To the Man Destined to Kill Me - Chapter 125

“I want to go to school. Waaahhh! I want to go to school!”

Because one of Aaron’s subordinates had been beaten into a pulp, they decided not to send Teddy to school for the time being.
But Teddy, who had jumped out of bed early in the morning, excited to play with his friends, couldn’t accept the news.

“Teddy, I told you—you can’t go today. You can see your friends another day.”

“No! I am going to school! I am going! Waaahhh!”

Scarlett looked at the crying Teddy with a troubled face. When his mom didn’t give in despite all his tears, Teddy threw himself onto the floor and started kicking and screaming.

“I want to play with Tommy! I want to play with Tommy!”

“Teddy White!”

Teddy was crying so loudly that Susan, who heard him from afar, came over and asked,

“Who in the world is Tommy?”

“John’s son. We go to the same school.”

“……”

Scarlett glanced at Susan, knowing how much resentment she held toward John. But surprisingly, Susan reacted more calmly than expected.

“I didn’t know they were friends.”

“They’re the same age and in neighboring classes… Maybe they get along well because they’re cousins.”

Susan gently rubbed Teddy’s tummy as he lay there with his belly exposed and began to speak.

“Teddy, Tommy went on a trip with his family. A long trip.”

“A trip?”

Teddy asked, sniffling.

“Yes, a trip. So he won’t be coming to school for a while.”

“Then I want to go on a trip too! I want to play with Tommy!”

“Teddy, instead, you could play with Coco—”

But Scarlett couldn’t finish her sentence. Loud noises came from downstairs, and then Aaron burst through the living room door.
His face was red, and his eyes blazed with fury—it was clear something serious had happened.

He glanced sharply at Teddy, who was still on the floor, then looked away. He spoke in a stern, breathless voice.

“Teddy. Go to your room.”

Even a child could tell that his uncle’s mood was serious. Teddy got scared and left the living room.

Once Teddy was gone, Aaron shut the living room door firmly and pointed a finger at Scarlett. Before anyone could ask what was going on, he shouted,

“You! You! How could you—!”

Aaron’s voice was hoarse with anger. Susan frowned and asked,

“What happened? Weren’t you going to the bank about the mortgage loan?”

“Yeah! That damned loan! I was on my way to the bank about the payment when I ran into a damned court official!”

“Did the verdict for Scott’s trial come out? What did they say? They let him go due to lack of evidence, right?”

“Aaron, talk to us. You know how hard Scarlett and I have been waiting.”

Aaron yelled at both Scarlett and Susan. The veins on his forehead and neck made it clear how furious he was.

“I don’t know! I don’t know! The verdict should come out soon! But Scarlett White, how could you do this to us?!”

“What are you talking about?”

“The guy who’s been pocketing my money gave me a hint! He told me whose child you were carrying! Who Teddy’s father is!”

Scarlett’s face went pale. She took a step back without realizing it, and Aaron stomped closer with his large frame. Susan asked, confused,

“What are you talking about?”

“Teddy’s father is Noah Ashford! Ha! No wonder the kid started looking more and more familiar!”

“……”

Scarlett said nothing. Her hand clenched the edge of her skirt, her knuckles white.

“Wait, wait. Aaron. Can you even trust that court official?”

“Yes. Noah is Teddy’s dad.”

At Scarlett’s confirmation, Susan’s head snapped toward her. Aaron shouted, speechless with shock.

“Ha! So now you finally admit it!”

Scarlett avoided Susan’s gaze. She knew how much Susan hated Noah, and she couldn’t bear to look her in the eyes.
But surprisingly, Susan stayed calm. She didn’t even call Scarlett’s name, as if she didn’t want to hear the truth confirmed.

Instead, it was Aaron—who usually stayed out of anything involving the Ashfords—who was the most agitated.

“How could you sleep with that man?! Scarlett White! If you have a mouth, then say something!”

“I don’t think I need anyone’s permission to love someone.”

“Scarlett—White!!”

Aaron’s roar shook the White mansion. He looked like he believed his sister’s life had been completely messed up because of the Ashford men.

Scarlett took a breath to defend herself, but Susan pushed her behind and stepped between them.

“Aaron. Calm down first.”

“How can I calm down?! Do you know who Noah Ashford is?! How could she get involved with him—!”

Aaron kicked one of Teddy’s wooden toys lying nearby. It flew into the wall and broke, one arm snapping off.
Scarlett’s face twisted in horror when she saw it. She asked,

“How did the court official find out?”

