Chapter 98: It’s murder.
Another shock hit Bridget. Her eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you serious? Why would he do that?"
Bella’s expression was a mix of anger and fear. "It was to get back at me. Mrs. Green was kind to us, and he saw it as a betrayal." Her face fell, the weight of the situation pressing down on her. "She is in trouble because of me. If I hadn’t requested her not to let Lionel enter the house, she wouldn’t have meddled with him. I don’t know how she was doing."
Tears gathered in her eyes as a vision of the kind, elderly woman flashed in her mind. Alone and vulnerable, Mrs. Green had been caught in the crossfire of Bella’s troubles. She had no idea where Mrs. Green was staying, or how she was coping. She wanted to go see her right away, but she couldn’t leave her mother either.
"I can’t believe he is so cruel." Bridget’s face hardened with resolve. "We need to do something about him, Bella. He can’t keep getting away with this."
Bella nodded, feeling a surge of determination. "I know. We have to make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone else." The next minute, she sighed with guilt in her heart.
"I am worried about Mrs. Green. She is poor and getting old. There’s no one to take care of her," Bella choked out, tears spilling over. The image of Mrs. Green, adrift in this crisis, was too much to bear. "I feel so awful for her."
Bridget reached out, offering a comforting pat on the shoulder. "Don’t cry, Bella," she soothed. "You can see her once your mother is out of the hospital."
Bella nodded, taking a shaky breath and wiping away the tears. "You are right," she whispered. "I’ll go see her and compensate her for the losses Lionel caused."
Bridget squeezed her hand gently. "Do whatever you need to do, but don’t let this get you down. Now, enough with the tears," she said with a small smile, trying to lighten the mood.
Bella took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. The weight of everything felt lighter with Bridget’s support. "Thank you."
Bridget smiled warmly. "We’ll get through this together. You are stronger than you think."
A small smile broke through Bella’s tears.