Chapter 471 471

Dorothea pressed the bell in front of Shailene's apartment. She always came here whenever she needed someone to talk to. After all, nobody in this world would listen to an old woman rambling about her trauma other than a psychiatrist who had been paid handsomely.

To be honest, she didn't like to rely on Shailene. But Dorothea kept returning to her because she felt like her depression and trauma were getting worse each day. She felt that she was floating in this world, unsure of what to do other than mindlessly spending her late husband's money because that was the only thing she believed she had an advantage over her late husband.

To extravagantly spend his money was an act of revenge for her because she couldn't get any satisfaction even after his death.

She wished Vincent would be a bit more caring towards his aging mother. She wanted her son to treat her more gently.

But all that hope vanished once she realized that Vincent was just as bad as Vaughn. He was a monster who abused his own wife just for fun.

She didn't know where or when it went wrong, but she was sure she was all alone now.

Nobody would be sad if she died, and she didn't want that to happen.

'I would be happy even if there is only one person who cares for me, just one person is enough,' Dorothea thought.

Shailene opened the door soon after Dorothea pressed the bell for the third time. Shailene smiled at Dorothea and greeted her, "Good evening, Mrs. Gray, please come in."

Dorothea walked into the familiar apartment she had visited twice a week since a year ago. She wasn't proud of it, but Shailene's office felt like a safe space for her right now.

Dorothea followed Shailene into her home office.

Shailene patted the chaise lounge, signaling her client to lie there as she picked up her note on the table.

Dorothea sat without any question. It had become more like a routine for her to lay on the same chaise lounge twice or more every week, staring at the same ceiling. Sometimes she'd look to her left to stare at the aquarium behind Shailene's seat or to her right to stare at the scenery of New York from that wide glass pane.

However, no matter how beautiful her surroundings were, Dorothea kept wondering if her nightmare would ever end.

Shailene sat on the seat next to Dorothea with a notepad and a pen in her hand. She gave her main client the sweetest smile and asked, "Mrs. Gray, this visit is not within your usual schedule. Did something happen these days? You should talk to me, so I can help you."

Dorothea glanced at Shailene and sighed. She felt that Shailene didn't really help her. All she did was listen to Dorothea's trauma talking.

But maybe that was a band-aid that she needed…

"It's about my son… and daughter-in-law," Dorothea said straight to the point, which surprised Shailene.

"You mean, Vincent and Chloe?" Shailene asked to make it clear.

"Yes, them," Dorothea nodded. "I've witnessed a video of my son abusing my daughter-in-law. He beat her to pulp, choked her, even slammed her to the floor like she's just a rag doll."

Dorothea closed her eyes, biting her lower lip as she tried to endure the discomfort in her heart.

"My son— my beloved son turns out to be no different than his father," Dorothea mumbled. Her voice started shaking, and she grabbed the hem of her shirt. "He enjoys videotaping the moment where he abused his wife and stored it in his phone. He watched all of those horrible videos with relish, as if what he did is the most enjoyable thing he has done for so long."

"I don't know what went wrong. I always thought that I raised him well. I give him the best school, best tutor, best maid, best in everything. I give him all he wants, and I always praise him for all the achievements in his life."

"I thought he'd grow up to be a perfect man who would make me proud and happy. But he's just like his father. He's a horrible, abusive, perverted bastard who enjoys looking down and hurting women!" Dorothea's emotions started getting out of control. This felt like a neverending nightmare she had to live through for the rest of her life.

Tears started streaming down from the corner of her eyes. She still closed her eyes, unwilling to face the truth that she wasn't dreaming.

"I don't want to live in this nightmare. I don't know if there is still a way to make it right for Vincent," Dorothea murmured. "But judging from my late husband, I think there is no turning back for him anymore. He has developed all the fetish that Vaughn has. It will only get worse from now on."

…

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"And how about your daughter-in-law, Chloe?" Shailene brushed the topic as that was the thing she had more interest in. "Where is she right now?"

"I don't know," Dorothea replied. "She ran away with my granddaughter. Before I knew about Vincent abusing her, I thought Chloe was just an ungrateful woman who cannot tolerate Vincent getting too busy with work and cheated once or twice."

"I thought that Chloe is just way too spoiled," Dorothea said. "So I ignored all of her complaints towards Vincent back then. Because in my mind, Vincent is my son that will never do anything wrong."

"I never expected him to devolve into such degeneracy. What have I done wrong?" Dorothea looked at Shailene. "Can you tell me, Shailene? What have I done wrong to turn my son into such a monster?"

Shailene was annoyed that Dorothea kept on talking about Vincent. There was no helping in that bastard because it's probably genetic at this point.

But she had to keep her professionalism and help her client, "It's not your fault, Dorothea. It's probably the combination of a stressful job and annoying wife that makes him that way."