"Father, that''s all in the past. Before marrying Daryl Mallory, I hadpletely cut ties with that man!"
Karen knew that denying her past was useless now, especially since the other party had brought out
the photos.
Even though that man''s appearance had changed significantly over the years, Karen had taken good
care of herself. Her appearance was not much different from her younger days.
Hence, anyone could easily tell it was her in those photos.
Old Master Mallory took a drag of his cigar, exhaling slowly with a hint of disgust in his weathered,
sharp eyes. He did not easily get deceived by Karen.
"When your family and the Mallory family arranged the marriage, you assured me that you were a good
woman with no messy rtionships. You said you''d pass the background check and that you were
worthy of Daryl. I still remember those words.
"I believed the Ruiz family''s nonsense and arranged the wedding without investigation. This led to
misunderstandings between Daryl and me over the years. He has been abroad all this time while you
were here, using Daryl as an excuse for your actions.
"Karen, what do you take our Mallory family for? Are you ying games with all of us?"
Previously, even though means ofmunication were not as advanced as they were now, if Old
Master Mallory had investigated, he would have discovered Karen''s past entanglements with several
men.
However, the Ruiz family had a good reputation in A City at that time, and Old Master Mallory chose to
trust them.
After he saw the news report, he suddenly recalled how Daryl used to fool around and the way Daryl
hesitated to speak when he tried to educate him.
Perhaps Daryl had known about Karen''s true nature all along. That was why he used this situation to
get back at her.
Otherwise, Daryl would not have turned out the way he did.
"Father, I swear, I haven''t done anything to hurt Daryl since we got together!” Karen raised her hand
and swore. She was emotionally worked up. “If I ever did anything to betray Daryl Mallory since we tied
the knot, may the heavens strike me down!"
Even when Daryl wronged her in the past and left her alone, she endured it.
After all, she had her fair share of screw-ups back then.
When Daryl went abroad and had an affair with that woman, she felt lonely, but she never thought
about being with other men.
It was because she had to maintain her position in the Mallory family.
If she had been with someone else and Old Master Mallory found out about it, he could have her kicked
out of the Mallory family at any moment.
Karen could not imagine what kind of life she would have had outside the Mallory family. That was why
she endured the loneliness and never did something like that.
Old Master Mallory trusted Karen previously.
Even though she was emotionally unstable and prone to trouble, he trusted her.
However, that trust crumbled when he saw the news. Old Master Mallory put out his cigar, as it was no
longer helping him to maintain hisposure.
"For all these years, I never had someone keep an eye on you. I don''t know if there were other men
besides this one. Now, the Mallory family''s reputation has been tarnished because of you.
"Karen, tell me honestly, are Percy and Pierre really Daryl''s sons?" Old Master Mallory''s voice was
deep. He questioned her with a voice filled with anger and suspicion.
Karen''s heart skipped a beat, and she immediately rose to her feet. “Father, I''ve told you before, I
severed ties with that man before marrying Daryl. I didn''t cheat or do anything like that!"
"Are Percy and Pierre really descendants of the Mallory family?" Old Master Mallory did not want to
hear her exnations. He only wanted to know if he had unknowingly raised someone else''s
grandchildren.
A wave of humiliation surged within her, and Karen clenched her fists. "They''re both Daryl Mallory''s
sons! If you don''t believe me, you can have them undergo a DNA test!"
Karen was resolute about this point.
For one, both Percy and Pierre resembled Daryl.
Secondly, she did not cheat on her husband. The two kids must definitely be Daryl''s.
Old Master Mallory did not want to doubt this either, especially since the two grandsons had many
simrities to Daryl.
However, he could not help but feel uneasy when he thought about how he had favored Karen all these
years due to his guilt.
That man even mentioned that he had tried to contact Karen after she got married.
However, she acted all high and mighty and pushed him away...
Daryl was never a womanizer back then. His sudden change was surely because he found out about
Karen''s past!
Old Master Mallory had been kept in the dark the whole time.
"I''ve endured loneliness all these years just to get Daryl Mallory back..." Karen covered her face, on the
verge of tears. She slumped on the sofa, feeling wronged. However, she did not realize that her tone
sounded stiff when she mentioned Daryl''s name.
Old Master Mallory did not have much contact with Daryl, who was overseas now. However, when he
did mention him, he did not refer to him so formally by calling him his full name.
However, Karen''s way of addressing Daryl made it seem like she was talking about a stranger.
Old Master Mallory''s gaze darkened. He showed no interest in Karen''s performance.
He lowered his voice and warned her, "Karen, for the sake of the two heirs you''ve given the Mallory
family, I won''t kick you out because of this. But this has already damaged the reputation of the Mallory
family.
This belongs to N?velDrama.Org: ?.
"You must resolve it immediately. If that man continues to capitalize on this and spread rumors online,
don''t me me for not being lenient with you!"
Karen was startled for a moment. She understood that this was Old Master Mallory''s final warning.
She could deal with a poor man in many ways, but if he had been bought off by Luke, there was
nothing much she could do about it.
Karen''s eyes reddened as she hesitantly said, "Father, it might be that Luke found out about those
things and got this man to leak the news to get back at me..."
She only said that in hopes that Old Master Mallory would help her resolve the situation.
The matters between the Mallory family and the Crawford family required the elders to intervene
without causing a public feud.
Old Master Mallory let out a cold snort. "That''s your problem. I warned you not to provoke Luke
Crawford, but you didn''t listen. Now, you''ve brought such embarrassment upon us! Where can I put my
reputation now?"
He used to praise Karen at various business functions and gatherings with old friends, saying how
helpful she was for being able to handle both thepany and household affairs.
Now, the number ofpliments he had given her seemed like a source of embarrassment.
"Father, I..."
Karen''s words were cut off by Old Master Mallory''s ruthless interruption. "Don''t you think I''m unaware
of the things you''ve done behind me, coborating with others to mess with Luke Crawford?
"I thought you weren''t that foolish, but it turns out you really are. Now, you''ve dragged the Mallory
family into this.
"I''ve already given you plenty of leeway by not severing the mother-son rtionship between you and
your sons and not making Daryle back to divorce you.”
Karen closed her mouth. She did not expect Old Master Mallory to know about what she did.
At this very moment, burning resentment smoldered within her against both Old Master Mallory and
Luke.
If Old Master Mallory had stopped her from going after Luke, she would not have ended up in this
mess.
However, he did not stop her. He just issued a warning!
What good was a warning? She would not have listened anyway...
If Old Master Mallory did not want the Mallory family to lose their reputation, he should have fiercely
obstructed her path right from the beginning!