The Wrong Girl and the Wronged Girl (Stella and Ethan) novel Chapter 882

Andy watched as Dan downed glass after glass of liquor—until finally, unsatisfied, he just grabbed the bottle and drank straight from it.

They’d both spent years moving through rough, ruthless crowds, seen all kinds of heavy-drinking scenes; but even so, Andy was shaken by the sight in front of him.

“Come on, Dan, you can’t keep drinking like that.”

He reached for the bottle, but Dan swerved away, clutching it tight.

“Hey, what the heck—” Andy muttered, then turned to Conan, who was sitting beside Dan. “What’s going on?”

Conan glanced from Andy to Dan, frowning. “He’s upset—something hit him hard.”

“Hit him hard? With what?” Andy asked, confused.

In Redwood, what could possibly get to Dan like this? Who or what could have pushed him this far?

“Don’t tell me it’s about Black Mountain?”

Black Mountain... no way. Could it be that he wasn’t Mr. Dale’s son? But that didn’t make sense—Dan had never cared much about Dale anyway; that father-son bond had always been lukewarm at best.

Andy just couldn’t see Dale being the reason behind this mess.

Conan ran a hand through his hair, looking uneasy. “It’s... hard to explain.”

Which really meant he didn’t want to say it.

Andy’s mouth twitched.

He turned back to Dan. “No, seriously—what’s going on with you?”

“Marie believed the guy that night was Derrick,” Dan slurred, his voice thick with alcohol and frustration. “But she didn’t hit him.”

Andy went silent.

“What did you just say? Say that again?”

He’d heard it right, but still couldn’t process it. Marie didn’t hit Derrick? What? How? Why on earth wouldn’t she hit Derrick?

Back then, she’d almost beaten Dan to death for the same thing—and Andy hadn’t escaped unscathed either. He still had bruises fading on his ribs.

Dan took another angry swig. “She didn’t hit him—just grabbed him a few times by the waist. Didn’t even hurt!”

The more he talked, the madder he got. His brief self-pity turned into pure rage.

Especially remembering how smug Derrick had sounded on the phone when he told him.

Just thinking about it made Dan want to explode.

Andy blinked. “Wait—she just grabbed him a few times?”

Andy tought. Just grabbed him? That was it? That was Marie’s reaction after finding out Derrick was the guy from that night? That didn’t make sense. She’d gone savage on them!

“Yes!” Dan snapped.

Unbelievable. They’d just been playing cards that night, and Marie had nearly beaten them all into the ground.

If Sebastian had been around, he should’ve had it even worse, right? Thinking that, Andy pulled out his phone and dialed Sebastian.

They weren’t even letting him take the main road. They wanted him to walk the side road back?

He opened his navigation app—and when he saw the route marked forty miles long, he almost fainted.

He still remembered what the guy had told him earlier, “This road belongs to the Dawson family. If they don’t want you walking it, you don’t walk it.”

Sebastian went quiet.

He slapped himself twice across the face, almost wishing he could tear his own mouth off.

How could he have snapped at Marie like that. No—he couldn’t even let himself think of her that way.

Still… Why had those two stupid words—that shrew—slipped out of his mouth so naturally back then?

And of course, just his luck, one of Marie’s people overheard and immediately tattled to her.

Sebastian was ready to explode.

He was about to call Derrick again when Andy’s name popped up on his phone.

Sebastian answered weakly. “What do you want?”

His voice was faint—he sounded completely drained.

Just thinking about those forty miles made his legs ache already; if he really had to walk that distance, he’d be crippled by the end of it.

Andy, hearing that tired tone, immediately thought the worst. “Wait—you got beaten up?”