Chapter 689: Gone Mad

"Giving her up for adoption? You sent my niece to be a child bride for some halfwit! We’re in a new era now, and you’re still pulling this feudal, backward nonsense. That’s illegal! You just wait, I’m going to get the police right now!"

Bernice put on a show of berating her, then shot the tractor driver a look. The driver got the hint and started the engine, making it seem like they were really going to fetch the police. Linden’s mother’s face paled, and her legs grew so weak she could barely stand.

"What’s going on?"

Preston Thorne had gotten word and come over. Although he was annoyed with Linden Golding’s family, they had to present a united front to outsiders. That was a fundamental principle.

Bernice explained the situation. "I’m willing to be reasonable. As long as they tell me where they sold my niece, I won’t call the police."

Preston Thorne shot Linden’s mother a stern glare and demanded, "Where did you send her?"

He had heard about this, too. Linden Golding’s family had claimed they gave the girl up for adoption, but everyone in the village knew she’d been sold as a child bride to a halfwit. Even though Jacqueline Spann was very likely the one who killed Phoenix Golding, there was no proof. Because of that, the villagers still felt sorry for Jacqueline. Preston Thorne pitied her as well, but he wasn’t one to meddle in other people’s affairs.

But now that the Spann family had come looking for her, they naturally had to hand the girl over.

"That little beast killed Phoenix! She’s not human—she’s worse than an animal! I’m not telling. I want her to suffer in those mountains and atone for what she did to Phoenix!"

Linden’s mother suddenly started screaming like a madwoman. Ever since Phoenix Golding’s death, her mental state had been unstable, and her physical health was deteriorating by the day.

"What nonsense are you spouting? Phoenix fell on her own! If you keep talking crap, I’ll beat you to death!"

Silas Golding had also arrived. Hearing Linden’s mother’s mad ravings, his expression turned foul. He actually found his daughter’s death suspicious too and was inclined to believe Jacqueline Spann had done it. But while others could say it, his own family could not.

If his own family said it, the rumor that Jacqueline Spann had killed her own mother would be set in stone. The incident where Phoenix Golding was paraded through the streets had already happened, filling the village with gossip. Now, if an even more vicious story about a daughter murdering her mother got out, the rumors would spread like wildfire. His family wouldn’t be able to show their faces.

What worried Silas Golding most were his grandchildren’s future marriage prospects. Not only would his grandsons struggle to find wives, but his granddaughters would have an even harder time getting married. That was why, to the public, he could only say Phoenix Golding’s death was an accident. He absolutely could not admit it had anything to do with Jacqueline Spann.

But the old woman couldn’t grasp any of this and was still spouting nonsense in public. No wonder his daughter-in-law couldn’t stand her. She was dumb as a rock.

"It was that little beast who killed her! She’s not human... My Phoenix died so horribly... Even if that little beast died a hundred times, it wouldn’t bring Phoenix back! None of you from the Spann family are any good! I’m not telling you! If you’re so capable, go find her yourself... HA HA HA HA..."

Linden’s mother descended further into madness, laughing uncontrollably. Her gaunt face twisted into a terrifying, almost demonic grimace.

"If you’re going to make accusations like that, you need proof. Did the police say that? This is just your side of the story, and I don’t believe a word of it. My niece would never do something like this."

Bernice didn’t believe it for a second. She had been corresponding with her niece lately, and although they had only met once, she felt Jacqueline was a sensible and well-behaved child—so sensible it broke your heart. How could a child like that lay a vicious hand on her own mother?

’This old woman is just spouting nonsense!’