Betrayed by the Father Reborn in His Rival's Arms novel Chapter 484

She snatched the medical report back from Xavier, folded it neatly, and slipped it back into her purse.

"But have you ever considered one question?"

Xavier said nothing, just glaring at her intensely.

"If Penelope's pregnancy during my marriage to Quentin is exposed, and then your attempt to blackmail me into a divorce gets leaked..."

Madeline tilted her head slightly, her tone carrying a ruthlessly clinical calmness. "Do you think people will praise the Yorks for their clever tactics? No. People will say the York daughter has no shame, and the York elders are complicit in her depravity.

Your political career, the Yorks' reputation, and Arthur Whitman's lifelong prestige—which one of these do you think could withstand a scandal of that magnitude?"

A vein throbbed at Xavier's temple.

"Furthermore," Madeline didn't give him a chance to interrupt.

"Once this child is born, what will its legal status be? An illegitimate child. Meanwhile, my fertility is perfectly normal, and my husband and I are actively trying to conceive. What possible advantage does this illegitimate baby have over the child Quentin and I will share? Do you really think Quentin Prescott would throw me away over an accidental pregnancy?"

Xavier's expression turned incredibly ugly.

Madeline looked at him, her gaze crystal clear and utterly unwavering.

"Mr. York, you keep saying I have no status or background, and that Penelope has the Yorks to back her up.

But you've forgotten one thing—my marriage to Quentin is legally binding and entirely legitimate. I stand by his side without needing anyone's validation.

Yet for Penelope to stand by his side, she has to ruin me, force Quentin's hand, use a baby as a bargaining chip, and rely on you to abuse your power.

Between the two of us, you know exactly who is more pathetic and lacks any real footing."

The office fell dead silent for several seconds.

He didn't speak again. He just stared at Madeline with an incredibly complex expression—a mixture of anger, shock, and the bitter resentment of having his trump card utterly dismantled.

Having lived for so many years in a position of supreme authority, no one had ever dared speak to him this way.

What was even harder to accept was that the person dressing him down was the exact type of person he looked down on the most—a young woman from the backwoods with absolutely no backing or pedigree.

Yet he couldn't refute a single word she said.

Because it was all true.

The child Penelope was carrying had been a sugar-coated bomb from the moment she conceived.

The York Family was desperately hugging this bomb to their chests, and they would likely be the first ones blown to pieces.