Larissa's Game of Thrones (Larissa) novel Chapter 71

"Dad, you saw him!" Valeria raged, sinking onto the sofa and clutching her swollen cheeks. "He doesn't even respect you anymore! His legs are useless, so what gives him the right to be so arrogant?"

Draven fetched an ice pack and gently applied it to her face.

"He gets his arrogance from the fact that Zoltan still favors him," Thatch said bitterly. "It's just as he said. Your brother has been back for three years, and Zoltan still hasn't played a single game of chess with him."

Everyone in the Palmer family knew that the patriarch, Zoltan Palmer, loved nothing more than a game of chess. An invitation to play was his ultimate sign of approval.

Draven's eyes burned with resentment. "Don't worry, Dad. Zoltan will recognize my worth eventually. The fact that he hasn't officially named an heir proves that he's wavering. He's just holding out hope that Haskell's legs can be cured."

"But what if they can be?" Valeria asked, a note of panic in her voice.

Thatch's expression hardened. "Even if they can be, I won't let it happen."

He had been the one to select every doctor who had examined Haskell. If a cure were possible, he had ways of ensuring it never came to pass.

"Valeria, I'm sorry," Thatch said, his voice softening as he looked at his daughter. "I failed to stand up for you today, and you were hurt again."

"My feelings are secondary, Dad," Valeria said, her tone turning wheedling. "The real problem is that he doesn't respect you anymore! He actually said your position in the family is all thanks to him!"

At the memory, Thatch's fists clenched. “Just like his mother,” he thought with a surge of fury. “One looked down on her husband, the other looks down on his father!”

He began to scheme, already plotting how to win Honora's heart. It would not only humiliate Haskell but also elevate his own status within the family.

…

Inside the private study of the Palmer family patriarch, Zoltan.

Haskell advanced his knight on the chessboard. Across from him, Zoltan looked up. "I assume your father has told you about the situation with the Judson family?"

"He has," Haskell replied without looking up.