Secret Wealthy Marriage
Chapter 887 - 016 Belated Repentance_7

Chapter 887: 016 Belated Repentance_7

As a child, North Star’s closest person, other than himself, was his Mama Luo. Vanessa Taylor would come to their home whenever she had time to take care of North Star. Back then, North Star would tell everyone that he had two moms.

At that time, Vanessa was deeply moved when she heard North Star say this, as she was a person rich in emotion.

Ellie Wilton understood Vanessa’s feelings toward North Star. Losing North Star brought pain not only to her but also to Vanessa, which was no less than her own.

However, at that time, she only considered her own feelings and failed to care for Vanessa. Looking back now, she deeply regretted it. If only she had known, she should have found Vanessa and taken her abroad with her.

The two sisters together at least could have healed each other’s heartaches. Vanessa probably wouldn’t have ended up in such a state, as no matter how long it takes, there’s always a day when wounds can be healed.

"No, no, no, I can’t stop thinking about it. I have nightmares every day, dreaming of North Star, dreaming of so many children in the orphanage..." Vanessa shook her head. Ellie had no idea that she dreamt every night of those children coming to her in contorted faces, calling out ’Mama Luo, Mama Luo’, expressing how much pain they were in.

Since the fire, she’d had such dreams almost every night, these nightmares haunted her like a demon, especially North Star, who clung to her legs, crying, ’Mom, it hurts so much, it’s so hot, so hot...’

Then, she would hug her pillow and weep, continuously calling out North Star’s name, "North Star, I’m sorry, Mom didn’t mean it, Mom had her reasons."

Reflecting on it now, the reasons back then weren’t enough to make her commit such a conscienceless act, hurting so many children. She must have been out of her mind to agree to Hannah Browman’s proposition.

"It wasn’t your fault. Didn’t something happen at home? Uncle Luo passed away then, right? It wasn’t deliberate. Don’t take the blame upon yourself. It was just an accident caused by the aging electrical wiring." Not only the orphanage but now also the schools, any place with a lot of children, safety inspections and repairs are very thorough, unlike in the past.

"It wasn’t an accident, not an accident, it was deliberate, Anna, that fire was deliberate. I was an accomplice; I knew when she was going to set the fire, but I didn’t stop it; I even..." Vanessa suddenly couldn’t continue speaking. At the last moment, she had decided to go back, but it was too late. North Star and those precious children were all gone, gone.

"What?" Ellie was completely stunned, at first thinking Vanessa was delirious. It was clearly an accident, but she was saying it was intentional, and what more, she said she was an accomplice?

What did being an accomplice mean? Anna couldn’t quite understand at the moment.

But Vanessa, as if she hadn’t heard Ellie’s question, kept crying, her emotions extremely agitated.

"Vanessa, do you really know what you’re saying? Are you delirious? Shall I call a doctor for you?" Ellie didn’t want to believe what she had just heard, seeing how much pain Vanessa was in.

"Don’t call the doctor, don’t call, Anna, I just want to talk to you... cough cough cough." Vanessa became agitated and started to cough violently.

"Alright, Vanessa, don’t get too worked up; calm down first." Ellie patted her on the back to soothe her, comforting her, "Whatever you want to say, take your time. I’m here to listen. Don’t worry."

"..." It took a while before Vanessa calmed down. Looking at Ellie, she slapped herself in the ear. Ellie wanted to stop her, but Vanessa stopped her first. "I have cancer, late-stage colorectal cancer. The doctor said chemotherapy was useless. They recommended that I go home, but I have no home to return to, and I don’t want to. The children who grew up in the orphanage are very filial to me. They paid for me to stay in the hospital. Now, I’m not accepting any treatment, just waiting to die. I thought about finding you, but with a body like this, I’m helpless."

Vanessa rested for quite a while before she continued speaking. Ellie listened quietly as she went on, "Anna, all of this is my retribution because I’m a bad person. I’m the one who killed our son North Star. He comes to me every night. I feel like my time is near; I should go and be with him. He must be so cold and lonely down there on his own, even if there are many children with him. I think he still needs me."

Ellie wanted to speak again, knowing her heart had always been troubled by this matter. She always felt she was the one responsible for North Star’s death.

In fact, everyone knew it was just an accident. Moreover, the government had already given those poor children a proper burial. However, she didn’t know how to console her friend who had fallen into madness, fearing that any words might set her off again.

"Everyone keeps telling me it’s not my fault, and I used to think it wasn’t my fault, but those dead children don’t think so. Ghosts understand everything, it’s not up to us to say it’s not our fault." Vanessa suddenly bared her teeth in a smile, looking somewhat possessed. "Anna, the fire wasn’t caused by faulty wiring, it was arson. The arsonist was Hannah Browman, the wife of the man you loved, the woman you never wanted to break up the family of. She isn’t as kind as you thought; she hated you and North Star more than anyone. And I, I am a secondary perpetrator because I knew and even left the orphanage, giving her the opportunity to set the fire."

After finishing her confession, Vanessa’s eyes rolled back, and she fainted.

Ellie, unable to process what she had just heard, burst out of the ward and screamed for the doctor.