Chapter 319 - 318: Julian Fletcher and Mrs. Fletcher’s Complicated Relationship

Chapter 319: Chapter 318: Julian Fletcher and Mrs. Fletcher’s Complicated Relationship

"These children can display different personalities based on changes in their environment. They are like chameleons; their choices are ever-changing," Mrs. Fletcher said, reminding me just how terrifying the two children could be.

"Cecilia, if I were you, I wouldn’t casually bring any test subject home from the lab," Mrs. Fletcher continued, looking at me. "Never underestimate anyone from The Genetics Organization. Whatever you managed to take away was definitely something someone intentionally let you take."

I frowned, watching Mrs. Fletcher warily. Were the people in The Genetics Organization not united among themselves? When she had mentioned Nathan Lawson, her face had been full of disdain. She disapproved of other people’s experimental concepts, but at the same time, was she deliberately warning me that someone had intentionally let me take the two children home?

"Those are Asher’s and my children. We won’t give them up," I said in a deep voice.

Mrs. Fletcher leaned back on the sofa and spoke again.

"Only the ones you give birth to yourself are truly your children... You can’t understand the feeling of being pregnant for ten months. That is when the mother and the infant are completely one. He is a part of your body, sharing your body, your organs, your oxygen, your nutrients...

"Only by carrying a child yourself can you understand the greatness of life. Even after he is born and becomes an independent individual, you will still feel that he is a part of you. You want to protect him, care for him, plan for his future, and ensure he is of one mind with you...

"At the very least, a child born from my own womb can absolutely never become a stumbling block on my path to success."

I looked at Mrs. Fletcher, then toward Julian’s room. "So, you believe Julian has obstructed your path. He can’t accept your concepts. Over the fact that you killed Erin Whittaker, you and your son have grown estranged and can no longer communicate properly, right?"

Mrs. Fletcher smiled. "Indeed."

"So, you waited for me here because you knew I would come, and you knew I am the only one who can persuade Julian right now? I think you waited for the wrong person. You should have waited for Nathan Lawson’s adopted daughter, Ace, instead of me. She is much more like Cecilia Caldwell than I am," I said, looking at Mrs. Fletcher. I simply didn’t believe I was the ideal candidate she had in mind.

"No, it can only be you. That Ace is just a test subject. She doesn’t have a complete and independent soul; she is little more than an empty shell." Mrs. Fletcher didn’t think highly of Ace; she even looked somewhat disdainful. "You are my most perfect test subject. It was my proposal that made your mother choose to personally conceive and give birth to you. From the moment she gave you life and a name, she began to develop feelings for you. That is a very subtle yet powerful force... A force strong enough to change her thoughts and beliefs, making her willingly betray the organization for your sake."

Mrs. Fletcher smiled meaningfully, as if everything was under her control. This included the deaths of Cecilia’s parents back then.

"Cecilia, you could never become a part of The Resistance, because they were the ones who killed you. I trust you enough. I believe that with your intelligence, you can understand my ideas and the contributions I’ve made to the future advancement of biotechnology." Mrs. Fletcher seemed to want to assimilate me, turning me into someone like her so we would stand on a united front. And then, I would be used to persuade Julian.

"I don’t agree with your views and opinions," I countered. "The progress and development of humanity are determined by the laws and rules of nature. Since we live in nature, we must abide by its rules. Going against nature and its laws will inevitably lead to a backlash."

Mrs. Fletcher wasn’t in a hurry. "You are still too young. When you truly grow up bit by bit, when you realize that your yesterdays are growing in number while your tomorrows are running out, when you watch your loved one pass away and can do nothing about it, when you finally feel that utter loneliness..."

I frowned, ignoring her point. We walked different paths; we could never scheme together.

"I know you love Julian very much, but you seem overly strict and controlling with him." In my memory, other than her regular trips to Porchester every year to visit her husband, Mrs. Fletcher kept a very close eye on Julian. At first, I thought it was just the high expectations of a mother wanting her son to succeed, but gradually, I realized something was wrong. Mrs. Fletcher’s desire for control was simply too strong.

Normally, a mother who loved her child would certainly hope for her son’s next generation to be safely born. So, when Cecilia became pregnant, I thought Mrs. Fletcher would be happy once she found out. I thought she would do everything in her power to inform Julian and protect the child in Cecilia’s womb. But she hadn’t. She chose to hide it. In reality, she was enabling Julian to hurt Cecilia, indulging him as he indirectly destroyed both Cecilia and her unborn child.

"You deserve ninety percent of the credit for the way Julian treated Cecilia back then, don’t you?" I looked at her. "You must be a better psychiatrist than Victor Quinn. Let me guess, you’re an expert in psychology, right?"

All these years, the one constantly brainwashing Julian—making him hate Cecilia and fear her—had to be Mrs. Fletcher. Only someone close to him, giving him psychological cues and instilling these thoughts day after day, year after year, could make a person despise and hate someone else down to their very bones. I knew that was exactly what Mrs. Fletcher had done.

Mrs. Fletcher just smiled faintly, saying nothing. She tacitly admitted it.

It was her. She had deliberately made her own son misunderstand, loathe, and hurt Cecilia. She had even given Julian psychological suggestions to drive him to do things that would harm Cecilia. But why on earth did she do it? Was it purely for experimental data? What was the value of such data?

I still couldn’t wrap my head around it. I just felt that the relationship between Mrs. Fletcher and Julian... was definitely not as simple as it appeared. My intuition told me that Mrs. Fletcher was extremely dangerous. Just as Asher had said, she was a very dangerous and terrifying woman. She was highly intelligent, and she excelled at disguise and performance.

"What have you done to Julian?" I asked warily. "Can I see him?"

"Of course. It’s not like I’ve imprisoned him." Mrs. Fletcher smiled naturally, yet I found it eerie. She gestured that I was free to roam around the house.

I stood up, looking at this house I had lived in for several years. For some reason, it felt completely foreign and bizarre.

Mrs. Fletcher hadn’t just destroyed Cecilia; she had destroyed Julian as well. If she truly loved her son, how could she kill Erin Whittaker right in front of him? No matter what... it shouldn’t have been like this. Back then, when she killed Erin, I had even seen jealousy and other complex emotions in her eyes. Had her feelings for Julian surpassed ordinary mother-son affection?

Could it be that the rumors were all false? Rumor had it that Mrs. Fletcher loved her husband deeply and was even willing to risk her life for him. Was it all a lie? Was this person sick to her very core?

"Julian?" I made my way upstairs and knocked on his door.

He didn’t respond.

"Julian?" I tried calling out a bit louder.

Suddenly, his bedroom door swung open. He glared at me with an expression bordering on sheer disgust. "What are you doing here?"

I frowned, sensing an undeniable unfamiliarity in Julian. Something felt... very wrong.