Chapter 59 : What Do I Have To Be Afraid Of?
Just then, Linda’s phone buzzed. She answered it, listened in silence, then, with trembling hands, held the phone out to Jackson.
“Mr. Jackson,” she whispered. “It’s Luke. He… he’s asking you to stop.”
Jackson shot Linda a suspicious look before taking the phone from her and pressing it to his ear.
Luke said only a few words, and Jackson’s expression changed. His eyes snapped to Jareth, then he raised a hand. “Stop. That’s enough.”
Everyone turned to look at him. Especially Ronan.
No one understood what had just happened or why Jackson had suddenly changed his mind.
Then Jackson stood up abruptly with a heavy expression and walked down the steps. “Ronan, take Nigel and feed the fish out back.”
He was sending them away.
Nigel, ever tactful as a guest, stood up first.
Ronan looked like he wanted to argue, but he kept his mouth shut.
Just as the two were about to walk away, a flash of pink crossed their path.
It was Allison. Her soft pink scarf was wrapped around her shoulders. She bent down, picked up Jareth’s cane, and, under everyone’s watchful eyes, walked straight toward him.
Nigel instinctively reached out to stop her, but she slipped past him.
Allison gripped the cane, nearly as tall as her waist, and walked straight up to Jareth without a moment of hesitation.
She crouched in front of him, gently opened his hand, and placed the cane into his palm.
Jareth looked at her in shock. For a brief moment, his eyes lost focus.
Allison knew there were people in the room who probably hated her for this. But she did not care about their stares or their judgment. The heavy pressure in her chest finally disappeared.
This is it. I finally made it right. I finally stood up and said no.
Linda cast Allison a curious look. Jackson, on the other hand, shot her a cold glare, his face contorted as rage consumed him.
But the pink scarf she was wearing looked strangely familiar.
Ronan just turned around in time to see Allison openly taking Jareth’s side. His fists clenched, and his face twisted with fury.
Why? Why had Jareth taken those brutal blows without flinching? Why did he still look composed?
Was he not afraid of dying?
Damn it. He really did it right in front of her.
Ronan’s expression turned bitter.
He had wanted to humiliate Jareth, but somehow it only made Allison care more about him.
Seeing that Allison had just angered half the room, Nigel quickly intervened. “Mr. Jackson, Ally has a condition. Sometimes she… she’s not in the right state of mind. Please don’t take it to heart.”
Jackson’s expression slightly softened. He had bigger concerns than starting a fight with her.
Allison stood up and walked out of the hall without looking back.
Nigel hurried after her. Once they were alone in the courtyard, he grabbed her wrist and hissed, “Do you even realize what you’re doing? Who do you think you are? This is the Lopez family. This is not your stage.”
Allison turned her eyes toward the artificial lake and totally ignored him.
What do I have to be afraid of? Jackson is not going to drag me out and beat me in front of everyone.
And if the Lopez family wants to take it out on someone, it will be the entire Rogers family. Honestly, I would love to see that.
Nigel clenched his jaw so hard it felt like his molars might crack. “Sherrie is about to marry into the Lopez family. If you deliberately mess this up again, then as far as I’m concerned, you’re not my sister.”
Allison held the bowl of fish food and flung a full handful into the pond, as if she were throwing her anger away with it. She clearly didn't care about Nigel’s threat.
I had nothing to lose. Bring it on. I was not afraid of anyone in dress shoes when I was already barefoot.
Nigel did not bother arguing anymore. He turned back toward the hall.
Ronan was standing at the doorway, pacing like a gossiping hen. Every few seconds, he craned his neck, trying to overhear whatever was happening inside.
Everyone was desperate to know what had happened inside. What could’ve made Jackson do a complete turnaround and suddenly let Jareth off so easily?
Inside the main hall, Jackson told Linda to close the doors.
The crystal chandelier cast a harsh light over the room as Jackson approached Jareth. He suddenly halted right in front of him as his figure loomed over Jareth. His voice was low and wary. “You took the Western Suburbs deal?”
That piece of land was a mess. It was completely lawless. Kansas’s power players had been fighting over it for years. Everyone wanted it, and no one could claim it.
And yet, somehow, Jareth had managed to pull it off.
The Wellinges Group was already popping champagne. The Lopez family was the last to hear about it.
Jackson stared at Jareth in bafflement and felt a chill work its way down his spine.
He has that same cold fire I had at his age.
But no matter how sharp or ruthless Jareth was, the Lopez family would only ever have one heir.
If the side branches grew too tall, they would start choking the crown. Luke, his eldest, had already lost to Jareth several times.
And now Jareth had moved so fast that he had taken the Western Suburbs too.
Jareth caught the scheming look in Jackson’s eyes and gave him a dry laugh. “So you’re trying to have me killed, just so you can take the Western Suburbs land for yourself?”
Jackson stayed silent. There was no guilt on his face and no denial at all.
Still kneeling, Jareth leaned back, that familiar devil-may-care attitude screaming across his face. “Without me, you really think that loser Luke can handle the Western Suburbs?”
Jackson’s eyes twitched. Behind his back, his fist clenched until cracking sounds rang across the room.
Jareth smirked inwardly. “Whoever takes the Western Suburbs becomes a target. I was willing to take that risk. You people in the Lopez house? You would never dare.”
Jackson’s face went pale. Jareth had nothing to lose, but the Lopez empire was different. It was too bloated, too massive to take a gamble like that.