Never Judge

"Please understand Camilla, I'm not making excuses for my actions or for your parents' actions." Grandpa Ortiz said as he moved to sit up in bed.

Benedict quickly rushed up and helped him.

"I tried to bury the memory of losing you, I tried to forget." Grandpa Ortiz said, shaking his head.

"Grandpa, I understand." As much as Camilla didn't want to admit it, she didn't blame him for trying to move on. She did the same, she did everything she could to forget about her real family.

"I couldn't Camilla." Grandpa Ortiz said, shaking his head. "I couldn't forget how you cried when your parents pulled you away from Benedict."

"Grandpa, why don't you tell us from the beginning?" Benedict asked as he held his grandfather's hand.

Grandpa Ortiz nodded as he adjusted himself on the bed.

"Your parents were never the best kind of people." Grandpa Ortiz said, shaking his head. "Your mom was always a problem child growing up. Your grandmother and I thought that if we arranged a marriage for her with a man from a good family she would become a better person."

Grandpa Ortiz sighed as he recalled his long deceased daughter. Cedric could see how painful the memory actually was to the old man, Cedric was sure that despite everything, he loved his daughter.

"It would be a lie to say that my daughter could have married the best of the best, she couldn't. She wasn't some great beauty, nor was she smart enough to maneuver her way into a top family." Grandpa Ortiz said, shaking his head. "I was classmates with your father's uncle, he spoke about a nephew who had recently gained favor with a relative of theirs. I, of course, knew that your father was part of the Lim's extended family. So I thought, why not, the Lims are just as rich and just as powerful as many top families." 

"You married her off for power and money." Camilla said slowly, her voice, emotionless. There was nothing new with what her grandfather did, most families still married off their sons and daughters to expand their influence.

"No, I didn't." Grandpa Ortiz said, shaking his head. "I married her off in the hopes that she would become a better person and that she and her children could have a better future."

"My uncle wasn't the best choice for that." Ian said as he leaned against the door frame. 

Cedric gave Ian a sad look. He could see the anger in Ian's eyes, it was rare for Ian to show such emotions now, but when he did even Cedric would get worried about him losing his temper.

"Mr. Lim." Grandpa Ortiz said, bowing his head in respect.

"You placed two clearly unstable people together. My uncle was the puppeteer and your daughter the puppet. She allowed him and encouraged him to do all the crimes he had committed." Ian said, shaking his head as he kept his distance from the old man.

"I never knew he was that kind of a man." Grandpa Ortiz said in a sad tone. "Had I known, I would never have insisted on the union."

"What's done is done." Ian said with a shrug. "I guess we should still be somewhat thankful for what happened. If you hadn't insisted on their marriage, I wouldn't have one of my best friends."

"Technically, we are cousins." Camilla said with a laugh, earning her a grunt from Ian.

"Continue your story." Ian said, nodding at the old man as he joined them in the room.

"When your parents had Aiden your father was already stealing from the Lims. He realized that if he had any other children he would need to hide you." Grandpa Ortiz explained.

"Why?" Benedict asked as he gave his grandfather a confused look. 

"I thought you were the smart one." Camilla teased her brother.

"You tell me why then." Benedict told her, rolling his eyes.

"Simple, because father didn't want the Lims using us as leverage." Camilla said with a shrug. She had learned a lot of things about scheming people over the years, her work with Cedric taught her how to see clearly through people's intentions.

"She's right." Grandpa Ortiz said with a nod."He kept Benedict hidden so that just in case the Lims used Aiden he still had a spare."

"An heir and a spare?" Cedric asked with a raised eyebrow.

"My son in law was not one of the most progressive thinkers." Grandpa Ortiz said, shaking his head. "He and my daughter had planned to stop having children after Benedict. Why? Because he had no need for more children. To Rene Ty children were mere tools to be used to achieve a goal. But like any man he had needs."

"I was an accident, that's why they hated me?" Camilla asked as she carried a confused look on her face.

"It wasn't just that." Grandpa Ortiz said, shaking his head. "Your father had some procedure done in order to stop himself from having children in the future, but he didn't have it done in a proper hospital. He didn't want the Lims finding out, but either way, when your mom got pregnant with you he thought that she had cheated on him."

"That would explain why dad didn't like me, but what about mom? I was still her flesh and blood, how could she stand by as he hurt me?" Camilla asked.

"Because after she had you, their relationship began to break." Grandpa Ortiz said with a frown. "Your mom couldn't take the pain of her husband constantly ignoring her, of him bringing home a new woman every night. She blamed you for bringing her that pain."

"So am I not my father's daughter?" Camilla asked, seeking some sort of reprieve from the painful memory. "Maybe if he wasn't my dad I still have a parent out there that would love me."

Grandpa Ortiz shook his head, telling her no.

"Your mother was never with any other man, nor did she have the chance to be with any other man. She and your father spent almost every waking moment together, he was a paranoid man and he never let your mother stay too far away from him for too long." The old man recalled.