The news that Glynnis wasn't a blood Abernathy spread faster than wildfire, and the Abernathy Group found themselves without a playbook for damage control.
Hamilton, still confined to his hospital bed, was blindsided and felt a rage burning through his veins. In the dead of night, he summoned Frederic to his bedside.
Thaddeus and Evadne were there too, and they witnessed the spectacle. Hamilton didn't bother with pleasantries, opting instead to let loose a verbal barrage.
"What did I tell you? In this troubled times, you’d better not stir the pot. With Marilla still out cold, you ought to be glued to your daughter's side, not to cause a ruckus!
Does it really matter what those outsiders think of us? Compared to my dear granddaughter, the so-called family honor is worth jack squat!
You're the head of the Abernathy household, for crying out loud! Why are you going off half-cocked, trying to set things straight with people who don't matter a damn? Where's that young man's decisive spirit gone? Guess you’re getting soft in the head with age, aren’t you?"
Hamilton's face was as white as a sheet, and his breaths turned shallow and rapid. Evadne moved to comfort him, while Thaddeus handed him a glass of water. "Had you not taken it upon yourself, would we be in this fine mess? The face you've been so desperate to save is now covered in spit and trampled into the muck!"
Frederic, feeling a mix of regret and shame burning within, bit his lip so hard that it might bleed. His cheeks felt as though they'd been scorched with boiling water.
Sure, the old man had never minced words, but this time, each word felt like a nail driven into Frederic's flesh.
He was mortified, as he felt he'd played the fool to Elspeth for over two decades.
"Sure, I messed up," Frederic growled through clenched teeth; his eyes were smoldering with resentment as they landed on Thaddeus, who remained stoic.
But Evadne couldn't help but roll her eyes.
Some fathers were rock-solid and took the hits for their kids. But this one? His "fatherly love" was more like a mudslide, quick to shift blame without a shred of responsibility.
Thaddeus' mother must've been a saint to put up with such a deadbeat. If it had been Evadne, she'd have sent him packing to the polar region with a slap!
"He knew full well Glynnis wasn't his daughter, yet he kept mum until he could embarrass me in the worst way. Does he even care about the Abernathy name or is this just some sick game to him?!"
"Thaddeus has never been rash. If he's done that, it's because of your own damn foolishness!" Hamilton pointed his trembling finger straight at Frederic; his outrage was palpable.
"Even if Glynnis isn't your flesh and blood, she was raised an Abernathy, and she was Marilla's sister. But she's harmed her time and again, and she even had a hand in that Fairhaven girl's kidnapping plot! And you, you had the gall to defend her! Is it any wonder Thaddeus is out for blood? If he hadn't acted, I would've cleaned house myself!"
Frederic was speechless.
"A bad seed. Born bad! Ungrateful wretch!"
Hamilton took a sip of water to calm himself and turned to Thaddeus with a puzzled look. "How did you find out she wasn't an Abernathy by blood?"
"Grandpa, it wasn't me. It was Evadne," Thaddeus said, while pulling her close.
Alas, Elspeth was gone, and even with the truth laid bare, it did little to soothe the sting of her absence.
“Glynnis, whose child is she? Who was Elspeth's lover?!” Frederic, his eyes bloodshot with fury, lunged forward and seized the other man by the collar.
“I—I don’t know, I swear!”
As Frederic loomed over him with the ferocity of a storm, the elderly man racked his brain to summon every last drop of memory. Suddenly, his eyes lit up with recognition. “I remember now! There was a man who came with Elspeth to see me!
I can’t say if he’s the father, but I stumbled upon them once; they were too close for comfort, and that man—he kissed Elspeth! I overheard that she called him 'Eddie'. Yes, that was the name! That's all I know, I swear!”
“I know who it is.”
Evadne's expression was ice, “That man, his name is Alex. He used to work with Elspeth at a TV station, and he was the fight choreographer for the show.”
“Where is he now?!” Frederic's rage was ready to boil over, and he was menacing as a thundercloud.
“He's in prison.”
Evadne took Thaddeus' calloused hand in hers and firmly gripped it as she recalled the painful memories, “He was once manipulated by Elspeth to take a hit on Myra. Thankfully, Thaddeus arrived just in time to save her. But in doing so, Thaddeus took a blow to the head with a bat and sustained serious injuries. It was then that I performed the surgery to save his life.”
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: His Ex-Wife Is A Billionaire (Evadne and Thaddeus)
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Where is the continuation of this story? You should not have started writing a story if you dont intend to continue till the end you left us hanging, thats very unprofessional as a writer....
Next chapter please.....
1 chapter per day??...
Hurry up and load more better yet just load the whole book...