Whispers Turn to Whimpers: Could He Ever Change?



"Grandma..."

Caroline's face turned pale as she shook her head, "That's not what I meant..."

"Enough."

Sylvia raised her hand, slightly impatient to cut her off. The old lady was not in good health; she had little energy to waste on pointless chatter. Looking straight at her, "First answer the question I just asked."

"I..."

Caroline stuttered, biting her lip.

Did she even need to answer? Those years she managed the Johnson family's finances were well known!

Only, she never imagined old skeletons would be dragged out of the closet one day!

"What?"

Sylvia stared at her unwaveringly, her demeanor growing colder.

"'Yes' is one word, 'no' is two words... Is this question really that hard to answer?"

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

The patio door was made of full-view glass, and with just a glance, Gilbert could be seen standing there.

"Perfect timing."

Sylvia wasn't in a rush. She glanced at Caroline, calmly saying, "Gilbert's here. You two, face to face, clear this matter up for me today."

The glass door slid open, and Gilbert stepped onto the patio, walking towards them.

Passing by Caroline, a flicker of confusion crossed his eyes, but he didn't ask.

Stopping in front of Sylvia, he bowed slightly, greeting the old lady with a warm smile.

"Grandma, how have you been feeling?"

He lifted his arm, which was wrapped in a sling, "I injured my hand and couldn't come to see you sooner. Are you mad at me?"

Truth be told, he had been afraid to come.

Sherilyn had already visited a few days ago, and fearing the old lady's displeasure, Gilbert had stayed away.

Sylvia paused for a moment, but his presence was as comforting as always.

Her heart warmed slightly, and she nodded, "Much better... You should rest your hand. How could I be mad at you?"

Then, looking at Caroline, "I called you here today because there's something I need to ask."

Caroline shuddered, her complexion worsening.

"What is it?" Gilbert's brow furrowed in confusion, earnestly saying, "Grandma, please ask." "Alright."

Sylvia was ready, pulling out a stack of printed documents from the

small

tareside her, placing them in

t of them.

Her tone was even, giving nothing away.

"Take a look."

What was this?

Gilbert leaned over, picking up the stack and quickly flipping through it, noting the parts highlighted in red.

"Focus on the red-marked sections," Sylvia reminded.

Caroline glanced at it and understood everything!

She closed her eyes tightly, turning her gaze away.

Gilbert took a bit longer but also quickly grasped the situation. This was just the Johnson family's. internal ledger, far simpler than the company accounts he was used to dealing with.

"Grandma..."

After roughly going through it, Gilbert looked up at Sylvia.

"This account, it's a phantom account."

"Exactly."

Sylvia stared straight into his face, trying to detect any hint of deceit. However, he showed no sign of faltering.

She nodded, "It seems you were unaware before this."

"Unaware..." Gilbert frowned, shaking his head in confusion, "I never looked at the family's accounts."

Because that was Grandma's responsibility given to Caroline.

Hmph.

Sylvia smirked slightly, turning her gaze to Caroline, "So, you kept this from him?"

"Grandma..." Caroline's mouth opened and closed, as if her tongue had been tied, unable to speak another word.novelbin

Was there anything left unclear?

"Figures."

Sylvia smiled faintly, turning back to

Gilbert, "If you had known and still let her do this, you would have bee utterly irresponsible! Back then, Sherilyn was still your wife!"