Said No to the Prince and Yes to the King novel Chapter 18

Chapter 18 Breaking Free

Christopher clenched his fists, seething with rage.

Finished

Seeing the three of them united against her, Margaret smiled and turned to Jasper. “Jasper, you might not know this, but in His Highness‘ eyes, everyone in this house just adores me.”

She continued, her voice dripping with irony. “His Highness also believes that Stella has endured so much suffering. He says Father loves me most, Jasper values me most, and that I’m the luckiest person in the world. He thinks Stella is so pitiful, with only him to protect her. That’s why, ever since Stella returned, His Highness hasn’t given me a single kind look. I wonder if Stella told him that, or if someone deliberately led him to believe it? Hah.” She paused, then fixed her gaze on Jasper. “Since we’re all here today, I’d like to ask you, Jasper–do you think I’m lucky?”

Jasper’s eyelid twitched. Before he could respond, Margaret had already turned back to Christopher.

“And you, Your Highness. You keep saying my brother loves me best. So why am I always be grounded or apologizing to Stella? My brother tells me you love me most–that I’m the one you truly want, and that’s why I’m so awful to her. So let me ask you, right here, right now–who do you actually love?”

Christopher snapped, “Of course I love Stella most! What we had was a mistake from the start!”

Margaret nodded, then looked at Jasper again. “And you, Jasper–who do you care for most?”

Jasper exhaled heavily. “You’re both my sisters. I’ve always treated you equally—”

“Then let me rephrase. Growing up, how many times did you ground me? How many times did you force me to apologize to her? When you had something good–food, toys, pretty things–who got it first?”

Jasper’s face stiffened. He couldn’t answer. —

Because he knew the truth.

And that left him speechless.

=

Margaret laughed, “Exactly. You’ve favored her your whole life. But you tell everyone I’m the favorite. I should ask you–does your conscience even twitch?”

Jasper’s expression darkened further. He remained silent for a long moment.

Margaret had already turned back to Christopher.

“And you, Your Highness. You love Stella. Fine. But you kept me dangling. Kept me around. Everyone says I’m the luckiest woman alive. But I’m the one they curse. I’m the one they mock. I’m the one they hurt.”

“You all think I’m so blessed. So how come my servants report everything I do to you? How come Stella’s servants know how to keep their mouths shut?”

Christopher’s brow furrowed. He glanced at Jasper, disbelief in his eyes, wondering if what Margaret said

was true.

But Jasper remained motionless.

8:35 pm

Chapter 18 Breaking Free

Clearly, every word Margaret spoke was true.

Finished

Something uncomfortable stirred in Christopher’s chest. After a long pause, he finally said, “I concealed the fact that you fell off the cliff. But ultimately, this is your fault. If you hadn’t made such a scene…”

He took a deep breath. “Forget it. It’s done. Maybe I misunderstood some things. But you keep attacking Stella. That’s why we thought—”

Jasper finally spoke. “Margaret-”

“Enough!”

Margaret shouted, her face twisted with disgust.

“Can you two stop with the bullshit? I’m done. I’m out. If you have any conscience left, leave me alone, Go dote on poor, suffering Stella. I’m the lucky one, remember? I don’t need any of you.”

Jasper’s heart clenched. For some reason, discomfort gnawed at him.

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