Noelle heard Lucas's voice, but she didn't even turn her head. She had nothing left to say to the Liddells.
Without a word, Noelle got into the passenger seat. Lucas knocked on the window. "Noelle, don't take what Donovan said earlier to heart."
Noelle's expression was cold. "I never take the words of irrelevant people to heart."
Lucas felt a sting in his heart. He stammered, "Noelle, Donovan's always b-been like this. He c-cares about his pride. You embarrassed him in front of everyone, and that's why he's upset. We're still f-family, aren't we? Do we really need to go this far?"
Noelle let out a bitter laugh. "Family? I've already severed ties with you all. We're no longer family. From now on, you better act like we're strangers when you see me."
Cedric stepped on the gas and drove off, not giving Lucas the chance to say anything more.
Lucas watched the car disappear into the distance. He slumped to the ground and pulled out his phone to message Noelle, only to realize he had been blocked long ago.
Thinking back to the things he had said to Noelle, regret surged through him.
Donovan stormed out. "Where's Noelle? How dare she spout nonsense in front of the media? I'll make sure she learns her lesson this time!"
"Donovan, Noelle's gone. It's because we've let her down that she's upset and cut ties with the Liddell family. We're the ones in the wrong," Lucas said.
"You fool. Why are you standing up for Noelle? She's this arrogant because you and Frank spoiled her. Isn't she relying on that school doctor now? I'll take care of him. He's just a mere doctor, so it'll be easy to get rid of him."
Donovan exploded in anger and stormed off.
Lucas hurriedly called Frank. "Frank, it's bad. Noelle received the Outstanding Youth Award at the convention today, but she publicly announced cutting ties with the Liddell family in front of the media. Donovan's furious. He's already planning to go after Noelle and that school doctor."
Frank immediately got out of bed. "I'm on my way. You need to calm Donovan down. Don't let him do anything to harm Noelle."
The attending doctor quickly intervened. "Mr. Liddell, you're still undergoing treatment. You can't leave."
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: No longer a pushover (Noelle and Cedric)