Leia was leaning into Xavier's arms and trembling nervously.
Renee paced back and forth at the door, looking guilty. "It's all my fault!" She flexed her fingers and bit the back of her fist, filled with reproach.
"It has nothing to do with you. Stop blaming yourself." Justin patted her shoulder, hoping to help her relax a bit. "You aren't a superwoman. You can't do everything well. Plus, it's hard for us to do anything under this circumstance. It's hard to control."
"No, I knew that Benjamin didn't want to kill Amber. He just wanted to test Mateo and Liam…"
Renee was teary as she reflected on what had happened. She felt that she could have stopped that if she was more sensitive and active.
"I guessed that Mateo would attack Amber and that Liam might resist, but I didn't expect him to use his body to block the knife. Is this some kind of melodramatic movie? I taught him so many self-defense techniques. Why was he so dumb? If I stopped it earlier, this would never have happened!"
Renee hated her hesitance. Contrary to her past self, she always considered things thoroughly before she took action. She used to act without considering the consequences or regrets.
It might be because she was getting older and had experienced too many twists and turns. She felt she could avoid getting trapped if she thought through things.
Yet, it seemed like being decisive was better.
"My shame will eat me up if anything happens to Liam. I've wronged him and all of you!" Renee covered her face in deep pain, crying quietly.
"I'm not blaming her, but you're quite protective of her."
"What?" Xavier felt wronged and blamed himself for speaking too much.
He knew Leia was always bothered by his amorous past with Renee. Leia also felt that he saw Shirley as Renee's substitute since he couldn't forget about Shirley.
Renee was Leia's friend, so he and Leia always avoided that topic. They could argue because of Shirley or any other woman, but they never mentioned Renee.
However, the situation right now was like a Pandora's box that had been suddenly opened. Leia stopped feigning indifference.
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