I Read Their Tragic Fates, and My Family Reads My Mind?

Chapter 118: Chapter 118: A Happy Ending for Everyone

Arabella Donovan had been quietly watching the drama unfold from the sidelines, but her ears perked up when she heard this.

’Oho, this is a loaded question!’

The members of the Donovan family felt their lips twitch. It was indeed a loaded question. If it wasn’t answered well, this potential family connection would be over before it even began.

The few members of the Lynch family obviously knew this as well. Mr. Lynch spoke cautiously, "It was to protect her, but also to protect you. Before the truth was clear, no one knew which story was real and which was fake. Bringing it up rashly would undoubtedly hurt both of you. Especially you—you just went through the same thing not long ago. I didn’t want this to make you recall those unpleasant memories, and I certainly didn’t want to put you on a pedestal, only for you to be disappointed if things didn’t pan out."

It had to be said, Mr. Lynch’s words were utterly flawless. The Donovan family had originally planned on finding fault just for the sake of it, a little show of force to let the Lynches know Eloise Donovan had people in her corner. But now, they were left speechless and had to find another topic to interject with.

"The Cassandra Lynch you just mentioned... is she the same one that Mr. Chamberlain was talking about earlier?"

The dreaded topic had finally come up. The three members of the Lynch family tensed.

"Yes, that’s her."

"This Miss Lynch doesn’t seem to have a very good attitude toward our Eloise. They haven’t even met, and she’s already scheming behind her back. If they really were to live together, I can’t imagine what a mess it would be."

Mrs. Donovan deliberately emphasized the two words "our family." Mr. Lynch’s expression changed, but he still replied honestly, "You can rest assured on this point, ma’am. The reason we arrived so late was to handle everything properly so that Eloise can acknowledge us without any worries."

Miss Lynch chimed in to agree, "That’s right. Cassandra Lynch has nothing to do with our family anymore. She moved out of the Lynch home a few days ago and will never be back. From now on, the second young miss of the Lynch Family will only be Eloise. Our family will absolutely not let anyone have the chance to bully or harm her."

Mrs. Donovan looked surprised. "You’ve already disowned her and kicked her out? Just because you discovered she isn’t your biological child?"

"Of course not." Miss Lynch was afraid the Donovan family would misunderstand them as cold and heartless, capable of abandoning a child they had raised for more than a decade just because of her identity. She explained cryptically, "Her identity was only one of the reasons, and the least important one at that. The reason she had to leave is that we uncovered some other things."

Miss Lynch paused at this point, but ultimately decided against bringing the sordid things Cassandra Lynch had done out into the open. "Anyway, it was just some... unpleasant business. Even if this situation with Eloise hadn’t come up, we wouldn’t have dared to keep her in our home any longer."

The explanation was rather perfunctory. Anyone else would have probably thought they were just making excuses.

But the Donovan family, who had already learned of Cassandra Lynch’s true nature from Arabella Donovan, could roughly guess what the Lynch family had uncovered.

The fact that the Lynch family chose to be vague, refraining from airing her dirty laundry in public even after Cassandra had a complete falling out with them, actually made the Donovan family respect them more.

"So, you’re here today to reclaim Eloise, have her return to the Lynch home with you, and you also want her to live with you in Jarden from now on?"

"No, no, no, please don’t misunderstand." Miss Lynch quickly waved her hands. "We’re not here to snatch your child away. We just want Eloise to come back with us for a visit, to at least see her parents, and meet some of our relatives and friends."

"We know that it’s all thanks to you that Eloise has grown into such a graceful young woman. Even though you aren’t her biological parents, you’ve raised her for so many years and educated her so wonderfully. For that alone, we don’t know how we could ever thank you enough."

After confirming Eloise Donovan’s identity, the Lynch family had learned the general circumstances of the three girls after they were swapped.

Among them, Eloise Donovan’s situation was considered very fortunate. Though she was swapped, at least the Donovan family treated her very well, giving her everything she needed. In contrast, their own biological daughter...

The members of the Lynch family subtly glanced at Arabella Donovan. Although the girl had grown up safely into an adult, the thought of the criticism she endured in her youth and the hardships of living alone on a mountain...

Simply imagining their own child in her place was enough to make their hearts ache with endless regret.

So, when it came down to it, they were the ones who owed the Donovan family.

Arabella Donovan, who was suddenly on the receiving end of the Lynch family’s apologetic and sympathetic gazes: "???"

’Wait, I really didn’t have it as bad as these people imagine. My master doted on me, for real!’

"Eloise is an adult now and can make her own decisions. We respect her wishes. After she returns to Jarden to see her parents and meet some relatives, we will hand over everything her parents left for her. Afterward, if she’s willing to stay in Jarden, that would be wonderful, but if she wants to come back here, we won’t object. We just hope that she can come back to visit us when she has time off. There will always be a place for her in our home."

Mr. Lynch’s words were so humble that they made the Donovan family feel a little embarrassed.

"You are her closest relatives in this world, so it’s only right that she keeps in touch with you. Let’s just see what she wants to do. As long as she’s happy, we’ll support whatever decision she makes."

The Lynch family was overjoyed and looked at Eloise Donovan with hopeful expectation.

Eloise Donovan, looking slightly uncomfortable, avoided their gazes and said in a low voice, "I will go back with you to pay my respects to them. As for the things they left behind, you can just continue to look after them. I don’t need anything."

Mr. Lynch finally breathed a sigh of relief. "As long as you’re willing to come back with us, that’s all that matters. If you can’t be bothered to manage the things your parents left behind, you can let your brother handle them, on the condition that they are transferred into your name first. I know you don’t need these things, but they were your parents’ belongings and should be returned to their rightful owner. I think if your parents are watching from the great beyond, this is what they would want as well."

Since he had put it that way, Eloise Donovan couldn’t very well refuse.

By the end of the birthday banquet, the Donovan family had gained a new branch of relatives, the Lynch family had found their long-lost child, and the party guests had effortlessly consumed one juicy piece of gossip after another. You could say it was a happy outcome for everyone.

As for the only person who might have been hurt—the daughter of a certain human trafficker—neither the Donovan nor the Lynch family had any intention of dealing with her. But her own guilty conscience led her to tell a string of lies, which in turn provoked Simon Chamberlain into crashing the birthday banquet to launch a full-frontal assault.

Now, everyone knew who this legendary human trafficker’s daughter—the sole beneficiary of the crime—was. It was hard not to call it her just deserts.

However, Stroven City wasn’t Cassandra Lynch’s home turf the way Jarden was, so the impact of this revelation was negligible here.

But what if someone were to take this juicy story back to Jarden and spread it far and wide?

After all, among the guests tonight was one person who would be more than happy to act as the town crier.