True Fated Marriage (Grace and Heinz)
Chapter 767

"President, an altercation happened between Jodie and Nathan. He died on the spot right at the doorstep of his house. Jodie had also kicked her mother to the ground. The police have taken her to the station now," reported Lester to Heinz on the phone.

"Mr. Lawson has passed away?" Heinz was shocked.

Grace, who overheard the conversation on the other side, was dumbfounded. She couldn't believe her ears at the time.

As she listened to the conversation, she couldn't help but frown at Heinz. She grew more and more alarmed with each passing second of that conversation.

"Jodie has not turned over a new leaf; instead she's jumped off the deep end this time around. After the whole ordeal with arson, she was extremely horrible with her parents, as if they were her worst enemies, added Lester.

"Got it," responded Heinz in a short and simple manner.

Nevertheless, he too was very surprised. How did Jodie become like this?

Heinz sat motionless and sighed.

If a person was to turn rogue, no one can save him but himself.

Grace was able to empathize with Heinz and what he was feeling at that time. After all, he used to be in a relationship with Jodie once.

What had become of Jodie was not only a stain to his past, but it also made him doubt his judgment of people.

"Heinz." Grace put her hand on his shoulder as she said, "Go and pay them a visit. It is only right that you attend Mr. Lawson's funeral."

He was stunned. He looked at Grace with astonishment in his eyes. After a long pause, he replied in a hoarse voice, "Grace, you're such a kind and big-hearted woman. I feel so ashamed that I have brought upon countless horrible experiences to you."

Right as he said that, he drooped at the realization that he was not good enough. He felt that he was undeserving of Grace, which made him upset.

"Well, go," she said. "Regardless of what Jodie has turned into, Nathan did not deserve to die in the way that he did, even if he had done something out of line," she added.

"Lester will handle it." Heinz reassured her. "I'll stay with you. Besides, it doesn't bother me."

Grace was filled with a mix of emotions; she was taken by a warmth radiating from her chest and a pang of guilt simultaneously.

She knew that Heinz was merely accommodating to her feelings. He had taken her emotions into consideration. She then put her hands on his shoulders, leaned her face against his cheek, and said softly, "Heinz, you would have attended Mr. Lawson's funeral even if Jodie didn't come back. But now that she is back, you're refusing to attend the funeral because you're afraid that I'll be mad."

Heinz was stunned. He narrowed his eyes a little as he looked at her.

Acknowledging his reaction, she added, "After all, he has been your father-in-law for many years. It's reasonable for you to attend his funeral."

Father-in-law.

The word felt like a fishbone stuck in his throat; causing a painful lump that felt all too real.

Heinz suddenly had complicated feelings.

When he saw Grace's calm face, he only felt more ashamed.

She made decisions while taking into consideration everything on the table for him. But he, on the other hand, had only done things that hurt her and left her disappointed in the end.

He knew instantly that she was not being sarcastic to him; instead, it was pure generosity.

In the face of a serious problem, Grace handled it like a champ.

On the other hand, Heinz always felt that he wasn't an "easy on the eyes" kind of guy.

He laughed in a self-deprecating way and turned his face away. He said in a low and hoarse voice, "Grace, you're always so thoughtful for me. I know what you mean, and asking me to attend the funeral is a sign of paying my final respect for the dead."

"You want me to feel at ease and to be able to stand up in the face of the media and the world."

"Although you didn't say it outright, I can understand your heart, your kindness, and your magnanimity."

"Since you've done all the thinking for me, I can't help but do the same for you too."

Grace simply gazed at him with a warmth that radiated across. It was fine because all that mattered was that he understood it.

She had indeed put in a lot of thought about him. It was all for his sake as well as hers, so that they could both feel at ease.

In fact, she had indeed thought a little more for him. She smiled and replied softly, "Heinz, the biggest consideration you can do for me is not to irritate anyone again. We should cherish the presence after going through this round of twists and turns."

"Grace," Heinz called out for her. "I understand what you mean and your good intentions. Thank you for taking such consideration of me."

"Well then, get going," she said as looked at him with a gentle smile. "Go and pay your final respect."

Heinz nodded as if he had made a decision and said, "You're right. I should get going and I should also pay Jodie a visit."

She was startled. "Do you want to ask her about Henry?" She asked curiously.

"It seems that there's someone else behind the curtain in Henry's case, but so far there have been no traces of this person, which I replace to be very suspicious. Not a single lead of DNA was found by far." "This shows that someone is actually protecting this person. Otherwise, a foreigner would not be so easy to deal with in our place," Heinz analyzed out loud. What he was really worried about was the future, thus he had to unmask this person. "I'm worried that there's a culprit whom we don't know about. Although I don't know what's going on, I have to replace him."

Grace saw the determination in his gaze and nodded, "Go ahead." She nodded in acknowledgment of his determination.

"Don't go anywhere. Stay with the children at home," he instructed specifically.

"Okay." Grace obliged. As she sent him off, she reminded him at the door, "Don't be impulsive, and don't lose your cool when you see Jodie."

"I won't lose my cool again." He said blandly, "She is not worth all that. She has long gone from being a part of my life and I want nothing to do with her."

She understood that what he meant with nothing to do with her was for Jodie to completely walk out of his life, and he would never have to take care of her feelings anymore.

Soon after, Heinz left.

Grace's phone rang.

She picked it up and learned soon after that it was Zachary who had called.

"Zachary?"

"Grace," he responded on the other end. "We've finally turned things around and it's looking much better, isn't it?"

"That's right. Thank you for worrying about me," she said.

"Well, I did nothing. There is, however, just one thing that I want to tell you."

"I'm all ears, Zachary. Skip the formalities and spill the beans," she prompted him.

"Aunt Candace is back." said Zachary. "She wants to see you and Alice," he added.

Grace went silent in an instant.

There was an indescribable feeling in her heart. Her mother, Candace, had left the family many years ago. Although she had felt maternal love before she was fifteen, everything she felt went bad after she turned fifteen.

Candace left unannounced, and she had now returned in the very same manner.

"She's back?" Grace lowered her voice slightly and asked, "So what if she's back? What's the matter with her coming back at this time?"

"Grace." Zachary called out her in a dilemma-ridden tone and said, "If you don't want to see her, I..."

He stopped talking abruptly. It seemed as if someone had snatched the phone. Moments later, she heard a deep and hoarse female voice saying, "Grace, this is Mom. Come back to the Smith family with Alice now. I'm at Zachary's place now but head over to the Smiths' right away."