Chapter 87 We Start the Process of Making Sure My Son-in-Law Regrets the Day He Was Born
"A lot," she choked out, the words barely intelligible through her tears. "So much has happened, Dad."
Noah’s expression darkened, a shadow of the powerful man he was falling over his features. He gently guided her to the sofa. "Sit. Please, Maggie, sit. Take a breath." He sat beside her, his hand never leaving her shoulder. "Start somewhere. Start at the beginning."
Maggie wiped her eyes, her voice shaky but gaining strength. "It started with a video. On Andrew’s phone. I saw him, Dad. I saw him sleeping with another woman— Amelia. I confronted him. I was screaming, I was so hurt, and he... he didn't even apologize."
Noah’s jaw tightened, his eyes narrowing.
"He pushed me," she whispered, the memory of the stairs flashing in her mind. "He pushed me down the stairs. I woke up in a hospital with no name, no memory. I lived as a ghost for months, Dad. I didn’t know who I was. And when I returned home, he brought her into our house. He told me we were in a 'polygamous marriage.' He showed me fake documents, Dad, to prove it. He told me if I fought him, I’d never see Pete again. He said I was 'unstable,' and that he would do terrible things to me if I refused to comply."
As Maggie spoke, the narrative flowed like a river of glass— the abuse, the manipulation, the cold-blooded way Andrew had replaced her while she was wandering the streets of New York, lost in a fog of amnesia. She told him about the Blooms, the "angels" as she called them, who found her when she ran away and had nothing but the clothes on her back and a broken spirit.
By the time she finished, thirty minutes had passed. Noah hadn't moved a muscle, but his eyes were now a terrifying, icy blue. The air in the room felt heavy, charged with a silent, radioactive rage.
"I’ve failed you terribly," Noah said. His voice was dangerously low, a predatory rumble. "I’ve failed you as a father."
"You didn't," Maggie argued, reaching for his hand. "I pushed you away. I let him isolate me."
"Even so," Noah stood up, pacing the rug like a caged tiger. "I was the one who stopped trying. I thought, 'She has a protector now.' That bastard. That pathetic, crawling worm." He stopped and looked at her, a vow burning in his gaze. "He's going to pay for this with his blood, Maggie. I promise you that. I made that fool. I gave him the connections to become the Judge he is today. And as easily as I built that pedestal, I will shatter it into dust. He thinks he can mistreat a Moon?"
Noah sat back down, pulling Maggie into a side-hug, his voice softening only for her. "We’re going to get Pete back. And we’re going to bury Andrew so deep he’ll forget his own name."
Maggie let out a long breath, the weight on her chest finally lifting. "There’s one more thing, Dad. The family I told you about? The ones who saved me? They’re the reason I’m here. They drove me, they flew with me... they’re in the living room right now."
Noah’s eyebrows shot up, his mouth parting in genuine shock. "They’re here? In this house?"
"Yes," Maggie nodded. "They wouldn't let me face this alone."
Noah stood up immediately, offering his hand to his daughter. "Then let’s go. I need to see the people who did my job when I wasn't there to do it."
They walked back through the expansive hallways, Maggie feeling a strange sense of pride as she led her father toward her "New York family." When they entered the living room, Adam and Cherry stood up instinctively.
Noah walked straight to them, his hand extended. "I’m Noah Moon," he said, his voice booming with authority but laced with a rare, profound sincerity. He took Adam’s hand in a crushing grip, then turned to Cherry. "My daughter has told me everything. You took her in when she was a stranger. You fed her, protected her, and brought her back to me."
He looked at the three of them— Adam, Cherry, and little Grace. "There are no words in the English language that can properly convey my gratitude. You are more than guests in this house. You are the reason my daughter is alive."
Cherry smiled warmly, her eyes misty. "We didn't do it for a reward, Mr. Moon. We did it because it was the right thing to do. We’d do it again for anyone in need."
Noah nodded, a small, grim smile touching his lips. "The world needs more people like you. But for now, you’re with us. And tomorrow, we start the process of making sure my son-in-law regrets the day he was born."