Who Knew My Assigned Mechanic Husband Was a Big Shot? novel Chapter 59

"We went to an escape room tonight. I originally gave two tickets to Zane, but for some reason, Sloane and her husband showed up instead. The whole time we were in there, they... they kept terrorizing me! Especially her husband. He kept tricking me into the darkest, scariest rooms. I almost passed out from panic multiple times!"

"What? Are you serious?" Madeline bristled with indignation. "That Sloane is unbelievable. I tried setting her up with proper matches, but she refused and insisted on pulling a random nobody from the Civil Affairs Bureau! Now they're ganging up to bully you? She has absolutely zero class!"

Silas fixed Serena with a piercing, analytical stare.

His voice was dangerously calm. "Did they actually put their hands on you?"

"They tormented me!" Serena insisted fiercely.

She assumed her father was finally going to stand up for her, but instead, he snapped, "Then stop provoking them! And stop wasting your time in those ridiculous escape rooms."

"Dad..." Serena whined, trying to play the victim.

But her pouting earned her no sympathy, only a harsh rebuke. "If you have so much free time, you should be learning how to manage the company. You're twenty-five. Your brother is still in school. I expect you to start carrying your weight around here."

"But..."

Silas's tone turned ice-cold. "It's late. Go to bed."

With that, he turned and stepped into the private elevator to head upstairs.

Failing to get even a shred of sympathy from her father, Serena turned to Madeline to vent.

"Mom, look at him! He never takes my side!"

Madeline gently touched the bruises on Serena's cheek. "That's exactly why you need to listen to him. Get into the office and start helping him run the business. Otherwise, you'll never step out of Sloane's shadow."

"Mom, do you really think I'm worse than Sloane in every way?" Serena asked, utterly defeated.

Madeline sighed, frustrated by her daughter's lack of ambition. "What do you think? Forget about academic records. Right now, she's a respected surgeon who assists in major procedures. And you? All you do is party."

"I... but that doesn't explain why Dad always protects her! You said it yourself, Dad might be secretly funneling her money. If we're not careful, Sloane is going to walk away with a third of the family's assets."

Madeline fell silent.

She knew full well that Silas had never given Sloane a dime. But she lived in constant fear that one day he would.

That underlying paranoia was exactly why she turned a blind eye whenever Serena lashed out at Sloane.

"Serena, just listen to your father. Put your head down and work hard. Once you prove you can handle the business, he'll favor you."

*

The next day, Sloane was still on her mandated leave.

That evening, she went to the supermarket to pick up some groceries.

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