Ice and Fire novel Chapter 66

Time passed, and Emily's funeral was held. As soon as they walked out of the cemetery, Cherry suddenly fell to Jackson's chest and fainted. Jackson didn't say a word, and instead held Cherry in his arms, heartbroken.

When they got back home, Jackson gently put Cherry on the bed, and quietly sat next to her.

He didn't leave his wife's side until she woke up, and as he looked at her emaciated face, he felt even more distressed than he was before.

One week passed, and Cherry changed greatly. She became silent and hardly spoke, and every time Jackson talked to her, she only replied to him by using her eyes, or by simply nodding or shaking her head. When she spoke, she uttered only a word, or maybe two.

Cherry ate less and less, and sometimes she would only have one small meal for the whole day. Jackson knew that this was also because of Emily's death, and he was worried about her very much. He had tried his best to comfort her, but all of his efforts had been in vain.

One evening, the couple was sitting on a deck chair on their balcony, under a starry sky. Cherry was lying obediently in Jackson's arms, and was looking up at the star-lit heavens, mute, and lost in thought.

Suddenly, Jackson whispered, "Honey."

Cherry didn't reply, and instead still looked up at the sky.

Jackson knew that Cherry had surely heard him, and continued, regardless of Cherry's silence. "Would you please talk to me? I want to listen to you."

At that moment, as he held Cherry's slender waist as tight as he could, Jackson's voice couldn't have been more tender than it was.

After some time, Cherry began to speak, "Jackson."

He was happy when he heard his wife finally speak to him. He quickly said, "Yes, I'm here."

"I miss Emily so much..."

Jackson didn't know how to comfort her.

He paused for several seconds, looked for the words, and said, "Honey, I'm sorry about Emily; it was all my fault. All of this wouldn't have happened if I hadn't misunderstood you in the first place..."

Jackson continued, "But Cherr, could you please just stop torturing yourself like this? Seeing you like this breaks my heart; I don't want you to be like this."

Jackson was almost in tears, but Cherry shed them first before he had the chance.

She burst into tears, and said, "Do you know something? In the whole world, the only two people that have ever treated me well are Emily and Wilson. They have never hurt me. When Wilson had to go abroad, I was left with only Emily, and she was very important for me, but now she...She's…"

Cherry then sobbed, and couldn't say anything more. She had never expected that Emily would die because of her, and if she had not come to her house, and not asked her for her help, then she would have still been alive.

Jackson once again tightly held her in his arms and comforted her, and said, "Honey, it's alright. Please, don't be afraid; don't be afraid; everything's going to be alright."

As she thought of the horrific scene, Cherry closed her eyes, and could not help but shudder. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't wipe it from her mind.

Both Cherry and Jackson then kept their silence.

It was late at night, and the stars were shining bright above them. Cherry slowly opened her eyes, and as she looked up at the starry sky, she suddenly said, "I miss Wilson..."

Jackson was a little unhappy when he heard her words. She was missing Wilson, a man who had no blood ties with her. He was a little concerned and jealous, and according to his investigations, Wilson Yuwen was good on both mental capabilities, and appearance. He could tell from Cherry's remark and tone that Wilson had been good to her, and that he must have played an important role in Cherry's heart. Jackson wondered what role he himself played in her heart.

He hid all of these thoughts deep in his heart, and didn't dare to show them in Cherry's presence. He carefully said, "It's all right, honey, he must miss you as much as you do, but you still have me with you, and I'll always be here for you."

Jackson meant his words, and he was determined to be with Cherry for the rest of his life.

But Cherry fell silent again.

In the morning, while Jackson was still asleep in bed holding Cherry in his arms, his phone rang.

When he heard the ringtone, Jackson immediately opened his eyes, grabbed the phone from the bedside, and tapped the "Reject Call" button.

He saw that Cherry slightly moved in his arms, and was relieved that she was not awakened.

Jackson then checked his call list and found that Derek had been the one calling. He suddenly had a foreboding that something must have happened.

Jackson looked again at Cherry in his arms, thought for a while longer, and then whispered lovingly near her ear, "Honey, I'll go outside to call Derek back."

Cherry vaguely heard Jackson's words, and gently said, "Hm."

Jackson then slowly got out of bed, put a night-robe on, and walked out of the bedroom.

He didn't call Derek back until he entered his study and closed the door.

The call quickly went through.

"Jackson, " said Derek. His voice sounded to be a little hurried.

