Our Anniversary, You Chose Her – I Chose Divorce

Autumn Linton’s eyes flickered. ”What? What are you talking about?”

Chloe Reed took two steps forward, her clear eyes fixed on her. ”Mom, you know perfectly well that Grandma is desperate to get those sapphire earrings back. Why did you tell Dad that wasn’t true? Don’t you care about Grandma at all?”

Her sharp gaze made Autumn Linton uncomfortable. She frowned and placed the scissors on the table with a crisp CLACK.

”Just stay out of this,” Autumn Linton said, her tone turning cold.

”Why?” Chloe Reed asked, completely baffled. ”They were a token of Grandpa and Grandma’s love. Grandma has been longing to get them back. As her daughter, why won’t you help her?”

”I told you, stay out of it!” Autumn Linton suddenly grew agitated. ”A token of their love? What a joke!”

Chloe Reed was utterly confused. ”Mom, what are you talking about?”

Autumn Linton abruptly turned her head to look out the window, taking several deep breaths to calm herself before speaking. ”Chloe, those sapphire earrings don’t belong to your grandmother. She should never have had them. Just get them back and give them to Sunny.”

Chloe Reed felt like she was dreaming.

’As Grandma’s own daughter, how could Autumn Linton say something like that?’

’She should never have had them?’

’They don’t belong to Grandma?’

It took Chloe Reed a moment to process. Her voice softened. ”Mom, can you please explain clearly?”

”Just stop asking,” Autumn Linton said, frowning. ”Anyway, just do as I say. Did you bring them back today?”

”I’m not giving them to Sunny Reed.” Chloe Reed shook her head. ”They belong to my grandmother.”

”Those are not your grandmother’s things,” Autumn Linton retorted. ”Your grandmother stole them!”

A look of embarrassment and vexation appeared in her eyes, followed by disgust.

It was as if she was recalling some shameful memory from the past.

Chloe Reed found this utterly unbelievable. ”Mom, did you hit your head? How could you say something like that?”

Autumn Linton’s expression grew stern. ”You should contact her less in the future. She’s already been a bad influence on you.”

Chloe Reed took two steps back, shaking her head. ”That’s absurd. I don’t believe a word you’re saying. My grandmother is wonderful to me, she hasn’t been a bad influence, and you will not slander her.”

”Chloe...”

Autumn Linton reached for her hand.

But Chloe Reed turned and walked toward the door.

Autumn Linton watched her retreating back, her expression incredibly complex. She gritted her teeth and said, ”Those earrings were a token of love between your grandfather and his first love. Your grandmother saw them and claimed them as her own. If that isn’t stealing, what is?”

Chloe Reed froze instantly, her face full of disbelief. She turned back to look at her. ”What are you talking about?”

Autumn Linton sighed. ”I didn’t want to have to say this, but she’s been a bad influence, making you grow more and more distant from us. Now she’s even using a pair of earrings that don’t belong to her to drive a wedge between us. There’s no reason for me to cover up her shame any longer.”

She grabbed Chloe Reed’s hand, led her upstairs, and shut the bedroom door. With a complex look in her eyes, she said, ”Chloe, your grandmother was a homewrecker.”

Chloe Reed shook her head. ”Impossible. That’s absolutely impossible.”

”I’ve barely contacted her all these years because I’m ashamed of what she is,” Autumn Linton said, a look of disgust flashing in her eyes.