Chapter <b>123 </b>


    Emmitt’s gaze lingered on the smartphone that Mirabe was offering him, but he didn’t reach out to take it. After a moment, he tilted his head to the side and spoke with a deep voice, “If your really didn’t pick up Catherine, then why did you hang up on the Gilberts?”


    “Isn’t it normal to hang up on them? That stepmother of hers was never kind to her, so why should she be obliged to answer her calls? Where does this rulee from?” Zach Interjected with a nonchnt tone.


    “Yeah, Zach’s got a point. If it were me<b>, </b>I wouldn’t just hang up; I’d have blocked them ages ago.” Delh had no fondness for the Gilbert family, and it showed in her voice.


    Emmitt looked at Zach with aplex expression. It was one thing for their parents to spoil Mirabe rotten, but his sharp–witted younger brother was siding with her too.


    Shaking his head after a pause, Emmitt spoke with a note of disappointment, “You can spoil her all you want, but we need to sort out this issue with Summer’s grandma.”


    Continuing, he turned back to Mirabe, “Why don’t we take a trip to the Gilberts? If you didn’t take Catherine, then an exnation is due…”


    Before he could finish, the smartphone on the coffee table began to ring. He halted mid–sentence, and his gaze involuntarily scanned the caller ID on the screen. Seeing it was Summer calling, Emmitt didn’t pursue the conversation further. He walked over, picked up the phone, and pressed the answer button, “Hey, Summer…”


    “Emmitt, we found Grandma. She went back to her ce in Elm Reek by herself. I’m sorry. It was my mom who misunderstood Mira. It’s also my fault for jumping to conclusions and bothering you when I couldn’t reach Mira. I hope I didn’t cause any misunderstanding…” Summer’s voice was soft and fragile through the phone, filled with regret and apology as if she was on the brink of tears.


    Holding the phone, Emmitt listened to Summer’s words and thought back to his earlier anger toward Mirabe. His head started buzzing. So, he had wronged her?


    “…Emmitt, are you listening?” Summer’s voice came through the phone after a long silence, tinged with a touch of vulnerability.


    Emmitt closed his eyes briefly, then replied coolly. “I got it.” He said nothing more and hung up.


    Summer, sensing the chill in Emmitt’sst few words, felt an inexplicable annoyance. She held the phone tightly for a long while before finally letting go.


    When Emmitt looked back at Mirabe, his demeanor had lost its initial assertiveness. He opened his mouth to speak, but his throat felt clogged, both dry and ufortable, and he couldn’t utter a word.


    Mirabe’s face showed little emotion as she met hisplex gaze. “It seems you’ve figured out the truth,” she said simply.


    <b>12:15 </b>


    “I…”


    “I’m going upstairs<b>.</b>” Mirabe didn’t wait for Emmitt to respond. After a quick nce at her parents and Zach in the hall, she walked toward the staircase at a steady pace.


    “Emmitt, we all know you and Summer have been close since you were kids, but let me remind you of something, you should really understand who your blood rtives are,” Zach said coolly. leaving that thought behind as he too ascended the stairs.


    Hearing those words, Emmitt felt a burning sensation on his face, as if all his strength had been sapped in that moment. The phone slipped from his grasp and fell to the floor with a thud.