“Does that even matter now?”

“It does matter! No matter who Teddy’s birth father is, he’s my son! This got out without even you two knowing, so yes, it matters more than anything! I will protect my son!”

Just as Aaron pointed again and was about to explode with more curses, a worker rushed into the mansion with the verdict.
The sound of the carriage was enough to stop even Aaron’s rage, and everyone waited for the worker to come into the living room.

Scarlett could tell from the worker’s expression that the result was bad.

“What happened?”

The worker took off his hat and gripped it tightly. When he didn’t answer right away, Scarlett asked again, anxiously,

“We can still appeal. Just tell me.”

Susan grabbed Scarlett’s arm, her anxiety showing. Feeling her sister’s familiar warmth calmed Scarlett a little.

“…The sentence… is death.”

“Death…?”

Susan repeated the word, stunned, while Scarlett gasped. The room spun, and she had to lean against the wall.

“Death? What were the lawyers doing? We paid them more than top-tier rates!”

Aaron shouted, furious, and the worker quickly added,

“Mr. John got so angry at the verdict, he caused a scene and was kicked out of the courtroom. He’s probably gone to meet with the lawyers now. Mr. Andrew said he had something else to look into and went somewhere else. Please… try not to worry too much. They’ll find a way.”

Scarlett wiped her trembling eyes, breathing heavily. Susan helped her to the sofa.

After thinking deeply, Susan—sitting beside her with her arms folded—made a suggestion.

“As soon as the appeals judge is assigned, we should try to bribe him.”

“Money won’t fix this. It’s the death penalty!”

“To Scott, a life sentence is the same as death. We need to push for lack of evidence or poor investigation.”

Scarlett buried her face in the sofa cushion, her shoulders shaking. As soon as the worker left, Aaron snapped again.

“Is this what you wanted?! You know this is all because of Noah Ashford!”

“Do you have proof Noah did it?”

She knew Noah was likely behind all this. But she couldn’t let her brothers tear him down like that.

He was Teddy’s father. He had once been her lover. And he still… held a part of her heart.

“So now you’re defending him? The man who abandoned his own kid—”

“Noah never abandoned us! I abandoned him!”

“Enough, stop it, Scarlett. You’re too upset right now. Aaron, that’s enough from you too.”

Susan, who should have been the angriest of them all, stayed calm. Aaron narrowed his eyes.

He snapped at her with a sneer.

“Aha! So you knew! You knew and just kept quiet!”

Only then did Scarlett realize how strange Susan’s reaction had been. She swept back her short hair and sighed deeply.

“Yes. I knew.”

“You knew? And didn’t say anything?”

Scarlett was shocked, but Susan calmly raised her hand to settle her.

“Scarlett. Do you really think I wouldn’t know, after all these years watching you?”

“But you… you hate Noah.”

Susan had always been a good aunt—she loved Teddy like her own son. The idea that she knew Noah was the father and said nothing was hard to believe.

“If you really looked at Teddy’s face, you’d know who his father is. And you don’t realize how you used to look at Noah Ashford. Those clueless men might not have noticed, but I did. That’s why I kept asking you to move back home.”

“Susan…”

“Aaron. From a woman’s point of view, loving someone you shouldn’t love? That was me. I married Chris even though he was terminally ill and had a child with him.”

“That’s different!”

“Back then, Scarlett was dying too. She probably never thought things would turn out like this. A girl who was living on borrowed time should’ve been free to love who she wanted.”

Susan raised her hand again, signaling Aaron to calm down, and continued with a gentle tone.

“And… what matters isn’t who Teddy’s birth father is. What matters is that he’s Scarlett’s son. Our nephew.”

At Susan’s support, Scarlett teared up and sniffled. Aaron let out a rough breath, speechless.

Just then, as the heavy silence hung between them, there was a knock at the door—Marie appeared.

“Marie. Not now—”

“Miss. It’s from the court. I thought you should see it right away, so I brought it.”

“From the court…?”

Scarlett took the envelope and opened it. When she saw the folded document inside, her face turned pale.

The court official had no choice but to know the identity of Teddy’s father.

It was a lawsuit. A custody lawsuit. Filed by Noah—to take Teddy away from her.

“Ah…”

A weak breath slipped through Scarlett’s lips like a sigh. Her head spun, and her legs gave out as she collapsed onto the sofa.

The worst-case scenario she never wanted to imagine had come true.

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