Chapter 4: A Cat Scratched Me
1329 Words
After twenty minutes, Kate and Joseph arrived at home.
On his way home, Joseph tried his best to calm down, but the moment he stepped into the mansion, he was full of rage once again.
"Ricky, take Anna's photos in my bedroom."
"Emm…Okay…" Ricky collected the photos and glanced at Kate.
"Let me help you," Amy said happily.
Kate was not surprised at it. After all, they only recognized Anna as the only hostess of the house.
"Kate, how can you be so rude to Dora?" Joseph shouted to her, "You led Anna to her death. What you own now all belongs to Anna, and Dora just wanted to put her photos in your room. Why did you beat her?"
"I have said many times that Anna didn't die because of me," Kate answered. She could bear all misunderstandings toward her, except that one. Over the two years since her death, Anna's name hunted her like a nightmare every night.
"She would not have a car accident if she did not come to pick you up."
Joseph seized her by the throat and spat out, "You are jealous of her. You were afraid that you would lose your family's inheritance if she married me."
"Let me go!" Kate did not want to refute him with any words. She just wanted to get rid of his grasp.
"You have the courage to murder her but dare not to admit what you've done. You are just as evil as your mother!"
His word was like lightning striking; Kate suddenly raised her hand and slapped Joseph's face. It happened so fast that he barely had time to move. Kate could take any insult people threw at her, but not about her mother!
Joseph felt a stinging pain on his cheek, and then he grabbed Kate with all of his strength, wanting to kill her. However, she stared him directly in the eye, and seeing her brave face, Joseph suddenly loosened his grip and pushed her away.
Then he calmly said, "I'll not let you die so easily."
"Oh my! You are bleeding, my dear!" Amy yelled, seeing the blood on Joseph's face and ran to fetch the medical box.
Joseph ignored her and went upstairs.
Kate was still standing motionlessly beside the sofa. After about ten minutes, Amy came back downstairs. When she saw Kate there, she marched to her and scolded, "How could you slap him? He is a public figure!"
Kate was still full of anger now. She replied, "It's none of your business!"
"I…" Amy was a little scared. She explained in a hurry, "Don't be angry. I'm just worried that you still need to go to the family dinner tonight, and…"
"I can deal with it myself. Just mind your own business," Kate repeated. In fact, she had never answered back to Amy in such a cruel way because she thought it was a waste of time. But today, she was angry and needed to vent her anger.
Amy was actually frightened as it was the first time she saw an angry Kate and heard such sharp words from her.
Kate's anger relieved a bit, but when she thought of Amy's comment about dinner, she began to worry. It wasn't because she was worried about being scolded by the Smith family, but because she felt she broke Cassie Smith's trust. Among all Joseph's family members, only Mrs. Cassie, Joseph's mother, regarded her as her daughter-in-law.
On the one hand, it was because her mother, Flora, was Cassie's best friend; on the other hand, Cassie did not like Dora, who married Leo through evil means. However, Joseph was Cassie's son, and the only person she could rely on. Perhaps she would be very disappointed that Kate hurt him.
When she was lost in thought, Joseph came back downstairs.
"Change your clothes and leave after half an hour." He commanded.
Kate attempted to look at the scratch on his face, but he turned his head the other way on purpose.
"You didn't hear me?" He urged.
Lowering her head, Kate went upstairs to get ready for family dinner. Her fair skin, pretty face, and big blue eyes were beautiful even without makeup. So, she didn't bother with her hair or makeup. After changing into a beige dress, she was back downstairs in less than ten minutes.
Knowing that Joseph was waiting for her in the car, she ran outside toward him. He felt that she looked like an eight-year-old kid rather than a twenty-five-year-old married woman.
Quietly getting in the car, Kate put her seatbelt on and tried to her best not to stare at the scratch on Joseph's face. Though he had applied ointment to it, it was still visible.
She slightly opened her lips and wanted to apologize to him, but was stopped by his cold warning, "Don't tell my mother about it!"
She was a little confused and asked, "What? Are you afraid of me telling your mother what happened today?"
"How ridiculous! I'm never afraid of anyone. I just do not want her to worry about us." he warned, "Listen! I will never forgive you."
"Why don't you let me go since you hate me so much? I don't love you now," In fact, she still loved him but was fed up with his cruelty to her.
During the two years passed, she had dealt with so much pain, physically and mentally. She was disappointed with him and their marriage.
"I won't let you go unless…"
"Unless what?" she asked in doubt.
"Unless Anna comes back to life." He stared at her with a smirk.
"You…" Obviously, it was impossible.
He would mistreat the woman he hated so much instead of giving her freedom.
Neither of them said anything until they arrived at the Smith mansion. Joseph finally ordered, "Don't pretend to be so pitiful in front of my family!"
Kate stared at him and was about to comment, but was interrupted by the servant's words, "Mr. and Mrs. Smith, you have finally arrived. I have been waiting for you."
They smiled at him and then walked into the well-decorated mansion. As Kate had expected, all family members were present, and Samuel was among them. Kate had not seen him for two years, so when he was standing in front of her, she was caught a little off guard.
Joseph, at the sight of her expression, took her hand and sat opposite of Samuel. The head of the family, Vincent Smith, was sitting on the armchair between the two sofas.
"Kate, I'm so glad you were able to make it," An elegant voice said as she walked down the stairs. It was Joseph's mother, Cassie.
Kate stood up to greet her but felt very nervous.
"Why do you look so tired?" Mrs. Smith asked in worry and took a seat beside her.
"No, I'm not tired." She answered with a stiff smile on her face. She was just worried that someone would see the scratch on Joseph's face.
"Joseph, what's wrong with your face?" Vincent Smith asked in a low voice at that very moment.
Kate was so nervous that she could hardly breathe.
"We had a pet cat at the house recently. She did not adapt to the new environment as we had hoped, so she scratched me when I approached her." Joseph quickly answered. He could always cope with everything calmly, except for when it came to Anna.
Kate was thankful that he came up with an excuse so that she could be spared the embarrassment in front of his family.
"Do you even like cats? I didn't think you did," Vincent Smith said, "Regardless, it is an honor for it to be your pet. How could it scratch you?"
"I have punished her." Joseph interrupted and looked over at Kate, saying, "If she scratches me again, I will hit her severely."
- Writer
