Chapter 236: Chapter 236: No Father, Only My Mother’s Killer

Vincent Grant admired Joanna Sherman’s exceptional drive and felt that, as a man, he should provide his woman with a sense of security. So, after Joanna pointed out that her family was in business and she didn’t want the outside world to think she was marrying up to him, he decisively dropped out of military academy. He enrolled in another university and started his own business while still studying.

Two years after graduating, his company went public ahead of schedule, and he had even bought a marital home, ready to propose to Joanna Sherman.

This was the plan they had agreed on.

On the night of the proposal, Sophia Shaw, who had long since disappeared, re-entered his life—in such a way.

That was why, even when Sophia Shaw personally admitted she married him because she liked him, he couldn’t believe it.

’How long could a teenage crush last?’

’If she really liked me, why would she have suddenly vanished from my life and not contacted me for so many years?’

He would rather believe what Joanna Sherman said: that Sophia believed Yvonne Sherman had stolen her father and was taking revenge on Joanna, wanting to make her taste the bitterness of having her man stolen away!

But the fact that she had been secretly helping him all this time under the name "clover" had become new, irrefutable proof... that he might have been wrong.

The cigarette burned down, its ash falling to the floor.

Just like his chaotic heart.

"Faye."

Sophia Shaw had just walked out of her residential complex when she heard someone call her name.

Seeing Jaden Rhodes, Sophia Shaw froze for a moment:

"Brother Jaden?"

"When did you get back?"

Although Jaden Rhodes was Vincent’s good friend, he was the only one who hadn’t blamed or looked down on her after the bedroom incident.

He was always polite and gentle with her, like a true older brother.

Sophia Shaw had always had a very good impression of him.

Jaden Rhodes smiled and walked over, habitually patting her head. "I’ve been back for a few days."

"But what are you doing moving here?"

He glanced around at the surroundings.

"If Vincent hadn’t told me, I really wouldn’t have known."

Hearing him mention Vincent, the smile on Sophia Shaw’s face faded considerably.

Jaden Rhodes looked at her with a meaningful gaze. "So you’re finally... willing to let go?"

"Yes."

"You’re just going to hand Vincent over to Joanna Sherman like that? Are you really okay with it?"

Only Jaden Rhodes had personally witnessed Joanna Sherman bullying Sophia Shaw.

And only Jaden Rhodes knew just how important Vincent had once been to her.

In fact, they shared another connection—they were fellow patients.

When her illness was at its worst, she would draw portraits of Vincent over and over again.

The diary she kept was filled with entries about her gratitude and affection for Vincent.

Sophia Shaw’s condition back then was terrible. Not only did she have severe depression, but she also suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Every small sound would trigger a violent reaction from her.

Every minor setback would startle her into wanting to pick up a sharp blade and viciously cut her own body.

It wasn’t that she wanted to self-mutilate; it was that only by feeling pain and smelling blood could she temporarily break free from the suffocating darkness and find a moment of relief.

Many patients, in seeking that relief, have accidentally used too much force and ended their own lives!

At that time, Jaden Rhodes himself had just been rescued from a similar situation.

Seeing her draw so many pictures of Vincent, he asked her why she did it.

She said she wanted to live, that she hadn’t confessed her feelings to Vincent yet.

As she said this, a tiny, stubborn sliver of light sparked in her eyes, which had been so dim they were almost extinguished.

Perhaps her stubbornness infected him, giving him the will to survive and a goal to strive for.

Seeing Jaden Rhodes, Sophia Shaw naturally recalled many things from the past.

Ever since she had Vincent’s protection, the people Joanna Sherman sent to bully her no longer dared to.

Extremely displeased, Joanna Sherman intentionally mentioned to Esther Sullivan that Sophia was getting close to boys and showing signs of puppy love.

"’This sort of thing isn’t a huge deal, but it’s not trivial either. If it blows up and word gets to my mom, you know she’s pregnant with my little brother.’"

Esther Sullivan didn’t want to deal with Sophia Shaw, but the moment her precious grandson was involved, her attitude changed instantly. She forcefully confined Sophia to the house, forbidding her from going out.

