Chapter 161 The Calm Before the Collapse
Stella nodded softly. “Mm. I wanna go home“:
She felt sick from the wine.
Abraham grabbed the coat draped over the back of a chair and wrapped it around her. “Alright. Let’s go home.”
That word–home–stabbed right into Abraham’s heart.
He lifted her in his arms.
Smuggled against his chest, Stella mumbled, “You lied, Abraham. You said it’d be fun…”
“What does Stella want to do?”
“Something fun. Something yummy.”
But there’d been neither.
Her misty, dazed eyes looked up at him. Abraham chuckled, “Your heart’s not still.”
That made Stella even more aggrieved. She squirmed in his arms in protest.
Outside, the wind was strong and cold.
But wrapped up in Abraham’s coat, Stella didn’t feel even a trace of it.
Abraham carried her into the car.
Up front, Abel glanced in the rearview mirror. “Ms. Stella had too much to drink?”
+8 Pearls
Abraham looked down at the flushed face in his arms. Recalling Eddie’s earlier comments, his expression softened. “She’s grown up. Knows how to care now.”“”
Who’d have thought she couldn’t hold her liquor at all–just two glasses and she was like this.
Abel said. “The Keene family’s been tearing the place apart looking for you. They must’ve found out we’ve settled on a partner and panicked.”
Abraham gave a low laugh. “Good. Let them panic. The longer they stew, the more it’ll torment them.”
“They’re also still trying to figure out who owns Seallats Cove.”
Abraham snorted. “Guess his men are more useless than I thought.”
It had taken them far longer than expected.
Rivermount’s so–called top family? Their people weren’t impressive after all.
Abraham glanced down at Stella and gently adjusted the coat around her.
Abel hesitated, then added, “Judson hasn’t reached out to me yet–he probably still doesn’t know you’re the one behind it all.”
“He will soon, Abraham said.
The moment Judson contacted Abel, Abel would relay Abraham’s message directly.
And once that happened, the entire Keene family would spiral into chaos.
Chapter 161 The Calm Before the Collapse
He had just ended his call with Louis when another one came in–from the hospital. Susan
“Ethan, what on earth is going on? Are you really planning to let Lällian die?!!
Ethan frowned. “What happened?”
“Your father sent ten men to guard Lillian’s hospital room. What does he think he’s doing?”
Susan was already near hysteria,
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Lillian’s health was worsening, and seeing how both families were treating her–her mental state was collapsing too.
Susan’s voice trembled with anger. “Ethan, she can’t take that kind of stress right now. Please tell your father to pull his ment back. What’s he trying to do?!”
Lillian had fainted from sheer anger after seeing Judson’s men.
She was supposed to be discharged in two days,
All she’d been thinking about was moving into Seatlats Cove’s Verdant Villa, But instead of a warm welcome, she got a
1 from Judson.
What was he trying to pull? The Keene family clearly didn’t want her around anymore–those men weren’t there for her safety.
They were guards. Batchmen.
Ethan’s head throbbed at the thought. “I’ll handle it.”
Susan’s tone grew more serious, “Ethan, I know your family doesn’t support you and Lillian anymore. But she’s sick. How’s she supposed to recover with this kind of pressure?”
Ethan rubbed his aching temples. “I know.”
Susan said, “Let’s just get her discharged. Is Verdant Villa ready? If it is. let her recover there.”
After everything the Keene family had done, she couldn’t stay in the hospital another day.
But the moment Susan mentioned Verdant Villa, Ethan’s face went completely stiff.
He said quickly, “Still making arrangements. Tell her not to worry about it.”
“Still arranging it? What does that mean? You haven’t secured it yet?”
That one line sent a spike of panic into Susan’s chest.
Ethan frowned. That’s enough. I’m hanging up.”
He couldn’t give her a real answer. Before she could dig deeper, he ended the call.
The car went silent.
After a beat, he said coldly, “Go to Verdant Villa
Jason, who was driving, hesitated. “But we just got word that the Luke heir is fishing out at Butterfly Garden.”
Tracking that person down had been a nightmare. Now that they finally had a lead–shouldn’t they go there first
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