Chapter 780 The online commentary was like a geyser, erupting uncontrollably.
The entire Ritter family was caught in a gloomy atmosphere.
The servants were extra careful with everything they did, afraid of being swept away by the tail end of the typhoon.
Mrs. Ritter became even more frantic, monitoring Ashlyn's piano practice almost 24/7.
Soon it was time to leave for the competition.
Mrs. Ritter coldly led Ashlyn into the car and said, "If you win this competition, you'll become famous overseas and any music school will accept you. Whether it's Berklee or other famous music schools, Mr. Guzman will take you as his apprentice again and I'll help make connections for you to become the youngest music professor in the world without any problem at all! Then...
you'll be a renowned professor at international music schools and those socialites from Urgford will look up to you." "You're not on their level," Mrs. Ritter ambitiously declared, wishing that Ashlyn would already be an elite socialite.
"But there are so many pianists internationally; | might not necessarily win first place,” Ashlyn expressed her concerns.
"That bitch Jenna has been assigned to compete in composition; who else can compete with you?" Mrs. Ritter looked at her daughter's lack of confidence with frustration."Mr. Guzman said that previous contestants were strong but participants are generally young and weak this year." "Really?"Ashlyn breathed out a sigh of relief. "Then I'm sure to win." "What do you think?" Mrs. Ritter knocked on her head. "Do you think your mother's money is spent for nothing?" As they spoke, the car pulled up at the airport entrance. Just as they got out, a car slowly stopped beside them.
A beautiful woman stepped out wearing simple white top, clean blue jeans hugging long straight legs, and white sneakers.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtCasual yet chic.
But no matter how plain she dressed, the beautiful face alone could kill every woman present behind her stood an extremely handsome man exuding charisma. Followed by a girl and another man getting off from their own vehicle too Mrs. Ritter's face twisted into a sneer as she looked at the familiar faces in front of her. She barely glanced at Sylvia and Franklin before continuing to walk into the airport without stopping.
Ashlyn hurried to keep up with her mother's steps. "Mom... it's Sylvia and Franklin." "Are those pieces of crap worth my attention?" Mrs. Ritter spat out each word with venomous hatred. "Let's go!" Sylvia watched the mother and daughter disappear, raising an eyebrow calmly.
It seemed that Mrs. Ritter had been thoroughly disgusted by Franklin's recent actions, not even bothering to put on a facade before leaving.
"The grasshopper after autumn can't jump for long," Franklin spoke coolly, his voice devoid of emotion.
Mrs. Ritter froze for a moment upon hearing his voice from behind her, clearly struggling to contain her anger as she turned towards the handsome man with sharp tongue.
If words could kill, Mrs. Ritter would have torn Franklin apart with her furious voice already.
"Who are you calling a grasshopper after autumn?" The woman retorted sharply.
The tall man stood still in place, his icy gaze fixed on Mrs. Ritter without any hint of emotion in it whatsoever."Cody has been kidnapped and almost assassinated on the street,” he said coldly. "We have some leads.” A flicker of panic flashed through Mrs. Ritter's eyes but she was no naive child who had never seen anything before.
She sneered, "Mr. Maskelyne what good does telling me this do? You should be telling this to the police if you want results.” Franklin stood against sunlight, his shoulder bathed in golden light.
His features were so dazzling that they were almost impossible to see clearly, but one could feel his strong aura distinctly. "Isn't Mrs. Ritter interested?" He asked calmly, his eyes seeming like they knew everything about everyone around him "Why should | be interested? What does your business have anything to do with me?" She replied icily, taking Ashlyn's hand firmly as if only by doing so could she suppress her racing heart. Was there something that Franklin had found out? No, it couldn't be! Mrs. Ritter's eyelids twitched several times, she walked very fast, Ashlyn almost couldn't keep up.
But even Ashlyn knew now was not time for whining or asking her to mom slow down, because her mother's face was terrifying right now! "We should go too," Sylvia stepped forward and took the man's cold, dry hand in hers.
