Madly Yours (Nora Reed) novel Chapter 705

River closed his eyes, a very faint, chilling laugh escaping his throat.

"We lost!"

"River..."

Before Arthur II could finish, River cut him off coldly. "But Hudson won't live past three months. And we still have the Ivory Pill..."

"But didn't you already..."

River looked at Arthur II with flat, emotionless eyes. "But Hudson and Nora don't know that."

Arthur II swallowed hard. "You mean..."

River leaned forward slightly. "Hudson is definitely desperate right now. To get his hands on the Ivory Pill, he'll do whatever it takes."

"As long as we make him believe we still have it, he'll let us lead him by the nose to get it!"

He paused, his voice dropping into a deliberate, measured cadence. "And that includes... Nora."

Arthur II clapped his hands together. "Exactly! Nora is the Fairchild heiress now. If she thinks we have the pill, she'll have to do what we say! And given how much the Fairchilds adore her, they won't let her suffer even a little bit. If we control her, doesn't that mean we control the Fairchilds?"

As those words hit the air, River froze for a moment.

Something flashed through his mind at lightning speed.

His eyes lit up. Right! Why hadn't he thought of that!

River's lips curled into a sinister smile. It really was true—blessings come with disasters, and disasters hold hidden blessings.

Nora having the Fairchilds as her backing was certainly a good thing for Hudson.

But looking at it from another angle, it was a catastrophic vulnerability!

Thinking of this, River looked out the window, his smile widening.

There was always a way out!

So what if Nora was the Fairchild heiress?

He still had a way to push Hudson into the abyss.

Hudson Lancaster—

Just wait.

This game had only just begun.

He needed to plan this out carefully, to see exactly who would be the one to kick Hudson into the bottomless depths...

...

Meanwhile, at the Fairchild residence in Northampton.

The family dinner remained incredibly lively.

The other cousins exchanged bewildered looks.

They had assumed the infamous Mr. Lancaster of San Francisco—the so-called Butcher—who ruled his territory with an iron fist, would have a fiery temper. Even with their numbers, they thought they might not be able to intimidate him.

But the result?

He had agreed faster and more willingly than anyone else.

Xander scratched the back of his head, glancing at a cousin beside him and lowering his voice. "Is... is that it?"

The cousin whispered back, "He agreed. What more do you want? You can't exactly make him sign a written guarantee."

"But he agreed way too fast! I haven't even brought out my best lines!"

"Lines for what? Do you actually want to fight him?"

"I mean, that wouldn't be the worst thing..." Xander snuck another glance at Hudson, lowering his voice even further. "Not gonna lie, the guy is pretty handsome. Almost on par with me!"

"...Shut up!"

Sitting a short distance away, Nora watched the scene unfold, unable to suppress a smile.

Her brothers looked fierce and had a talent for running their mouths, but the moment they stood in front of Hudson, a few simple words left them completely stumped.

As she was enjoying the show, she caught sight of a figure walking toward her out of the corner of her eye.

Henry wore a dark gray, traditional-style jacket, its knot buttons fastened meticulously. He looked refined and gentle. Under the warm yellow lighting, the sharp angles of his face softened, making him seem far more approachable than usual.