Mom, Don't Cry! Here comes a new Daddy! novel Chapter 153

<Chapter 136-2

Claim

Chapter 136-2

I pull back and look at her.

Her eyes are wide, her mouth gaping, as if she can’t believe what she’s seeing.

“I’ve been unfair,” I say to her. “I was protecting what I built. But I was also… afraid of something that hasn’t even happened yet.”

Sabrina blinks, then hurriedly stands, saying, “No, Mrs. Hale. You were only worried for Ethan.

I can understand that. Jake and I just want to be a part of Ethan’s life…”

“I’m beginning to see that.”

And I am.

Though this isn’t full acceptance, or forgiveness for what Jake has done. This kid showed me I might be going about this the wrong way.

So this… it’s a start.

“I need time,” I tell them. “Time to accept you and Jake. Without bias. Without…” I glance at the door where Rosalie usually appears. “Without outside interference and influence.”

It’s the best I can offer right now.

Jake seems satisfied. “Okay. But Granny Kate, can I come visit you while you try to accept us? I promise I’ll be a good boy. I just want to draw the gardens.”

“You can visit. Bring your tablet too. Just ask first before you film me next time. Deal?”

He grins. “Deal.”

(Three Days Later)

I close the report the private investigator sent me.

Everything I feared about Sabrina-that she’s opportunistic, weak, unsuitable-is contradicted by facts.

She’s exactly what she appears to be. A strong woman who’s survived hell and come out fighting.

The question is: why did I receive different information?

The anonymous dossier. The one the board forwarded.

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I pull it up. Compare it to Marcus Webb’s findings.

Same events. Different framing.

Claim

Webb’s report: Sabrina Moore won custody after demonstrating superior parenting and financial stability.

Anonymous dossier: Custody battle with ex-husband shows pattern of conflict and instability.

Same facts. Opposite conclusions.

Rosalie deliberately misrepresented her.

I pick up my phone. Call her.

“Come to the estate. Now. We need to talk.”

She arrives forty minutes later. Looking nervous.

Good.

I’m waiting in my study. The anonymous dossier printed out on my desk.

“Sit,” I tell her.

She does.

“Did you send me this file about Sabrina?”

Her face goes pale. “I… Grandmother, I was trying to protect you-”

“Answer the question. Did you send this?”

“Yes. But-”

“And the information in it. Did you verify it? Or did you simply compile public records and frame them to make Sabrina look bad?”

Rosalie’s silence is answer enough.

“I raised you better than manipulation, Rosalie.”

“I wasn’t manipulating-”

“You sent an anonymous complaint to the board of directors. You framed Sabrina’s custody victory as proof of instability. You’ve been undermining her from the beginning.” I lean forward. “And you still claim you aren’t manipulating?”

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(Chapter 136-2

“Grandmother, she’s not right for him. She’s from a different world. She has baggage. She’t never understand what it means to be a Hale~*

“Stop.”

My voice cuts through her excuses.

“You don’t get to decide what’s right for Ethan. You don’t get to manipulate information to serve your own interests. And you certainly don’t get to claim you’re protecting him when you’re really protecting your fantasy from shattering to pieces.”

Rosalie flinches like I’ve struck her.

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