Franklin's deep gaze lingered on their intertwined hands as he lowered his eyes. He smirked and said, "Let's go." Brayden and Jenna followed them into the airport lounge.
As soon as they entered, a familiar figure caught Jenna's eye.
She froze. "It's him..." Brayden followed her gaze and saw Aldo looking haggard and worn out. He was no longer the handsome fire captain he used to be; time had taken its toll on him, even his hairline had receded significantly.
Mrs. Carson was by his side; she looked just as tired and old as he did. She used to be so glamorous but now dressed modestly like an ordinary middle-aged woman.
Franklin, Sylvia, and their entourage were too dazzling not to attract attention from other passengers around them, including Aldo and Mrs. Carson who looked embarrassed by their presence.
The atmosphere became tense with silence hanging thick in the air until Aldo finally spoke up after what seemed like ages of staring at Jenna with moist eyes. "Jenna..." "Mr. Carson," Jenna replied curtly without addressing him affectionately despite wanting to call him ‘Uncle’ out of habit but changed her mind at the last minute before continuing, "Is there something you need?" "How have you been?" Aldo had many things he wanted to say but ended up asking a bland question instead that didn't carry any weight or meaning behind it whatsoever.
"I'm doing well. My godmother and godfather are very good to me. Brayden is also very good to me. The two of us got married soon." Jenna smiled sweetly while holding Brayden's arm tightly; she sounded intimate yet distant at the same time which made Brayden feel uneasy about what she said earlier regarding marriage plans between them - was it true? Did she really want to marry him? Aldo felt dizzy hearing those words come out of her mouth; it was hard for him to accept this reality that someone else would take care of her now besides himself.
"Jenna, how could you marry someone else?" "Not marrying someone else means | have to marry you?" Mrs. Carson tugged at him. "Let's go!" But Aldo just stared at Jenna, his eyes greedy as if he wanted to imprint her in his mind forever.
"Jenna... I'm never coming back again. Don't forget me." "Why are you telling her so much?" Mrs. Carson was getting anxious. "Hurry up and leave!" Suddenly, a group of fully armed police officers rushed into the airport, causing passengers to scatter in fear.
Upon seeing the police officers, Mrs. Carson turned pale and urged Aldo to leave quickly.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmAldo also noticed the police but didn't have time to look at Jenna one last time before he grabbed Mrs. Carson's hand and started walking away quickly.
However, they were still too slow.
"There they are!" "Chase them!" A group of police officers swarmed towards them and surrounded mother and son.
"Take them down!" The head officer ordered as several others rushed forward and pinned Aldo down on the ground.
With a click sound, the cold handcuffs were locked onto his wrist.
Aldo looked disheartened as he lay on the ground with stubble all over his handsome face. Jenna watched him now, feeling like it was another world entirely.
She felt an inexplicable heartache for a moment but it passed soon enough. She stood there blankly watching Aldo being taken away miserably. The past flashed before her eyes. Who knows what fate has in store for anyone? The lead officer recognized Franklin and Brayden who had become quite famous lately in Urgford. "Master Brayden, Mr.
Maskelyne,"he greeted politely.
"What happened?” Franklin asked indifferently.
"Aldo colluded with convicted felon Clark, suspected of illegal money laundering including framing Secretary Cody. Moreover he committed dereliction of duty by intentionally not rescuing Royal Galaxy building." The officer shook his head, "In the past, Larro's fire chief was outstanding, but who would've thought that eventually he would cross his own bottom line and become an inmate." He looked regretful about it all.
At that moment, the sound of boarding came from inside the plane. Franklin and Brayden exchanged a glance, and Brayden chuckled. "Thanks for everything, officers. We're boarding now. Who would've thought Aldo's story would end like this... It just goes to show that kindness is important in life." The police nodded and bid them farewell as they took Aldo away.
Mrs. Carson burst into tears, wailing "My son... my son..." She tried to chase after them with her luggage but stumbled and fell to the ground, yet no one showed her any sympathy.
Jenna walked ahead but glanced back at her once in a while.
Brayden held Jenna's hand and said, "Let's go. It's all in the past now." Jenna nodded heavily in agreement.