Chapter 244: What is he doing with my daughter
Meanwhile, Dorothy was growing increasingly impatient with Julianna’s prolonged absence.
Her daughter was supposed to go out and look for a job, yet hours had passed without any sign of her returning.
"Honestly, just how irresponsible can this girl be?" Dorothy muttered irritably.
She paced around the room, growing more frustrated with every passing minute. Unfortunately, she didn’t even have a phone to contact Julianna. They had been forced to sell both their phones to get enough money to get through the day, and now Dorothy was beginning to regret that decision.
"What am I supposed to do now?" she grumbled, glancing at the door.
She waited for a few more minutes, hoping Julianna would return on her own. However, when her uneasiness became unbearable, she finally decided to go out and look for her daughter.
But the moment she opened the door, she froze.
A police officer was standing right outside.
"Mrs. Hayes?"
Dorothy’s face paled at the sight of the uniformed officer.
They had already spent enough time dealing with the police, and the last thing she wanted was another encounter with them. Her heart began to race as a wave of uncertainty washed over her.
"W-What is it, Officer?" she asked nervously.
The officer regarded her with a stern expression.
"You’re required to come with us to the station."
Dorothy stared at him, momentarily speechless.
"But why? What have we done now?"
"Ma’am, you’ll find out once we get there. Please come with us."
Before Dorothy could question him further, the officer gestured for her to follow him.
With no other choice, she reluctantly complied, her mind racing with possibilities as she wondered what trouble her daughter might have gotten herself into this time.
***
Dorothy had no idea why she was being taken to the police station. Throughout the journey, she kept asking herself what could have happened, but none of her guesses made any sense.
However, the moment she stepped inside, she stopped dead in her tracks.
Her eyes widened at the sight before her.
Julianna was sitting across from Officer Ethan, her head lowered and her expression sour. And beside her sat Alex.
What is he doing here with my daughter?
Confusion flooded Dorothy’s mind. She looked from Alex to Julianna, desperately trying to understand what had happened between them.
Before Dorothy could piece anything together, Officer Ethan’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Mrs. Hayes, please come over here."
She flinched slightly before snapping out of her daze.
"Y-Yes, Officer."
Gathering herself, Dorothy slowly approached them.
Her gaze shifted between Alex, who sat with an unreadable expression, and Julianna, who stubbornly refused to meet her eyes.
Finally, she turned towards Officer Ethan.
The officer looked thoroughly exhausted, as though he had reached his limit dealing with the Hayes family.
Dorothy swallowed nervously.
"Officer, could you please tell me what’s going on? Why have you brought me here?"
Officer Ethan let out a weary sigh and glanced at the two people sitting before him. However, before he could speak, Alex hurriedly interrupted.
"Officer, I’ve already told you that I have nothing to do with this woman. I don’t even know why she showed up outside my apartment!"
Dorothy stared at him in confusion, but what surprised her even more was Julianna’s reaction. Her daughter remained unusually quiet, something that immediately struck Dorothy as suspicious.
Officer Ethan turned towards Julianna.
"Miss Julianna, is he telling the truth?"
Julianna hesitated before finally nodding.
Alex let out a relieved sigh, glad that she hadn’t decided to make things worse for him.
Officer Ethan nodded and turned towards him. Dorothy, too, kept her eyes on Alex, having recognized him the moment she entered the room. After all, he was the man Clara had once loved.
"All right, Mr. Alex. You’re free to leave."
Alex nodded and stood up. Before leaving, he exchanged a brief glance with Dorothy before walking out without another word.
Dorothy watched him disappear through the door before turning back to the officer.
"Officer Ethan..."
Ethan looked at her and explained, "Your daughter caused a disturbance outside Mr. Alex’s apartment. When a neighbor tried to intervene, she nearly attacked him."
Dorothy’s knees nearly buckled at his words.
"Julianna! What on earth were you thinking?" she exclaimed, turning towards her daughter.
"I’m sorry, Officer. It won’t happen again," Julianna said quietly, finally breaking her silence.
Both Dorothy and Ethan looked at her in surprise.
"That’s what I expect to hear, Miss Julianna," Ethan replied sternly. "Fortunately, no one was hurt this time. But if something like this happens again, I won’t be able to let you off with a warning."
Since the incident hadn’t resulted in any injuries, Ethan had decided to give Julianna another chance. However, he wanted to make sure she understood the consequences of her actions.
"I hope you’ll remember what I’ve said," he added.
Julianna lowered her head and nodded without saying another word.
With that, Officer Ethan dismissed them, hoping he wouldn’t have to deal with either of them again anytime soon.
However, Dorothy wasn’t about to let the matter slide.
The moment they stepped out of the police station, she grabbed Julianna’s arm and demanded an explanation.
"What were you doing at Alex’s apartment, Julianna?"
Dorothy knew her daughter was hiding something. There was no way Julianna would have remained so unusually quiet at the station unless something had happened between her and Alex.
But instead of answering, Julianna continued walking as though she hadn’t heard her.
Dorothy let out an exasperated sigh and followed her, determined to get to the bottom of the matter.
The moment they reached home, she couldn’t hold back any longer.
"Julianna, I asked you a question! What were you doing at Alex’s apartment? And why on earth did you threaten that neighbor?" Dorothy snapped. "Is it not enough that your father is behind bars? Do you want to get yourself arrested as well?"
She was practically fuming, but Julianna remained silent.
Losing her patience, Dorothy grabbed her daughter’s shoulder and forced her to turn around.
However, Julianna immediately yanked herself free, causing Dorothy to stumble backwards.
Dorothy stared at her in shock.
"What has gotten into you?"
Julianna let out a bitter laugh, her eyes brimming with frustration.
"What do you want to know, Mom? That I went there to get back the money I spent on Alex?"