Escape from Mr. Whitman (Emma and Theodore) novel Chapter 394

Cathie lost her temper completely and shouted from the sidelines, “Hanley, are you just going to stand there and take it? Fight back, you coward! How long are you planning to just stand there and get beat up?”

Hanley and Jared were tangled together in a wild scuffle, neither of them hearing a word she said.

Cathie’s personality was never one for patience; she exploded into action, grabbed a metal rod from the car, and swung it right at Jared.

Hanley turned just in time to see—oh God, his wife was pregnant!

He rushed to stop her, but it was too late. The rod landed squarely on Jared’s back with a sickening thud.

Fearing Jared might lose it and turn on Cathie, Hanley shielded her with his whole body, holding her tight. Cathie, unable to move, still managed to fling the rod, trying to land another blow on Jared.

This time, Jared was ready. He blocked with his arm, but it was a metal rod—pain shot up his arm, making him wince.

“You crazy witch!” Jared roared, ready to retaliate, but suddenly someone stepped between them.

It was Nita.

She moved quickly, snatching up the rod and holding it in front of her. “You want to try me? Go ahead!”

She’d spent years under Jared’s thumb, always being pushed around and silenced. But this—this was the first time she’d ever stood her ground like this.

Jared stared at her in disbelief. Nita, of all people, was now brandishing a weapon at him?

Must be Hanley’s wife’s bad influence!

He bellowed, “You think you can take me on now? You’ve got some nerve!” He lunged forward, trying to snatch the rod from her hands.

But Nita didn’t wait for him to get close. She swung the rod wildly, not even sure if she’d hit him, just knowing that as long as she kept it moving, he wouldn’t be able to grab it. If he ever got his hands on it, she knew she’d never win.

Amid the chaos, Jared really couldn’t get close. Every time he tried to grab the rod, Nita’s wild swings caught his hand or arm, making him wince from the impact.

After a few painful attempts, he gave up on the rod and tried to circle around to get to Hanley and Cathie, but Nita blocked him at every turn, stubbornly keeping herself between him and his targets. For the moment, he couldn’t break through.

That’s when the bailiffs arrived, finally putting an end to the chaos.

One of them confiscated the rod from Nita, who was left standing there, her hair a tangled mess, her whole body trembling. Across from her, Jared was being restrained.

Their eyes met. Jared’s glare was full of venom. “Nita, I never mistreated you, and this is how you repay me? You’re really something.”

Nita worked to steady her breathing, still ragged from the adrenaline. She didn’t bother to say another word.

Cecilia’s voice faltered. Having Rossi get involved was even scarier.

“So what am I supposed to do now? Where am I going to live?” Images flashed through her mind of the day she returned, the celebration, thinking her life was finally on the upswing. She never imagined it would come to this. “I’m carrying your child!”

“You definitely can’t stay at my place,” Jared said, keeping his distance for the sake of his partnership with Melvin Laurent. “Book yourself a hotel. Keep things quiet, don’t make a scene. As long as you behave, you and the baby will be just fine.”

Furious, Cecilia hurled her phone across the room.

Jared’s voice still came through the speaker, “Don’t lose your mind and break your phone. I won’t be sending you any more money for a long time, so you’d better manage with what you have. Don’t even think about buying a new one.”

“Aaah!” Cecilia shrieked, his words like gasoline on a fire.

When Nita came to reclaim the house, she brought a professional moving crew. Hanley showed up too, but only because Cathie forced him to choose sides first—otherwise, she would have come herself, pregnant or not.

Hanley was miserable about it, unable to fathom how the four of them had gone from best friends to this disaster.

He rang the bell and waited for Cecilia to answer.

Cecilia, hearing his voice, broke down in tears, calling out weakly, “Hanley…”