Chapter 3
Of course, Greyson couldn't let her go home, because he hadn't figured out how to tell Madison about it.
Greyson didn't play the field. On the contrary, he was a family man. When he was young, there were so many suitors of his wife, and some of them were born into noted political families. He was the poorest among them, but Madison still chose to be with him. They did love each other. When they got married, the family was penniless, and he promised to let her live a good life.
As the saying goes, he that touches pitch shall be defiled. Since he
was a businessman, socializing with others was his daily life. Besides, it was so tiring that he was out on his own. Every time he went back home, he lay on the sofa drunk. When he woke up, all Greyson saw was the empty hall. He felt so lonely, for there was even no one who could tuck him in.
Greyson first met Victoria Tyler at a dinner party, and they had been
together since then. He was excited when Victoria told him that she got pregnant and it was a boy because he always wanted to have a son. He did feel a little guilty at the beginning, but his guilt gradually faded away and finally disappeared. After all, almost every man around him was a cheating husband. However, his heart ached when he saw tears streaming down Paisley's cheeks.
Paisley was locked in her room.
Her cell phone was taken away, so she couldn't make a call. Her Dad answered every call from her Mom and told her that Paisley had gone out.
Paisley knew that her Mom would be so heartbroken if she found out everything. She trusted him so much and hoped he would return home soon.
However, that woman looked so happy when she walked around holding the baby in her arms.
Her name was Victoria Tyler,  and she was ten years younger than her father. Paisley looked down upon her because she was a woman who destroyed someone else's family. However, Paisley couldn't help comparing her with her Mom. Undoubtedly, she was young, yet not very pretty. However, she knew how to dress well and she even wore perfume at home. Moreover, she never did housework and always asked the nanny to do everything.
Her Mom was quite the opposite. She seldom used hand cream, not to mention the manicure or perfume. All she cared about was saving money, but it was no use. Victoria spent her Dad's money freely, and all this made Paisley increasingly hate Victoria and her half-brother who suddenly appeared.
Seeing them, Paisley couldn't help resenting her Dad!
She was a little girl and didn't know what hatred was, but she felt that her Dad was extremely annoying.
In the past, she was proud to talk about her Dad, but now she was ashamed. How could he keep a mistress? What a shame!
She refused to talk to Greyson. A few days ago, she cried and yelled at Greyson that he was not her father. She stopped crying later because she found that Greyson didn't care at all.
But as soon as the baby cried, he immediately ran over to pick him up and pacify the baby. Greyson loved the baby so deeply as if he were the only child of Greyson, while she were picked by him from the streets.
Paisley buried her face in the quilt, and couldn't hold back her tears.  She thought to herself that how could her Dad, Dad become like this?
Fortunately, Paisley finally had her chance to escape.
That day, Victoria and the nanny went grocery shopping. They probably left in a hurry and didn't lock the door.
Paisley ran out and saw them downstairs. Seeing the woman wear full makeup even when she went to buy groceries, Paisley got angry, picked up a handful of sand, and shouted while throwing the sand at her, "You shameless hussy!"
With the swearing, she ran off. Many people living in the community saw this scene and pointed fingers at Victoria.
The nanny asked, "Shall we tell Mr. Logan about her running away? She is so young, and if she is missing..."
"I'll call Mr. Logan," Victoria watched Paisley run off and hatred surged up in her.
Paisley took a taxi to the station and bought a ticket back home.
It was the Spring Festival travel season, so the station was crowded with people. Paisley was pushed to go ahead by the people. Most passengers went back home with their families, carrying luggage bags in hand. In contrast, she just brought a ticket with her and wore a light sweater.
She left in such a hurry just now that she didn't even bring a coat. As the wind blew, she shivered and her face and lips turned pale.
A kind woman took out a coat from her suitcase and lent it to Paisley. She put it on and felt her body gradually warmed up. She suddenly burst into tears. Even a stranger was nicer to her than her father.
When she arrived in Plence, it was already Spring Festival's Eve.
After she got off the bus, anxiety kicked in again. She didn't know what to do or how to tell her Mom about this.
Paisley rang the doorbell, and it was Madison who opened the door. Madison was surprised to see her and said, "Paise?"
Paisley immediately threw herself into Madison's arms and said, "Mom, Dad was busy with work and had little time to talk with me. Therefore, his friend drove me back home."
Paisley had to lie, for she thought it was better not to tell her Mom the truth on Spring Festival's Eve. She would tell her as soon as tomorrow came.
Paisley didn't dare to look Madison in the eye. She just pretended nothing happened and asked, "Mom, is there anything to eat? I'm starving to death!"
It was the truth. She was cold and hungry. But it was strange that there were no guests at home and there were no refreshments or beverages on the table. Her Mom used to prepare many kinds of food for the holiday season, but now she sensed no holiday spirit at home. Paisley's heart missed a beat and when she turned, she saw Madison staring at her with lifeless eyes.
Paisley didn't dare to look at her Mom the moment she entered the door, but if she looked carefully, she would notice that her Mom was pale, haggard, and hollow-eyed as if she had grown old overnight. The way she looked at Paisley was strange and she seemed kind of
unstable and moody, which made Paisley feel a chill running down her spine. Madison must have known everything, so Paisley took a step back in fear and said, "Mom..."
