Family on Their Knees Heart Turned to Ice novel Chapter 693

Martin knew exactly how much the elder Blakes despised the mother and daughter by his side. He also knew that if they kept pushing, Sebastian's patience would run out, and the marriage would be completely off the table. That's why he had to seize the moment while Sebastian was still willing to go through with the wedding. They could strategize about everything else later. Now was not the time to be making demands.

The thought of her daughter getting married without a dowry or an engagement gift made Sabrina's heart ache as if a knife were twisting in her chest.

"But… Martin, isn't this too unfair to my Bella? I raised her like a princess, not so she could be treated this way."

Martin countered, "Then what do you want to do? It's obvious the elder Blakes won't accept this and are completely against the marriage. If you make more unreasonable demands now, you'll just be pushing Sebastian away. Do you want to lose this heir to a fortune, this president of the Blake Group as a son-in-law?"

His words left Sabrina speechless.

From the back seat, Bella finally spoke. "Mom, stop it. As long as the wedding can go on smoothly, I don't mind anything else."

Sabrina retorted, "You don't mind, but I do. Bella, this is too much for you to bear. It breaks my heart. You're such a sensible, obedient, and capable girl. It hasn't been easy for you to get to where you are today. Why should your wedding be any less than Lillian's?"

She immediately turned back to Martin. "Honey, if it really comes to it, you should keep some of the items returned today. We can exchange them and give them to Bella as a dowry. We can't let her go with nothing, can we?"

Martin said, "The money is with Brandon. As soon as he gets it, he'll transfer it to the company's account. This…"

Sabrina burst into tears, sobbing, "Didn't you say you would love Bella as if she were your own biological daughter? Is this how you treat your own daughter? Lillian's marriage set the bar so high, and now you treat my Bella like this. Martin, you promised to be good to me and Bella for the rest of your life. Is this what you call being good to us? Letting my Bella get married in such a shabby way? How is she supposed to hold her head up high in her new family? Sebastian’s parents already dislike her. If she doesn't have a dowry to back her up, she'll be looked down upon even after she's married. How will she establish herself in the Blake family? How will she get the Blake Group to help the Mercer family?"

Help the Mercer family?

At this point, Martin really could only pin his hopes on Bella.

Sebastian was constrained by the shareholders. The shareholders listened to the elder Blakes, but the elder Blakes didn't approve of him, looked down on the wife he chose, and disapproved of his actions. However, the elder Blakes were getting old. One day they would be gone, and then Sebastian and Bella would be the ones firmly in control of the Blake family empire.

If Bella married into the Blake family, she could carry his hopes for the future. But the thought still left a bitter taste in Martin's mouth. He was born into nobility, yet he was treated so poorly by the elder Blakes.

And Sebastian—he wondered if Sebastian had even been trying to help the Mercer Group lately.

"Honey, if Bella marries well, she can help the Mercer family. You know this girl has a good heart. She's good to whoever is good to her…"

"Mom, please stop," Bella said.

Sabrina continued, crying, "Bella, you don't understand. You came into the Mercer family with me. Marrying Sebastian is, of course, marrying up. When you marry up, you worry that people won't treat you well. Now, if you don't have a valuable dowry to support you, you'll be bullied by your in-laws and looked down on by relatives. The Blake family has a large extended family. In the future, you will become the matriarch of the Blake family. Even with that status, you won't be able to command the respect of the clan's relatives. You'll always be looked down upon and ridiculed."

Sabrina wasn't saying this for Bella's benefit; she was saying it for Martin's. Only if Martin took it to heart would he provide more for Bella's dowry. Only with a substantial dowry would Bella have the respect she needed. That's why Sabrina had to fight for it.

"Alright, I promise. I'll talk to Brandon later and tell him to set aside some money to prepare a dowry for Bella. Didn't Sebastian already buy Bella some jewelry? We'll buy some too, so Bella can bring it with her and keep up appearances."

Sabrina pushed, "What about antiques and decorative pieces? I'm not asking for them to be as expensive as what Lillian had, but we should have a few pieces to make a good impression, right?"

Bella interjected at the perfect moment, "Mom, those things are very expensive. It's okay if we don't have them."

"What do you mean, it's okay? Without them, people will laugh at you. Just listen to your mother. You don't need to worry about anything else."

Bella said, "Alright, if that's the case, then it's up to Dad."

With things having come to this, Martin couldn't really object and could only agree. "We'll buy them. We'll see if there are any suitable auctions and pick up a few pieces. We have to maintain appearances. If it comes down to it, we'll even borrow a few items."

