Chapter 245

Chapter 245

Anna's relief was short-lived. She couldn't help but worry about Edith again.

"Edith, they definitely went to tell on you to Mr. Hughes. What are we going to do?"

Now that she'd calmed down, she understood why Edith had stopped her from fighting back—she didn't want the Collins family dragged into this mess.

But Edith had no one backing her up. If the Hughes family came after her, it would be all too easy.

Edith's voice was calm. "Mr. Hughes won't really do anything to me."

Anna wasn't convinced.

"Abigail is the daughter he's been searching for all these years. What if she just cries a little and Mr. Hughes gives her whatever she wants?"

With Christopher's example fresh in her mind, Anna had already prepared for the worst.

At the mention of Christopher, something dark flickered in Edith's eyes, but she still said, "Mr. Hughes is different from him."

"You're that sure? But what if?" Anna looked at her with concern.

A complicated emotion flashed through Edith's eyes.

"I don't know. It's just a feeling."

She paused. "Besides, if he used the Hughes family's power to come after me—just one woman—all to make Abigail feel better, he probably wouldn't have made it to his position in the first place."

Anna remained skeptical. "I hope you're right."

She said she believed Edith, but during dinner, she secretly reached out to Christopher anyway.

After all, Christopher was still the father of the baby in Edith's belly. The least he could do was shield them from some of the fallout.

Christopher replied quickly.

[I'll have people keep an eye on the Hughes family. If there's anything else, you can contact me.]

Anna glanced at the message but didn't reply.

As if she'd become his informant, constantly updating him on Edith's life. Christopher could dream on!

Abigail and Maria left the mall and headed straight back to the Hughes family estate.

Orion had just finished a remote meeting and was coming downstairs.

Seeing them walk in, he asked casually, "Didn't you say you were going shopping? Why'd you come back empty-handed?"

Then he saw Abigail walking toward him with red-rimmed eyes.

Orion frowned in confusion. "What happened?"

Abigail bit her lip and leaned against him without saying a word.

Orion looked over at Maria.

Maria's face was full of distress. "We ran into Edith while shopping. Abby got slapped twice by her."

At those words, Orion's expression darkened slightly. He glanced down at the person leaning on his shoulder.

Abigail's face was turned toward him. The slap marks hadn't completely faded—if you looked closely, you could still make out five finger prints.

Seeing him look at her, Abigail sniffled. "Dad, my face really hurts. Will it scar?"

Her injury wasn't that serious—nowhere near bad enough to scar—but Orion still patted her head soothingly.

"I'll have the doctor come take a look."

Abigail agreed quietly.

Orion had someone contact his private physician.

While they waited for the doctor to arrive, the three of them sat on the living room sofa.

"Why would Edith hit Abby?" Orion asked.

Maria stroked Abigail's face tenderly. At the question, she immediately jumped in with her complaint.

"I have no idea. Abby and I were just walking along when she and that Collins family heiress suddenly appeared out of nowhere. They startled Abby so badly she nearly had a heart attack."

Abigail played along, biting her lip with reddened eyes, looking thoroughly wronged.

At the mention of her heart condition, Orion's expression grew even grimmer.

But when he spoke to Abigail, his tone was surprisingly gentle.

"I'll have the doctor check that too."

Abigail nodded obediently.

Seeing Orion's obvious affection for Abigail with her own eyes, Maria felt much more reassured. When she spoke again, her confidence had grown.

"I saw they'd frightened Abby, so I said a few words to them. But then..."

Halfway through, Maria sighed and raised her hand to wipe away tears.

"It's all my fault. All these years, I've focused all my attention on Abby and neglected Edith's upbringing. I let her develop such a spoiled temperament that she doesn't even respect me, her own mother."

Every word placed the blame squarely on Edith's shoulders.

To Orion's ears, Edith became the image of someone arrogant and domineering.

But thinking back to what happened at the hospital that day, Orion felt something off.

Edith's behavior at the hospital didn't quite match what Maria was describing.

Or had she simply been more careful that day because he was there?

Maria's voice continued.

"Before Edith knew about Abby's real identity, I could overlook her bullying. But now? You told her who Abby really is right in front of her, and she still dared to hit her. She's not just disrespecting Abby—she's disrespecting the entire Hughes family."

Her tone grew earnest. "At this point, I've given up hope of setting her back on the right path myself. I'm hoping Mr. Hughes can teach her a lesson and make her learn from this."

Her eagerness for Orion to take action against Edith was practically written across her face.

The uneasy feeling in Orion's chest intensified. His gaze darkened as he looked at Maria.

"Mrs. Langley doesn't seem to have much affection for her daughter Edith."

Maria froze for a moment, then quickly controlled her emotions and gave a bitter smile. "It's not that I have no affection for her—it's that she has none for me. Otherwise, what kind of daughter hits her own mother?"

As she spoke, she showed Orion the slap mark on her own face.

The scrutiny in Orion's eyes hadn't faded.

Just as he was about to say something, his phone rang on the table.

Orion withdrew his gaze from Maria and answered the call.

His assistant's voice came through.

"Mr. Hughes, I contacted the head of WY as you requested to have them custom-make a gown for Ms. Hughes, but they said..."

Orion frowned. "Said what?"

The assistant's tone was awkward. "They said Ms. Hughes is on their blacklist. They're refusing to provide her with their services."

When Orion took the call, the living room had gone quiet. Sitting beside him, Abigail heard every word from the other end.

She clenched her teeth in secret fury.

For the upcoming gala, she'd specifically asked Orion to help her get a custom gown from WY, but they'd blacklisted her!

It had to be Edith's doing!

Abigail remembered that Ethan was good friends with WY's owner, and Edith had been getting so close to him lately.

For WY to blacklist her out of nowhere—it had to be connected to Edith!

"Dad, what am I going to do? The gala's coming up and I still don't have a gown ready... I don't even want to show my face anymore."

After Orion hung up, Abigail spoke up, her voice thick with grievance.

Orion stroked her hair. "If WY won't make it for you, I'll find you something even better. I'll make sure you shine at the gala."

Abigail's eyes lit up.

"Then can I invite my close friends to come? And Edith too—even though she doesn't like me, she's still my sister. She's family."

She'd changed her mind.

She wanted Orion to see with his own eyes how Edith bullied her, and then make him stand up for her in front of everyone!

Orion didn't know what she was thinking. He simply took it as a sign of her kind nature and agreed immediately.