Family on Their Knees Heart Turned to Ice novel Chapter 1019

Weighing the pros and cons in silence, Martin finally made a calculated decision. He would raise the ax high, but let it fall gently.

Reaching down, he personally hoisted Sabrina up from the floor.

His voice lost its furious edge, softening into a stern warning. "Regardless of your intentions, you crossed a line. And you are going to take responsibility for it.

"Since you created this mess, you have to be the one to clean it up.

"You know exactly what's at stake with Lillian.

"Her current market value isn't just a few billion anymore. We're talking hundreds of billions, maybe even trillions in long-term tech assets.

"Under these circumstances, do you honestly expect the Mercer family to just walk away?

"No matter what she says, she still carries the Mercer name. If there is even the slightest chance of bringing her back into the fold, we have to take it.

"Because you sabotaged that relationship, you need to show some real initiative in fixing it.

"We still have a long life ahead of us, Sabrina. But the quality of that life depends entirely on how this situation is resolved.

"Think very carefully about how you're going to make amends. If you can actually get Lillian to forgive you, that would be the best-case scenario for all of us."

Martin making a point to emphasize Lillian's massive financial worth was a deliberate warning.

While Bella's impending divorce might inject a $50 billion settlement into the company and stop the immediate bleeding, it paled in comparison to the boundless, long-term wealth Lillian could offer.

By spelling it out so clearly, Martin was ordering Sabrina to get her act together and ensure she didn't jeopardize the Mercer Group's future a second time.

Still simmering with residual anger, he didn't offer any further comfort.

And if Martin was reacting this coldly, her two stepsons were probably ready to drag her by the hair and serve her to Lillian on a silver platter.

The more she played the scenario out in her head, the more terrified she became.

Without wasting a second, she grabbed her phone, locked herself in her bedroom, and dialed Bella's number.

She needed to know if Bella was aware of the fallout.

Sabrina had already decided to take the full brunt of the blame, but she needed to make sure her stepsons hadn't ambushed Bella first. If Bella was caught off guard and accidentally contradicted her story, it would be a disaster.

It was fine for one of them to take the fall. But if they both got dragged down, they were finished.

Besides, Bella was finally regaining momentum in her career. She couldn't afford another scandal tearing her down.