Chapter 951

Connor looked at Marcus and suddenly spoke.

"Am I really that unlikable?"

Marcus shifted his gaze to him, studying him for several seconds before answering.

"I don't know if other people find you unlikable, but I don't. I'm your uncle. We look out for our own."

Connor let out a sudden, bitter laugh.

"You don't hate me because you're my uncle. Is it just the blood tie, then? So why did my parents abandon me?"

Marcus sighed. He set his pen down, finally deciding to tell the truth. He didn't want the boy to blindly resent his dead parents due to his amnesia. He had no idea if Connor would ever recover his memories, but he couldn't let his pity for the young man tarnish the legacy of his own brother and sister-in-law.

"Your parents didn't abandon you."

Connor felt a surge of pure rage.

"What the hell are you talking about? You've always told me they dumped me because they didn't want me. Are you trying to whitewash them now?"

Marcus stared directly into Connor's eyes.

"I'm not lying. Gwyn, the girl you grew up with, knows the whole story. Your parents didn't pack up and leave you behind. They've been dead for a long time."

A flicker of shoek crossed Connor's face, but it vanished quickly. He had harbored so much deep-rooted hatred for the man and woman who supposedly threw him away that hearing of their deaths barely registered. Seeing this apathy broke Marcus's heart. He was only revealing the truth now because Connor was finally mature enough to handle it. If he could risk his life for others, he could handle his own past.

"You said it yourself, don't deny it. Now you're changing your story. Tell me, which part is actually true? How am I supposed to believe you?"

Marcus pulled out a cigarette and took a slow drag.

"You don't have to believe me, but your amnesia won't last forever. Your memories will come back one day. And when you finally realize I'm telling the truth, you're going to regret this."

Connor thought about it and stayed quiet, fighting back his usual impulsiveness.

Leonie's tragic lesson flooded his mind like a tidal wave. His stubborn arrogance had already contributed to the destruction of the Everhart family, and Leonie wanted nothing to do with him anymore. He couldn't afford to make the same fatal mistake twice.

The agonizing price Leonie had paid forced him to grow up overnight. He steadied his breathing and locked eyes with Marcus.

"Let's pretend I believe you. Tell me exactly what happened."

Marcus flicked his ashes, studying his nephew. There was a subtle shift in the young man's demeanor, a newfound gravity he couldn't quite pinpoint.

The truth was the truth. He wouldn't hide the reality of his brother and sister-in-law's deaths any longer.

"Your parents were killed in a car

crash while bringing you home. The killer is already rotting in a cell, serving a life sentence with no chance of parole. The trauma left a deep psychological scar on you as a kid Later, you got into another accident, and when you woke up, your memories were gone.

"When you used to cry for your parents, I made up that lie. I thought it would spare you the agony of mourning them. But I made a massive miscalculation. A child's sense of abandonment breeds a vicious resentment, and over the years, that bitterness took root and grew out of control.

"I saw it happening, but my hands were tied. I wanted to protect you from the pain of

losing them, so I spun a web of lies. I never intended for you to hate them. But you've crossed a line, and I refuse to sit here and listen to you spit on their memory anymore.