Chapter 166
Sofia clung to Zinnia desperately, as if she feared Zinnia would disappear the moment she let go.
Zinnia stood frozen, not knowing how to face the Lynns. Zinnia could see unmistakable worry filling their eyes.
Noticing Zinnia’s flustered expression, Yannis pushed the door wide open and said, “Sofia, Henry, come on in.”
“Yannis, thank you for looking after Zinnia,” Charlie said, the last to enter. Seeing Zinnia safe and sound, he finally let out the breath he’d been holding.
“We’re friends, no need to thank me. Come on in,” Yannis said, ushering Charlie inside.
Sofia gripped Zinnia’s hand tightly and said, “Zinnia, don’t listen to Maelis or any of the Shaws. They’re all out of their minds. From now on, you’re only my granddaughter now; you have nothing to do with the Shaw family.”
Sofia adored Zinnia from the bottom of her heart. When she and Henry got the call from Jackson, their heads were buzzing. They knew Maelis could be foolish, but never imagined she’d be so confused she couldn’t tell right from wrong.
Zinnia was caught off guard by Sofia’s reaction. A complicated mix of emotions welled up inside her. She had expected Sofia and the others to scold her for being immature, but instead, they were standing up for her.
Seeing the lost look on Zinnia’s face, Sofia’s heart ached. She said softly, “Zinnia, go home with me. I’ll protect you. No one’s going to mess with you. If anyone dares to bully you, I’ll take them down, one or two, I’ll handle them all.”
Sofia had thought that once Zinnia moved out, the Shaw family would finally calm down. But to her utter disbelief, they stooped so low as to pull such a shameful stunt, all for Betty, an outsider. Her disappointment in Maelis knew no bounds.
“Zinnia, Sofia’s right. Come home with us. We won’t let anyone from the Shaw family bother you again,” Henry said softly, his heart aching.
Henry cherished Zinnia dearly. He cursed Maelis inwardly for the way she treated Zinnia.
“Sofia, I’m grown up now. I can take care of myself,” Zinnia said softly, lowering her head in quiet refusal as she faced their affection.
Sofia tightened her grip on Zinnia’s hand. Her eyes blazed with unwavering determination as she said, “Zinnia, your mother has no say in the Lynn family. You are a Lynn now, not a Shaw. The Shaws don’t deserve to call you family.
“I will make a public announcement that you have severed ties with the Shaw family and that you are my only granddaughter.”
Sofia had once held onto hope that Maelis and the Shaw family might come to their senses, but instead, they only went from bad to worse.
She thought, ‘The Shaws just don’t know how to cherish anything. If they don’t want Zinnia, then we would gladly take her in and cherish her as our
own.‘
Zinnia said, “Sofia, it’s okay. I know you love me dearly, but I don’t want you to worry about me because of this. You’ve already done so much for me. I will just live alone and stay away from the Shaws.”
After Zinnia was acknowledged by the Shaw family, although the Shaw family did not publicly declare that she was their biological daughter, her identity was not a secret within their circle.
Now that she had severed ties with the Shaw family, she didn’t want to be associated with them anymore.
However, Zinnia wasn’t very supportive of Sofia’s proposal to make such a public announcement. She was worried that if Maelis found out, she would
cause trouble for Sofia and the others.
Zinnia thought, ‘Ever since I moved in with the Lynns, Maelis has made no secret of her disdain for me, constantly disapproving of Sofia and the others taking me in.
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