caused your fiancée back then?"
The 'fiancée' Forsythia mentioned was Norma Ruby, who was rumored to have a son with Gem, the same age as Audrey but one month older.
Humph, back then he used to say things like, "…Norma and I are not what you think… You're getting more and more unreasonable…"
Based on the boy's birth date, Gem was already involved with Norma when he was with her. The thought disgusted her now, but at least they were divorced.
She had thought that, after five years, they could let bygones be bygones when they met again. But since he was so aggressive, she didn't need to give in. After all, she had never done anything wrong.
At her words, the storm raged in the man's eyes. His hand, gripping her collar, turned white and blue.
Forsythia chuckled and said, "No matter how much CEO Atkinson wants to protect your fiancée or avenge her, I only have one thing to say: your fiancée's affairs have nothing to do with me."
"After five years, after five years in prison, you are still denying your crimes? Why, did you recant your confession to get out of jail early?"
The man's eyes were no longer unfathomable. Now they were filled with uncontrolled anger, cold ridicule, and even more, deep disappointment.
"I never did it, so I don't need to recant."
"Never did it?" Gem sneered, releasing her collar, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "Forsythia, have your crimes been few?" She even heartlessly aborted her own flesh and blood, almost like an invisible murder.
Forsythia thought he was referring to the two kidnappings of Norma and wanted to explain, but she felt that explaining now would be pale and weak, just like five years ago when no explanation was accepted. She went to prison five years ago because she was tired and weary of it all and would rather be jailed than be involved with him any longer. So why was their situation now like it was five years ago? If the explanations continued, wouldn't that just plunge them into a new vicious cycle?
Forsythia's mouth twitched. In the end, she helplessly shrugged her shoulders and said, "Alright, whatever you say it is. But CEO Atkinson, if you think five years in prison isn't enough to atone for the sins your fiancée suffered, and if you still want to avenge her and give me a heavier sentence, become a judge in River State first. Otherwise…"
"Or what?" The man's eyes flashed icy, his expression and voice even colder, "Forsythia, you're always like this. Do you think you're still Miss Atkinson, the mistress of Atkinson manor? Do you think I would keep indulging you no matter what crimes you commit?"
Heh...
Forsythia's mind involuntarily revisited the scenes of him pampering and indulging her in the past.
If it hadn't been for him, how could she have become the flapper, the tyrant, and the effrontery that everyone saw her as?
If it hadn't been for him, how could she have acted so recklessly without thinking of the consequences? She kept getting bolder because she knew he would clean up her messes.
But now, he dared to say that everything she did in the past was 'committing crimes'?
She committed crimes? She committed crimes because of who? Who gave her the guts?
Ha!
For a moment, she grew angry, and sternly pointed at his chest, saying, "Yes, I was the one who kidnapped your fiancée. The first time was me, and the second time was me too. I hated her, I hated seeing her in bed with you, so the second time I kidnapped her, I made her sleep with even more people. I hated your mom, I hated her protecting Norma and testifying for her, so I tried to crash her with my car. Even with my beloved father in the car, I still wanted to crash your mother, ruining her, and see if she would still testify for your sweetheart."