The Princess and the Pauper (Arabella) novel Chapter 1671

"If I'm in a foul mood, then forget it. I'm not lifting a finger to help."

Maureen hadn't expected to be at her mercy, feeling frustrated yet compelled to call her son.

Meredith had been spoiled rotten since childhood, a classic rich brat, living a life of leisure and luxury, spending money like it was going out of style. At the moment, he was in the middle of a card game, "I won! I've won again!!"

He tossed his cards onto the table with glee, as the others around him groaned in dismay.

"Meredith, your luck today is just insane. If you keep this up, we're all gonna go broke."

"Seriously."

"Give us a break, will you?"

The voices of his high-society buddies echoed over the phone.

"If you don't come back now, you can kiss goodbye to 3 million of your inheritance from your dad!" Maureen hit him right where it hurt.

"What 3 million? The entire fortune is mine; who dares to take a penny away from me? Who?"

"It's a long story, but if you want to keep living the high life and have money, you better come home, and the sooner the better. Otherwise, it's not just the 3 million that's at stake. The whole Brooks family will be dragged through the mud, and future business is going to be a lot tougher."

"They're exactly the same. They're both your daughters. You're willing to spend so much on the kids from your ex-wife, but you begrudge Katherine 3 million."

"That's Katherine's mess she got herself into. She needs to cough up the money she earned through dirty means to pay them back. Whatever's missing, as her father, I am willing to cover. After all, it's our fault for not raising her right and letting her make mistakes. You, on the other hand, can't seem to swallow your pride and have her apologize publicly."

"Wow, so now you've got Carol and Dennis, and you're ready to throw Katherine and Meredith to the wolves, pushing the kids to embarrass themselves in front of everyone. That's a new one! You can greet the guests on your own; I'm going inside," Maureen stormed off, fuming.

"Maureen." Rudolf, knowing he would get nowhere with her, resigned himself to welcoming the incoming guests alone against the chilly breeze.

Once all the guests had arrived, Rudolf took to the stage and expressed his gratitude to everyone present.