"Don't call me Mom!" Madison interrupted her, "Does your Dad have a mistress? Why didn't you tell me that?"
"Mom, I wanted to, but it's Spring Festival's Eve today," Paisley murmured.
"Spring Festival's Eve? Our family has been destroyed, how can I celebrate Spring Festival's Eve? If that woman hadn't called me, I would have never known that you and your Dad lied to me. What kind of spell did that home-wrecker cast on you?  Your Dad is captivated by her and so are you!"
"Mom, I didn't..."
"You didn't? You had dinner with them and you looked like a family of four. How could you deny it?
"Paisley, are you my daughter or not?
"Get out! You're not my daughter anymore!"
Madison who was furious kept pushing Paisley out of the door. She was really angry and pushed Paisley hard. Paisley couldn't stop her
at all and was quickly pushed to the doorway. Paisley grabbed the doorknob and cried, "Mom, please listen to me..."
"I don't want to hear a word from you. How could you sit down and have dinner with that woman?" Madison pulled her hand away from the doorknob, shoved her out, and slammed the door.
"Mom! Mom!" Paisley shouted while hammering on the door, "Mom, open the door. I didn't do that. I didn't!"
Madison just wouldn't listen, for she had already lost her mind as a result of being blinded by anger and disappointment.
Just after Paisley fled, Victoria went back upstairs, but she didn't ring Greyson up. She went into the bedroom to see her son and sat looking at him for a long time. When she heard a heart-wrenching cry from the bedroom, the nanny ran over and saw the child's brow was bleeding.
"Paisley did it," Victoria said as she handed a large sum of cash to the nanny, "When Mr. Logan asked you about it, you know what you have to say."
The nanny took the cash and nodded.
Victoria stopped the bleeding, looked at the slightly deep wound, and kissed the baby lovingly.
She called Madison who was living in Plence and cried as soon as she spoke, "Is Madison there?"
Before Victoria resigned, she was a saleswoman and she was great with words. She said that she didn't find out that Greyson was married until she gave birth to a baby. When Paisley came to Oakwood, she thought she was the daughter of Greyson's relative, so she cook meals for her and hung out with her every day...Victoria lied through her teeth and then asked, "Madison, what should I do? My son is only six months old, and he can't lose his father at such a young age."
Madison couldn't take it anymore, so she hung up the phone. There was a mess in her head, and what she only knew was that her husband cheated on her and had a son with that woman! And her daughter, who had been there for so many days, kept everything from her!
When the rumors were confirmed and the evidence was right in front of her, Madison was in despair.
Her youth, her love, her years of dedication and sacrifice, and her trust in her husband all went down the drain.
Greyson! How could he be so cruel?
Back then, so many men chased her, who were all much wealthier than him, but she finally married Greyson.
She loved him for so many years. She gave birth to Paisley and went through thick and thin with him. The daily grind did not quench her love but deepened her feelings for him. She didn't complain about living apart all these years, because she believed that her efforts would pay off, and they would surely live a better life, but now he had a son with the other woman...
Madison sat there still all night, feeling so desperate.
Until the doorbell rang, her daughter, whose body was cold, leaped into her arms. Subconsciously, Madison wanted to find some clothes for her daughter, but she suppressed that thought when she recalled that Victoria told her that they had a nice conversation. She wanted to see how Paisley would explain to her, but her daughter let her down. Paisley, just like Greyson, treated her like a fool!
At this moment, the betrayal of her daughter and her husband made Madison break out after being silent all night. She pushed Paisley out of the door like crazy and turned a deaf ear to Paisley who kept knocking on the door. She hated Greyson and her daughter as well.
Paisley knocked on the door for quite some time, but no one answered, so she gave up. She sat on the ground, curled up, and wept silently. Even her mother had changed and wouldn't let her in. She was really cold and hungry, for she hadn't eaten for a day. She just wanted to go home, to where her Mom was.
It was snowing outside. The snow was light and fluffy, falling from the sky like grains of salt, but it still brought joy to the children.
She loved snow, for it was pure white and beautiful. When it snowed, she would usually go outdoors though it was freezing out there.
This time, Paisley didn't even have the strength to move. She gazed at the snowflakes, feeling that she was about to die, die on Spring Festival's Eve. The street was bustling, and there were fireworks in the sky, while she had been kicked out of her home. She folded her arms and hung her head. She didn't know what she had done wrong which had made everyone angry, so that even her mother didn't want to see her again.
It was so cold, freezing cold, and Paisley's vision became slightly blurry. She caught a glimpse of a tall figure wearing an old-style overcoat covered with snow and riding a bicycle over here.
Paisley thought that she could help sweep the snow off his coat, and then she lost consciousness. After a while, she felt that she was picked up, held in a warm embrace and someone put a coat on her. Also, she heard him scolding her Mom.
"Are you out of your mind? She is your daughter. Are you going to leave her to freeze to death?"
Paisley woke up and saw her Grandpa, who was a little hunchback, struggling to pedal the bicycle.
The snow kept falling. Her eyes welled up with tears and she called out, feeling wronged, "Grandpa."
The old man turned to look at her and panted, "Let's go home."
Paisley started to cry, held onto his back, and didn't want to let go.
Growing up was a painful thing.
But there was nothing Paisley could do about it.