Family on Their Knees Heart Turned to Ice novel Chapter 1291

Especially a man like Martin Mercer.

His entire existence was currently consumed by a singular, burning desire: to see the Mercer Group restored to its former glory. And the absolute prerequisite for that miracle was getting Lillian back into the family.

Wasn't Noah the perfect, undeniable bait to lure her in?

Bella let out a soft, mocking laugh. "Brandon, do you honestly just roll over and agree to whatever Sebastian dictates? Don't you have a spine of your own?

"Who is Noah? Why do you think Sebastian was so desperate to drag him back from overseas? Remember, the Blake family elders were the ones who sent him away in the first place. Sebastian couldn't even track him down until recently. He went through all that trouble just so he could use the kid to win Lillian back!

"If Sebastian can use Noah as a bargaining chip to get to Lillian, why on earth wouldn't you do the same? You're his blood relatives. You share the same veins."

Martin had already been leaning toward the idea, but Bella's sharp logic solidified his resolve. He had to get Noah into this house.

Perhaps if he brought Noah along when he went to stand stubbornly in the pouring rain at Halfridge Villas tomorrow morning to beg for forgiveness, Lillian wouldn't be so merciless toward him.

The more he analyzed it, the more obvious it became. Noah needed to live at the Mercer estate, serving as the ultimate anchor to draw Lillian home.

Brandon stared at Bella, his eyes flashing with raw contempt. "Do you think I'm an idiot, Miss Ward? Do you really believe you're the only one capable of basic strategy?

"Yes, having Noah here is an obvious advantage for us. But not everyone sleeping under this roof shares the Mercer name. Don't think I don't know exactly what kind of poison you've been whispering in that kid's ear.

"We want to bond with him. He's my dad's only grandson, and my only nephew. But with certain people running interference, I refuse to stand by and watch the boy get thrown into the fire and brainwashed with absolute garbage."

Hearing the word *garbage*, Sabrina Ward immediately took it as a personal attack. She clutched Martin's arm, her face twisting into a mask of pathetic grievance. "Honey, do you hear the way he speaks to us? Are Bella and I just worthless outsiders in this house?"

When it came to protecting their financial empire, these three Mercer men were infinitely more desperate than she was.

They would figure it out themselves. She didn't need to lift another finger.

Her work here was done.

Besides, she had much more pressing matters to attend to.

Winter had set in, and the sun was already dipping below the horizon, casting long, dark shadows. It was the perfect time to text Lucas. She needed to remind him to take the blood-soaked carpet and her ruined clothes to a remote, abandoned location and destroy them completely.

Keeping that kind of evidence around was a surefire way to invite disaster, and Bella Ward was nothing if not careful.