Chapter 34
Meanwhile, at the Sharp family estate, David left Lucas's room and headed straight for the greenhouse in the back garden.
Ashley sat in her wheelchair, being pushed by a servant to admire the flowers. Seeing him approach, her face lit up with maternal warmth.
"David, you're finally back. Come here, let your mom get a good look at you."
"Mom." David walked over, naturally taking the wheelchair handles from the servant. "Of course I came to see you first thing."
"Such a sweet talker." Ashley patted his hand, then her expression shifted, the smile fading. "Lucas... how is he?"
"His health is pretty depleted, but don't worry. With that Dr. Wells treating him, he should be fine."
At the mention of Dr. Wells, Ashley's brow furrowed deeply.
"David, that woman is exactly why I'm worried. Seven years ago, she took the money and vanished without a trace. Now she suddenly reappears as some famous doctor? I think she's after Lucas! That woman's too calculating. I'm afraid Lucas is being played."
David's steps faltered slightly. So that woman was the surrogate from seven years ago.
"Mom, what do you mean?"
"I want you to investigate!" Ashley's eyes sharpened. "Dig into what she's been doing these past seven years. Find out her real reason for coming back! I will not allow some scheming woman to set foot in the Sharp family, and I certainly won't let her hurt my son!"
Seeing the resolve in her eyes, David nodded gently. "Don't worry. Leave it to me."
In the 'prince's room' Bianca had prepared for Matthew, toys were stacked everywhere—from limited edition Transformers to programmable smart robots.
She crouched down, forcing her voice into syrupy sweetness. "Dami, look—Mommy prepared all this for you. As long as you're a good boy, Mommy will buy you so much more."
Matthew didn't even glance at the toys, absorbed in the finance book he'd brought from the Sharp estate.
Bianca snatched the book and set it aside. "Dami, stop reading that. Let's chat, okay?"
She grabbed Matthew's hands and pulled him into her embrace. "Mommy knows you've met that Dr. Wells recently. Did she say bad things about Mommy? Don't believe her. She's a bad woman. She wants to steal Daddy away and destroy our family."
Matthew looked up. "But Daddy seems to really like spending time with Dr. Wells. And Dr. Wells tells me stories and makes delicious food."
"That's because she's a liar!" Her voice pitched higher, losing control. "Everything she does is fake! Mommy's the one who loves you most!"
"Really? Then why don't you know I'm allergic to peanuts? Last time at the estate, Grandma specifically told the kitchen not to use peanut butter in anything."
Bianca's face went deathly pale. Peanut allergy? How would she know something like that! In seven years, she'd only appeared in front of Damian when she needed to play the 'good mother'—she didn't even know how many meals he ate a day!
"I... I've been too busy with work, I forgot..."
"Oh." Matthew hummed, then continued. "Do you know which storybook is my favorite?"
"..."
"Do you know if my favorite color is blue or green?"
"..."
"You don't know anything... do you?"
That final question struck like a sharp blade. Bianca's composure snapped with an audible crack.
"Shut up!" She screamed, her hands clamping down hard on Matthew's shoulders. "I'm your mother! Damian, you listen to me—I'm your mother! You're never seeing that Wells woman again, you hear me!"
Her face twisted grotesquely, all traces of the gentle star gone. Matthew's shoulders ached from her grip, but he didn't even furrow his brow.
"Bee! What are you doing!" Emily burst through the door. Seeing the scene, she rushed over in panic and pried Bianca away. "Are you crazy? He's just a child!"
"A child? He's a little demon!" Bianca shoved her mother's hands away. "This is all your fault! All of you! Making me coddle him! And now what? All he cares about is that Wells woman! Lucas is going to leave me because of him!"
After her breakdown, she couldn't stay another second. She stormed out, slamming the door with a thunderous bang.
In the room, Emily forced a smile, trying to soothe him. "Dami, sweetheart, Mommy's just tired. Don't hold it against her, okay?"
Matthew said nothing, simply picking his book up off the floor. Emily sighed and headed downstairs.
In the living room downstairs, Marcus sat in the head chair with a dark expression. Bianca came flying down the stairs and collapsed onto the sofa, eyes red-rimmed.
"You can't even handle one child! What have I been teaching you all these years?" Marcus's tone dripped with reproach. "I told you to bond with him. This is how you bond?"
"Dad! You have the nerve to lecture me?" Years of accumulated resentment erupted in that moment. "Whose idea was this in the first place? Who said that as long as I claimed this child, I could marry Lucas and save the Hale family? And now? Seven years later! Besides the hollow title of 'Lucas's fiancée,' what have I gotten?"
"Silence!"
"Why should I be silent?" Emily, following her daughter downstairs, couldn't hold back anymore either. She stood protectively in front of Bianca, tears streaming. "Marcus, put your hand on your heart and ask yourself! To curry favor with the Sharps, for your business deals, you gambled away our daughter's entire future! Making her claim a child of unknown origin, making her live with this secret for seven years! Do you even have a heart?"
"Unknown origin?" Marcus's eyes swept coldly over his wife and daughter. "What do you know! This is the Hale family's only chance to rise!"
"I don't want this chance!" Bianca sobbed. "I'm done! I live in lies every single day. I've almost forgotten who I am! Now Lucas has another woman, that child sides with strangers—what am I? What the hell am I?"
Emily held her daughter, heartbroken beyond measure. She turned to glare at Marcus, throwing caution to the wind.
"That's right! We're done! Marcus, go tell the Sharps right now! Bee's not marrying him! And we don't want that child either! Even if the Hale family goes bankrupt, it's better than having your daughter stuck raising a child that isn't even hers!"