Chapter 410
Chapter 410:
“He’s thirty-six p>
“He looks fifty p>
I ignored him, turned, and shouted to Daniel, who was still loitering behind a food truck, “Go find dinner or something. I’ll cover it p>
Daniel gave a thumbs-up without turning around.
Ashton and I drove across town and stopped at a carrier shop.
I signed for the replacement SIM card with my old number.
As soon as I slotted it in, the phone buzzed.
Caroline.
I didn’t need to ask what it was about.
Franklin’s fraud case was moving faster than expected.
Last I heard, the Vances had burned through every contact they had trying to stall it.
Looks like they’d finally run out.
I answered.
Caroline’s voice hit me before the screen even lit up.
High-pitched, breathless, full of fake tears, “You finally picked up! Are you really going to throw your own father in jail p>
“That’s not up to me. That’s up to the cops and a judge p>
“You—” She cut herself off, dragged in a shaky breath, then switched tactics. “I’ll return the money. All of it. There’s no need to take it this far. Just—just talk to Ashton for me, please p>
“It’s already too late. Let the court decide. If he didn’t break the law, he won’t be convicted p>
Silence for a beat. Then she snapped. “Mirabelle Vance p>
Her voice turned sharp and fast, like she’d been waiting to go off the whole time. “You ungrateful little bitch. We raised you, we paid for everything, and this is how you repay us? You want your father in prison? You’ve got no conscience. If I’d known, I would’ve dumped you on some stranger when you were six!” She didn’t stop. “It’s not like we’re refusing to return the damn money, but you have to destroy everything, don’t you? You and your filthy rich husband think you’re untouchable. Just wait. I’ll smash that pathetic little studio of yours to pieces if you don’t make him withdraw the charges p>
𝗦𝗘𝗘 𝗝𝗨𝗦𝗧 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝒈𝓐𝗅𝓃𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝓈.𝓬𝓪𝓶
I held the phone steady.
I wasn’t mad.
If anything, I felt lighter.
The more she screamed, the more obvious it was that she’d lost control.
Which meant I’d finally taken it back.
There wasn’t an ounce of family left between us.
But if she really showed up at the studio—
I hung up and FaceTimed Priya.
She answered immediately, but the camera angle was off.