Reborn to Dodge the Bad Marriage novel Chapter 199

Chapter 199 The Perfect Stepmother

Finished

Mandy kept going “What I told them was that Sabrina Cole used to work for me and is signed to Nora now, and that they should take good care of her.

“They wanted to get on my good side and read it the wrong way, and it turned into them going after her. How is any of that on me?”

Nora scoffed. “You’ve gotten good at wriggling.”

Mandy had clearly prepared for this.

“Then why did Yvette Sinclair wire money to Gus Merrick so he would post a false account and push people online to attack Nora Sinclair?”

Yvette let out a breath and arranged her face into the worried stepmother. “I did send him money. It didn’t happen the way he says.

“He came to me with that video and threatened to post footage of Nora assaulting him unless I paid him $2,000,000 to make it disappear.

“I’m only her stepmother, but I raised her from a child. I wasn’t going to stand by and let him ruin her. I didn’t have that much on hand and I didn’t dare tell her father, so I talked him down to $1,000,000.

“I paid, and he was still angry enough to post the footage anyway. That’s extortion.”

Nora laughed out loud. “You really are good at this. You play the loving mother better than a real one would.”

The explanation hadn’t occurred to her, and every piece of it held together.

Yvette looked wounded. “You don’t have to believe me. Being a stepmother is hard. I knew that before I married your father. A child who isn’t yours never quite becomes yours. That’s all right. My conscience is clear.”

Then, she turned to the officers. “There’s a note attached to that transfer. And an hour ago I filed a report at my local precinct saying he was extorting me.

“All of it can be verified.”

Yvette’s phone was already with the police, and one call to that precinct would settle the report.

Both phones came back quickly, and the transfer turned up on them.

Hers carried a line of text with it. “$1,000,000 for the footage. Don’t turn the internet loose on my daughter Nora.”

The precinct confirmed the rest. “Half an hour ago we took an extortion report. Complainant Yvette Sinclair, suspect Gus Merrick. We’re investigating. Although, don’t you already have Merrick in custody?”

The fear drained out of Mandy and left confidence in its place.

She looked at Nora, pleased with herself. “We’ve done nothing but help you. You don’t have to be grateful,

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Chapter 199 The Perfect Stepmother

but you don’t get to accuse us either. Apologize. Now.”

Finished

He had the good stepmother back on her face. “I know you blame me, Nora, and that’s all right. You lost your mother young. I understand it.

“Whatever you have, bring it to me and leave Mandy out of it. All of this is hard on your father too.”

Mandy pushed, delighted with herself. “Apologize. On your knees, the way you used to do it for us.”

Yvette frowned at her. “Mandy. We’re family. Don’t talk like that. As long as Nora is safe, none of the rest

matters.”

Mandy wasn’t ready to let it go. She had waited a long time for an apology out of her. Then, she registered Adrian standing there, and Julian watching her with ice in his eyes, and her nerve went.

Mandy gave in with bad grace. “Never mind. You’re my sister, so I’ll be generous and skip the apology. A thank you, though. You owe us that much, or that $1,000,000 went out the door for nothing.”

It felt wonderful, watching her swallow something she couldn’t spit back out and still come up owing them a thank you. That $1,000,000 had bought something worth having.

Nora glanced at a message from Ryder and laughed. “Don’t get ahead of yourselves. And take this as free advice. If the law is what gets to you, count yourselves lucky.”

Yvette was wearing the smile of somebody who had already won. “We’ve cooperated, and we’re victims in this as well. May we go?”

Yvette hadn’t handed Gus Merrick a plan without preparing for this. She was never going to be the one who ended up in a cell over it.

Julian looked a question at Nora.

Nora nodded. “Let’s go.”

“With the charges stacked,” Julian said, “Merrick is looking at more than 10 years.”

Then, he dropped his voice. “As for Yvette, I have other ways of getting the truth out of her.”

Nora smiled. “No need. I have my own.”

Julian didn’t like that polite distance any better this time. “Wait here. I’ll bring the car around.”

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