Left Them Loved Myself (Stella Spencer) novel Chapter 119

“Ingra–uh, I mean, little one…” Erica caught herself as she called out, glancing down at the kid standing by

the bed.

Irene looked up at her shyly. “Erica, do you need something?”

“Well, didn’t you say you wanted to look after your mom? See, her cup’s empty,” Erica said, raising an eyebrow.

“Then… then I’ll go get her some water,” Irene replied hesitantly.

As soon as Irene came back with the water, Erica called out again, “What about the fruit? Don’t grab anything you have to peel with a fruit knife. That banana–yep, that works. Just peel it first.”

Every time Irene finished one task, Erica would immediately give her another.

Within just ten minutes, Irene was on the verge of collapsing from all the running around.

“Erica. I can’t do this anymore. I… Whew! I’m totally wiped out, I need to rest,” Irene muttered, flopping down on the floor and giving Erica the saddest, most drained look she could muster.

“Didn’t you say you wanted to look after your mom?” Erica asked, putting on her most innocent, angelic smile.

“I…” Irene’s eyes welled up–she hadn’t actually meant it; it was just talk, but Erica was really holding her to it.

“Mom, I’m so worn out,” Irene whimpered, practically begging Stella for help.

Before Stella could say anything, Erica cut in first, “Irene, you’ve barely taken care of your mom for any time at all, and already you’re tired? Did you ever stop to think how much tougher it was for your mom when she had to look after you?”

“But Mom’s an adult,” Irene said matter–of–factly. “She’s grown up, and I’m just a kid–how could it be the

same?

Besides, Mom volunteered to take care of me. It’s not like I forced her. What’s that got to do with me? If anything, it’s Erica who’s making me do all this for Mom. The more Irene thought about it, the more annoyed she got

Seriously, Mom? Not only are you not standing up for me, but you can’t even stop Erica from bossing me around, Irene grumbled to herself.

She was dead tired, practically ready to drop right there.

Erica had been hoping Irene might finally get what it felt like–even if she couldn’t fully appreciate all the years Stella had worked herself ragged for her, at least not treat her so meanly. But after seeing those reactions, Erica just gave up for real.

“This kid… seriously, she’s a lost cause, Erica thought to herself, feeling totally defeated.

With a sigh, Erica just said, “Suit yourself, I’m not gonna bother with you anymore.”

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Chapter 119

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“Really?” Irene’s eyes lit up instantly.

“Yeah, really.” Eria nodded.

“So I don’t have to look after Mom anymore?” Irene asked, her voice full of hope.

“No, you don’t,” Erica said.

All the tiredness vanished from Irene’s face, replaced by pure joy. Suddenly, her back didn’t hurt, her legs didn’t ache, and she jumped up and dashed out of the room. “Erica, don’t worry about me! I’ll be back in a bit!”

Erica just rolled her eyes and grumbled, “Like I was ever actually worried about

“Erica, did something happen?” Stella asked.

you, whatever.”

She almost never saw Erica get this insistent with a kid–especially Irene. Normally, Erica would cut her some slack just because of Stella.

Erica let out a long sigh, told the story of what happened, and then said, “Stella, I hate to say this, but your daughter… I really don’t know what to say about her. If she’s not going to change, then honestly, you might as well just give up. There’s no point making yourself miserable over it,” Erica said.

“Yeah, I get it.” Stella nodded, that one soft spot in her chest turning colder and harder than ever.

When she saw how fast Irene bolted out of the room, Stella didn’t even need to ask where she was headed- obviously straight for Sylvia, the person Irene could never stop thinking about.

So this whole coming to visit me thing… It’s just been a big joke, start to finish,‘ Stella thought bitterly.

“Stella, Erica said, giving her a big, tight hug and pretty much wrestling her head onto her shoulder, making a sudden snap. “If you’re feeling down, just let it out and cry…”

The loud snap practically made Stella see stars–she felt like her soul almost left her body.

Adam didn’t answer right away. Instead, he looked into her eyes and grinned. “Looks like your eyes are getting better–you can actually recognize me now.”

point.

Basically, a man came forward and confessed, describing the crime in a way that perfectly matched the investigation–there was no doubt he was the real culprit.

At least, that was what most people believed.

And with the serious impact the whole “hired killer” case had on society, the higher–ups decided to leave it at

that and close the file.

“Isn’t that a bit hasty?” Erica frowned, suspicion clear in her voice. “You’re really not going to look into it any further? Honestly, it just seems like the guy who turned himself in is totally a scapegoat.”

“Because he really is,” Adam said bluntly.

Erica shot back, “Then why not keep investigating?”

“The higher–ups just can’t take the pressure anymore,” Adam said helplessly. “We’ve been on this case forever without results, and now the public is accusing us of wasting taxpayers‘ money and failing in our duties.”

He added, “And that’s not even counting the daily pressure from those business tycoons–the kind that’s got the top brass practically buckling”

“So you’re giving up on nabbing the actual culprit?” Stella asked, her words edged with disbelief.

“No way–we’re still going after him,” Adam replied after a pause. “We just can’t make it a public spectacle now. It has to be done quietly, under the radar.”

“Yeah, makes sense.” Stella nodded. If word got out, there’d be chaos in no time.

17:34 Sat, Oct 18

Chapter 119

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“So the main reason I came over is to tell you–we’re not letting him slip away. Even if he hides at the very ends of the earth, has all the power in the world, or throws an army of scapegoats at us, we’ll hunt him down and bring him to justice,” Adam promised, his tone unwavering and fierce.

“Second, we’ve got to push the plan ahead–we need you to help today, before anything goes sideways,” he

added.