The Coldest Man in the Room Melted Only for Me novel Chapter 419

Victoria St. John was noncommittal. "Your eldest son passed away, and he only left Sebastian behind. It's understandable that you spoil him a bit, but he has zero respect for me as his aunt. In front of all those people in the hospital room, he completely disregarded my dignity and publicly contradicted me. Instead of scolding him, you took his side. Aren't you being far too biased?"

"Sebastian is a fiercely loyal and affectionate child. If he doesn't like you, shouldn't you be reflecting on why?"

Victoria scoffed. "Mom, loyal and affectionate? How can you even say that? Did you forget how Barnaby's legs were broken? It was your precious, loyal grandson who broke them himself!"

By the end of her sentence, her face was flushed with indignation, her voice unconsciously rising.

Eleanor Hayes St. John's wrinkled eyelids trembled, a heavy sorrow settling deep within her cloudy eyes. "Why did he break Barnaby's legs? Look me in the eye and tell me, why?"

The last word carried a heavy, interrogating weight.

Looking into Eleanor's eyes that seemed to see through everything, Victoria's heart skipped a beat.

Did Eleanor know that Sebastian's three-month coma and the resulting half-year paralysis were Barnaby's doing?

No, impossible. Only she and Barnaby knew about that.

Eleanor must have heard the rumors and was just trying to bait her.

Victoria met Eleanor's gaze with feigned candor. "Because he was afraid Barnaby would usurp his power."

Usurp his power?

Eleanor's eyes reddened with anger. She might be eighty, but she wasn't senile. Did they really think she was a fool? "Sebastian lay in a coma for three months and sat in a wheelchair for half a year. Tell me, why did that happen?"

Facing Eleanor's aggressive glare, Victoria gripped her hands tightly at her sides to steady her rising panic. "Mom, what do you mean? Do you actually believe the rumors that Barnaby did it?"

She hadn't wanted to say it, but seeing Victoria's stubborn refusal to admit fault, she couldn't hold back anymore. She demanded in a low voice, "When I fell ill this time, did you switch my medication?"

Victoria's pupils shrank, and she instinctively denied it. "No."

A second later, as if suffering a grave injustice, she said furiously, "Mom, how could you ask such a thing? I am your biological daughter! Why would I switch your medication? Do you know what kind of backlash I'd face if word of this got out? Do you even care about the St. John family's reputation anymore?"

Her voice was pitched high, carrying a trembling note of grievance. But only she knew whether it was from feeling wronged or from sheer terror.

Eleanor had indeed buried her suspicions precisely for the sake of the family's reputation and harmony.

But since the question was asked, she intended to be clear. "Mrs. Higgins has always managed my medication without a single mistake. The day I collapsed, you went into her room. What were you doing in there for no reason?"