Hidden Desires - Family Secrets-Chapter 146 So, do you understand now why I was in trouble?

"What’s your name?" That was the first time the little girl spoke to me, her voice tender yet melodious.

"Justin Davis..."

I felt a pang of sadness in my heart, having been alone in the woods for so long, and just as I had found a companion, she was about to leave, leaving me by myself once again.

"You’ve touched and seen my body, so when you grow up, you have to marry me," she said next, leaving me frozen in place, my young heart nearly leaping out of my chest...

The little girl walked away, glancing back at me every few steps, but even as their figures vanished, I never learned her name.

I don’t know if that girl and her parents ever came back to see me, because three days after they left, I packed up the gear they had left behind and walked out of the forest, venturing into the city to make my own way.

I’ve always wanted to go back to that little cabin, just to see it one more time, but it’s filled with too many memories of my parents.

Maybe I’m afraid of the emotions it would stir up, so I’ve never found the courage to return.

Is that cabin still standing? Maybe it’s time I made the trip...

Snapping back to the present, I looked at the woman in front of me.

Her icy demeanor was just like that of the little girl, only now she was grown, but her features still bore traces of her younger self.

"Are you that little girl? The one I saved from the woods?" I asked, staring at her in disbelief, my expression unchanging, as nothing much could shake my now cold and shattered heart.

The woman didn’t speak, just nodded slightly as she looked down at her bowl of porridge.

"Thank you for saving me. I saved you once when we were children, and now you’ve saved me again as adults. Is this my good karma from childhood?" I said, half to her and half to myself.

If it were up to me, I would have preferred to die on those cold city streets.

Hearing my words, she suddenly looked up, her expression intense, shaking her head vigorously, her long hair swaying with the motion.

In that moment, she seemed to revert to the quiet little girl I once knew, responding with body language rather than words.

"Have you been keeping tabs on me all this time?"

Seeing that photo album and her immediate presence when I was in trouble made me wonder.

My tone was calm, and upon hearing my question, a flicker of urgency passed through her eyes.

"I was just ensuring your safety, nothing more. Don’t overthink it, I wasn’t spying on you..." Her usual composed demeanor faltered, and she seemed like a flustered little girl.

Then I remembered the photo from the coal mine, a place of extreme danger, yet her people had tracked me there without the mine boss noticing.

A lingering doubt had always haunted me: during my escape from the coal mine, it felt almost divinely timed.

I had been lucky, thinking it was providence, especially since the police and military had arrived just in time to rescue me.

Recalling the heavy police and military presence when the little girl’s parents came to pick her up... "Back at the coal mine... was it you who saved me then?" I asked again, my eyes fixed on her.

She seemed unable to meet my gaze, lowering her head before hesitating and then nodding once more.

Although I had received many answers, my mind was filled with even more questions.

When did she start keeping tabs on me?

How did she find me?

How much does she know about my current situation?

"Can you explain in detail?" I asked, rubbing my temples, trying to manage the overload of thoughts and not dwell on the situation back home or Betty’s condition.

Would Betty worry if she found out I had returned home?

Would she cry?

Would she regret anything?

How is she doing now?

Has she been searching for me like she searched for Michael?

"My name is Luna Bennett..." she began, pulling me back from my chaotic thoughts with her introduction.

Just hearing her last name startled me.

Not because it was frightening, but because ’Bennett’ was a sensitive name in this city, even nationally.

"Wait, the Bennett Group? Top ten tycoons in Singapore?"

I interrupted her, throwing out two questions, thinking about her status and the means at her disposal.

I looked at her, waiting for her response.

She simply nodded gently, and I lay back on the bed, overwhelmed not by her status, but by the surreal realization of my childhood circumstances.

"My grandfather, Ethan Bennett, is a titan of industry, and my maternal grandfather, Eli Hudson, was a deputy commander.

I guess you could say I’m both a second-generation rich kid and a politician’s child..."

She paused, then continued, her tone devoid of any arrogance, surprisingly serene.

"After you saved me, about half a year later, I came back to that cabin with my parents to look for you, but it was empty.

From that moment, I lost track of you.

Later, my grandfather sent me abroad to study, and by the time I graduated at 22 and returned to run his company, I started looking for you everywhere.

When I finally found you, I learned you were married..."

Her way of speaking was direct and sparse, just like her actions.

"Do you think I’m foolish? Still remembering a promise from childhood?

I don’t know why, but during my formative years, those memories kept circling in my mind, always making me wonder about your current situation.

It might sound bizarre, but that’s just who I am.

I’ve always been decisive and dominant in my actions, and once I set my mind on something, I don’t change it.

When I found out you were married, I was truly heartbroken.

I rushed but was still too late, yet I sincerely wished you well from the bottom of my heart.

My grandparents introduced me to countless wealthy heirs and other politicians’ children, but I had no interest or thoughts about them.

They couldn’t do anything but let me be, up to this point..."

She spoke candidly, leaving me somewhat speechless.

Was this a confession?

Having just faced a significant emotional setback, and now a rich heiress and politician’s daughter was confessing to me, with such an impressive status, could this be some kind of cosmic joke?

It seemed absurd; my heart was already dead.

Though I had left home, who was the one I truly loved?

It was still Betty.

If I didn’t love her, I could throw myself into this woman’s arms right now, become a son-in-law to a powerful family, but my heart felt no thrill, only a sense of ridicule.

Did I even deserve such fortune?

"I had people protect you because I wanted to know everything about you.

The photos in that album were taken by my people in secret.

I would look at your pictures and then follow in your footsteps to the places you had been, as a sort of solace in my spare time.

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Until I heard you were in trouble..."

As I pondered, her words reached me again.

"So, do you understand now why I was in trouble?"