Chad Jennings went even further, processing a leave of absence from school for her.

They told everyone that she had a mental illness.

On the surface, Yvonne Sherman never seemed to target her. Her food, clothing, and housing were the same as Joanna Sherman’s, if not better.

All the neighbors praised her for it. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

But she would always, whether intentionally or not, say a few words to slander Brianna Shaw.

What teenager could accept their mother being unjustly accused? She would argue back loudly.

The moment she raised her voice, she would be met with Esther Sullivan’s harsh scolding and Chad Jennings’s fists and feet!

What Esther Sullivan cared about was that her precious grandson would be frightened.

What Chad Jennings cared about was his own dark past; he wanted to use violence to force her to change her mind and admit her mother was a bad person.

To admit that he and Yvonne Sherman had been forcefully separated by her mother!

Yvonne Sherman and Joanna Sherman constantly used these tactics to manipulate Esther Sullivan and Chad Jennings’s emotions, and the pair’s abuse toward her only escalated.

Her communication devices were confiscated, leaving her with no way to call for help. She was treated like a dog, subjected to endless punishments, faced a future devoid of light, and was overwhelmed by the pervasive slandering of her mother...

She grew thinner and more numb by the day, sinking step by step into the abyss of depression.

Later, her uncle appeared, took her away from the Jennings family, and got her medical help.

She didn’t want to disappoint her uncle, didn’t want her mother’s name to be cleared for nothing, and she certainly didn’t want the Jennings to live carefree lives after profiting from her family’s suffering.

Her only encouragement was her affection for Vincent.

At that time, it was the only source of strength she could find.

After her condition improved, her uncle, fearing that returning to her old environment would trigger an emotional relapse, arranged for her to take the college entrance exam in a different city.

The memory of it all was incredibly suffocating.

Sophia Shaw shook her head, trying to shake off the unpleasant thoughts, and asked, "Brother Jaden, have you found the person you’re looking for?"

A shadow passed over Jaden Rhodes’s features, and he shook his head. "No."

Sophia Shaw didn’t know who he was looking for.

She only knew that back then, he had lost all will to live and had slit his wrists several times.

But the affairs of wealthy families are always kept tightly under wraps; even now, the outside world knows nothing about it.

Jaden Rhodes then smiled again. "But I’ll keep looking."

’No matter where she is or what she’s doing, I will find her!’

’I’ll spend my entire life making up for what I owe her.’

"You can do it!"

’I’m no longer in love, but I still hope Jaden Rhodes can find his happy ending.’

Jaden Rhodes grunted in acknowledgment.

He changed the subject. "Vincent asked me to investigate you and your father. What should I tell him?"

Jaden Rhodes ran a detective agency; he could have investigated it himself.

He suddenly wanted to hear what Sophia Shaw would say.

A cold, silent sneer lifted the corners of Sophia Shaw’s mouth.

’Six years of marriage, and Vincent truly knew nothing about me.’

’The more certain I am of that, the more thankful I am for the divorce.’

"I don’t have a father. I only have my mother’s murderer, a man named Chad Jennings!"

’If Vincent wants to know, I won’t hide it.’

"Back then, Chad Jennings was weak, incompetent, and destitute. Yvonne Sherman’s parents despised him and forcefully broke them up."

"He met my mother when he was at his lowest, and they got married. My mother loved him and felt sorry for him. She let him be a kept man while she went out to do business, providing him with a life of luxury."

"Not only was he ungrateful, but he also got involved with Yvonne Sherman, whose business was failing. He used the money my mother earned to support Yvonne and her company."

"After that, the two scumbags went from bad to worse, constantly transferring funds out of my mother’s company until it was completely drained."

"My mother trusted him so much that she never suspected a thing, until one day she saw the two scumbags in each other’s arms with her own eyes!"

Even though it had been over a decade, talking about it now still made Sophia Shaw’s fists clench in hatred. Her eyes turned red, and a torrent of resentment surged within them!