Chapter 428
“McNeil, don’t forget-you still need Violet. If she’s locked up for a month,
someone’s going to lose their life. And those secrets you and your father have been hiding all these years? I’ll make sure the world knows. Are you really willing to sacrifice Victoria just to save that person?”
Yulia’s voice was frantic on the other end of the line. Instantly, McNeil’s dark eyes turned cold, a storm brewing where moments before there had only been calm.
He gripped his phone, his words slow and deliberate. “You’re threatening me?” Yulia realized she’d gone too far; her tone softened at once.
“No, of course not. I wouldn’t threaten you. I just… I just want you to help Violet. She’s been taken to the station-they won’t even allow bail. I don’t know what else to do.”
McNeil’s reply was icy. “Figure it out yourselves.”
He hung up without another word.
Victoria was fast asleep in the bedroom. McNeil cast one last glance at her half- closed door, then left the apartment.
The next morning, as always, McNeil showed up at Victoria’s home to prepare her meals.
Victoria woke to find herself lying comfortably, and she immediately guessed who had helped her. From now on, she resolved to always lock her bedroom door.
She’d expected McNeil to give up quickly after being ignored and shut out, but to her surprise, he persisted for nearly a week.
During that week, Victoria spoke to him only when absolutely necessary, living as if she were still new to Evermore City-relaxed, content, and treating McNeil as though he were invisible. Yet, despite her coldness, McNeil never lost patience or showed the slightest irritation.
One evening after dinner, McNeil brought her a glass of milk.
“I’m thinking of having Gwyn stay with us,” he said.
Victoria paused, startled, then immediately shook her head.
“She needs to go to school in Starfall City. And in a few months, I’ll be giving birth -I simply don’t have the energy to look after her.”
It wasn’t that she didn’t want Gwyneth. The little girl could talk her ear off with stories, and Victoria had always indulged her. But now, she needed all the rest she could get.
Besides, if Gwyneth came to Evermore City, there’d be school runs and routines. Even if McNeil didn’t expect her to do a thing, she’d still feel the pressure of responsibility.
“She won’t be your concern. She’ll be staying with me. You won’t be disturbed,” McNeil assured her.
Victoria slid her hand out of his, her expression frosty. “After the baby’s born, I’ll do everything a mother should for Gwyneth. But if you’re trying to use her to stir up my maternal instincts, hoping we’ll go back to being a happy little family- forget it. I can’t do that.”
She finished her milk and set the glass down. “The door’s right there. Leave. I don’t want to see you again.”
McNeil’s chest tightened. In the past, whenever he brought up Gwyn, Victoria would always relent-she’d put his wishes first, never once objecting.
But now, just the mention of Gwyneth seemed to make Victoria recoil, as if she couldn’t bear any connection. And Gwyneth was their own daughter.
“Victoria, that’s not what I meant.”
He didn’t need to use their daughter as some kind of emotional leverage.
“Oh? Then what did you mean? First, you move in across the street under the pretense of ‘looking after me.’ Now you want to bring Gwyneth here. What’s next, McNeil?”
She stepped up to him, forcing him to meet her eyes-he felt an inexplicable guilt.
“What do you take me for, McNeil? If you want a doormat, there are plenty of women out there desperate to marry into the Langford family. Why don’t you go find one of them? Or do you want me to come back and be at your beck and call?”
She stood up, but her body swayed. McNeil’s heart nearly stopped in fright.
“Victoria, please don’t do this. You’re pregnant. If you get upset, it could hurt the baby!”
Victoria shoved him away, her voice sharp. “Save it. Get out-now.”