Bella fell silent, her mind spinning with thoughts of Lillian's one-billion-dollar engagement gift and the Blake Group shares. And she, just because the elder Blakes disliked her, got nothing. Not a single penny.

Why? They were both marrying Sebastian, so why did she get nothing?

She couldn't wait a moment longer. She had to get back everything that belonged to her.

It was time for Debbie to be useful.

If she could get Debbie to handle the old Mr. Blake before the wedding, maybe she could still get her one-billion-dollar engagement gift.

"Dad, please drop me off at the intersection ahead. I have something to do."

At this point, she had no interest in going home to scheme with her mother. She probably wouldn't get much money from Lillian's dowry. Her mother had already done her best, fighting for the most she could get. From now on, she had to rely on herself. Helping herself was the most important thing.

Sabrina had been hoping to go home and chat with her daughter, but she was surprised Bella wanted to go out on her own.

"Bella, isn't that your hotel up ahead?"

Bella replied, "Yes. I don't want to go home. Mom, have the driver take you to the hospital later. I'm going to the hotel to meet someone."

Who it was didn't need to be said. Sabrina understood. Perhaps now was the time for Debbie to be useful and give Bella a hand.

"Do you need me to go with you?"

After all, Debbie had been here for some time, and her daughter was footing the bill for all her food, drinks, and lodging. Now, with her status as Sebastian's mother, it was high time she helped her own daughter out.

Sabrina continued, crying, "Bella, you don't understand. You came into the Mercer family with me. Marrying Sebastian is, of course, marrying up. When you marry up, you worry that people won't treat you well. Now, if you don't have a valuable dowry to support you, you'll be bullied by your in-laws and looked down on by relatives. The Blake family has a large extended family. In the future, you will become the matriarch of the Blake family. Even with that status, you won't be able to command the respect of the clan's relatives. You'll always be looked down upon and ridiculed."

Sabrina wasn't saying this for Bella's benefit; she was saying it for Martin's. Only if Martin took it to heart would he provide more for Bella's dowry. Only with a substantial dowry would Bella have the respect she needed. That's why Sabrina had to fight for it.

What was strange was that in all the time she had been here, she had never once suggested visiting her son. Bella couldn't quite figure out what this woman was thinking.

But none of that mattered. That wasn't her main concern anyway.

Back at the hotel, Bella immediately went to knock on Debbie's room door.

The butler answered. When Bella saw him instead of Lucas, she felt a sliver of relief. After all, that night between her and Lucas… although they hadn't crossed the final line, Lucas was Debbie's plaything. For her to have also dallied with him would make for a rather awkward three-person encounter.

After Bella entered, the butler informed her, "Ms. Harris is just getting ready. I've just prepared her meal. Would Miss Ward like to stay for lunch? I can have the hotel add another portion right away."

Bella nodded. "Yes, please."

She was hungry anyway. At Sebastian's villa, she had filled up on water and was starting to feel famished.

The butler immediately went to carry out her request. Bella sat down to wait, and a few moments later, Debbie emerged from the bathroom. She looked a little surprised to see Bella.

"Bella, what brings you here? You didn't even call to let me know. I would have prepared."

Bella said, "Debbie, it was a last-minute thing. I was worried you might still be sleeping and didn't want to disturb you, so I just came directly."

Debbie smiled. "Not at all. I've been sleeping earlier these past two days, so I've been waking up earlier too."

Early? Bella scoffed internally. It was almost noon. It was lunchtime, and she called that early? So much had already happened at the Blake estate.

Honestly, she was a little envious of Debbie's life. It seemed incredibly comfortable. It was this envy that solidified her determination to marry Sebastian. Only by being with Sebastian could she have the life she wanted. In the future, she would have a child, push Noah out of the way, and take over as the head of the Blake family. Only then could she live a carefree life like Debbie's, with no worries, only money.

"Ms. Harris, how are things going with the money from your friend?"

Since it was a loan from a loan shark, Bella was on the hook for high interest payments, so she was naturally anxious. Now that she was face-to-face with Debbie, she had to ask.

Debbie had probably guessed Bella was coming to ask about this very thing. For her, fabricating an excuse on the spot was laughably easy.

"Bella, I'm so sorry. I didn't realize how complicated and troublesome international money transfers were. I'm still waiting on it myself.

"Lately, I've had to be careful with my spending, worried that I'll run out of money before my friend's funds come through. Then I'd be done for, wouldn't I?

"You know how busy that boy Sebastian is. He's always been very generous with me when it comes to money."