Chapter 128

“Mom, seriously, how much longer are you going to defend Dorothea? She whipped my sister today. What’s next, is she going to stab her p>

“I am never, ever going to accept Dorothea as my sister!” Alonzo’s face was bright red, his anger practically vibrating in the air. “Dad, aren’t you going to say anything p>

If it wasn’t for Latham, Layton wouldn’t be this torn up inside.

But right now, there just wasn’t room in this house for Dorothea anymore.

Even if they let this go, it would always be there, stuck in their hearts like a thorn that would never come out.

He looked at his wife for a long moment. “Elise, what do you think p>

Elise was caught in the middle, so conflicted she could barely breathe. She pressed her hands to her face, tears streaming through her fingers.

“Layton, I know she and I aren’t close, but please… for my sake, can we not call the police p>

“I’ll make it up to Carola, I promise. Okay p>

It was the first time Elise had ever spoken up for Dorothea.

Layton took a slow drag on his cigar. Smoke drifted around him, making his expression hard to read. “We won’t call the police, but what about next time p>

“What if she does something like this again p>

Elise could hardly speak through her sobs. After a while, she finally managed, “I’ll make a public announcement… I’ll cut ties with her in the media. From now on, she’s not my daughter p>

“If it happens again, you can handle it however you want p>

“Dad!” Alonzo was clearly upset. “What about this time? Are we just going to forget it happened p>

With Latham behind Dorothea, there wasn’t much Layton could do even if he wanted to.

And their relationship with the Stephens family was basically over.

He stubbed out his cigar. His voice was low and heavy. “Okay, we’ll do it your way p>

Garth didn’t see Dorothea all day. It made him anxious.

He tried calling Latham on his smartwatch, but no one answered.

He tried his dad next. It rang twice before Scott finally picked up.

“What’s up, Garth?” Scott sounded like he expected Garth to be in trouble again.

“Dad, do you know where Aunt

Dorothea is? She didn’t come home

last night, and I’m worried something happened to her. Oncle Latham’s on a business trip again p>

“She never came home?” Scott frowned.

“Yeah. The nanny said she got a phone call and just ran out p>

Scott pressed his lips together. “AIK right, I’ll look into it. Don’t worry, K send someone to check on her Aldie wilt pick you up today.

good p>

So be

“Okay.” Garth knew he shouldn’t bother Dorothea’s place anymore.

“Dad, tell me when you find her p>

After leaving the Brown house, Dorothea went straight to the hospital.

The doctor had already told her she couldn’t visit, but she couldn’t stay away.

ICU visiting hours were at three in the afternoon. Even then, she could only see the patient for a little while on a small video screen.

Most of the patients in there were unconscious anyway. There was no way for their families to get a response.

Still, Dorothea refused to leave. She curled up with her face buried in her knees, waiting.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a pair of shiny shoes stop right in front of her.

She looked up, her eyes tired and sad. “Scott p>

Scott handed her a bottle of water. “Sorry, I’m not trying to pry, but Garth couldn’t find you. He was really worried p>

“I just spoke to the doctor. The most important thing for your grandmother is to get through these next three days p>

“But Dorothea, have you told Latham about your grandmother’s illness p>

Dorothea’s voice broke. “Not yet p>

Too much had happened. She hadn’t had the chance to talk to anyone.

Right now, she just wanted to hide away and heal.

Scott gave her a small smile. “This is Aaron l’If have him stay with you for a couple of days But remember you

and Datham are still husband and

wife.”.

He didn’t say anything else, letting the words sink in.