"What's wrong?" asked Jackson. He was sure that something must have happened, or otherwise Derek's voice wouldn't have sounded like that.

"Emily's funeral has been properly handled, but…"

Derek did not finish his sentence, and after he listened to Derek's partial sentence, Jackson became infuriated. He coldly said, "You know what to do with Jean Shen."

Derek paused for a while, and said, "But Jackson, she was John's wife. Are you sure that we want to take actions against her?"

Without thinking it twice, Jackson said, "Anyone who dares to hurt my woman has to pay!"

"But John…" Derek was still a bit hesitant. John was Jackson's nephew, and Jean was Cherry's sister; once Jackson took actions against her, there would be no turning back.

Jackson then suddenly burst into fury, and shouted at Derek, "Derek, are you questioning my orders?"

"No, no, no, " said Derek hastily. In order to calm Jackson down, Derek continued, "John and Jean just divorced yesterday."

"Then what are you concerned about? I'll never let Jean go, " said Jackson.

Derek didn't dare to say anything more to contradict him, and only replied, "Okay, I'll obey your orders."

"Remember, I don't want to see that Jean Shen again, " ordered Jackson. He couldn't have hated her more, and if it hadn't been for her, Emily would not have died, and Cherry would not have been so sad.

"Okay, understood, " said Derek.

Jackson then hung up the phone.

Jackson stood in front of the window and looked out through it. He was now both sad and angry, and it seemed that he couldn't calm down to do his other tasks. John had divorced Jean, but Jackson still thought that it wasn't enough of a retribution for her. She was beyond vicious, and she deserved an even greater punishment. He couldn't possibly let her off so easily. Nobody in the world was allowed to hurt his woman.

All of a sudden, his phone rang again.

Jackson frowned when he saw that Andrew was the one who was calling.

Jackson first took a deep breath and then answered the phone.

He politely said, "Hello, Grandpa."

Andrew's voice came from the other end of the line, and said, "Jackson, have you been missing from the barracks recently?"

Jackson tried to calm down, and said, "Yes, I have. I'm at home now." He knew well that Andrew's sensitivity was beyond imagination, and he did not want Andrew to hear his anger over the phone.

"It's no wonder then that Derek is also at home." Andrew continued, "Jackson, I found out what happened to you, Cherry and John."

Jackson was surprised, and he could not help but say, "Grandpa..."

Andrew quickly said, "That doesn't mean that I will interfere with your decisions. I believe in you, and I believe that you can handle it well."

"Mhm." Jackson didn't say anything more, and he had never expected Andrew to know so much. He had thought that Andrew was only enjoying his life in the residential compound, but now it seemed that he had underestimated his capability.

"Jackson, I believe in you that you can handle you relationship with Cherry. As for John, Lucia and Edwin have already told me what happened. John divorced Jean, and coming from my side, that's okay. The Shen family will never dare to do anything to the Ye family, but, if they ever want to do anything..." Andrew paused for a few moments, and continued, "Please tell Cherry beforehand that I won't let the Shen family off just because of her. I also have to protect the Chu clan, the Ye clan and also your elder sister. Even though she's my elder brother's granddaughter, she grew up together with you, and I can't see her suffering."

Jackson thought for a while and immediately understood what his grandpa meant. He said, "Grandpa, there's no need to worry about us, I'll talk with Cherry, rest assured. Cherry doesn't even get on too well with the Shen clan; Jade Qiao is her step mother, and Harrison didn't treat her well too. Do whatever you want to them; it's okay."

After he heard Jackson's words, Andrew was very happy, and said, "That's good, that's very good."

"Yes, Grandpa, " he said. Jackson was always very polite whenever he spoke with Andrew, or whenever he was in his presence.

Andrew suddenly smiled, and said, "Cherry must have been unhappy recently. You two come to the residential compound; I'll ask the housemaid to cook some delicious food for you. We'll have dinner together; I also miss Cherry."

Andrew's words enlightened Jackson. He wanted to make Cherry happy, but couldn't find the right way. Maybe if they had dinner in the residential compound, Cherry would be happy in his grandpa's presence.

"Okay, Grandpa. She's still asleep now, I'll tell her when she wakes up, " said Jackson.

"Okay, okay, " cheerfully said Andrew. "I'll ask the butler to go shopping and the housemaid to make the proper preparations right now."

After he said this, Andrew hung up the phone.

Jackson looked at the phone in his hand, and felt a little less gloomy than he was before.