36. Stop Spreading Lies

Brandon's gaze slowly narrowed dangerously as our eyes remained locked.

"I know my wife is your enemy and you want nothing more than to destroy her reputation, just like you did to mine! Stop spreading lies about her. Nobody knows her better than me. Going around telling people she's part of the Phoenix Brigade is not gonna fly!"

"Brandon!" Eleanor yelled at her son, and my lips tightened as I stood up while Brandon turned to leave the room.

"Brandon, I'm sorry for sneakin' into your bedroom on your fake wedding night. Please find it in your heart to forgive me. By the way, have you seen Susan, one of your workers whose grandchild got kidnapped ten months ago?" I asked.

"She was found dead at his estate gate ten months ago," Eleanor quickly replied.

"Why are you asking about her? You wanna ruin her reputation too?" Brandon asked, not bothering to look at me. As he continued walking away, my question stopped him once again.

"What about her grandchild?" I asked, my voice breaking with tears.

"She's under my care," Eleanor responded too. Brandon turned and glanced at me, and I understood the question in his eyes.

"Maybe you should start by investigating what led to her death and why she died at your gate. She could've died in your bedroom after you had your way with her while you were wasted," I murmured.

"Tell me; how did you leave Malmö?" Brandon asked, folding his arms across his chest. I couldn't open my mouth and mention Colonel Denzel because he warned me to stay away from Denzel.

"Well, it seems you are not ready to tell all the story," Brandon sighed and walked out without looking back.

I slumped into the chair and began sobbing over Susan's death.

"Emma, it's gonna be alright," Eleanor moved closer to console me.

"Tell me everything," she murmured. I sniffled and started narrating everything to her.

The room fell silent as soon as I finished my story. The only sounds that filled the room were our sobs, with no one left to console each other. Eleanor was just as heartbroken as I was.

After about thirty minutes of tearful silence, Eleanor wiped away her tears, pulled out two knitting needles from her drawer, and started knitting as if she were desperately trying to knit away all her pain. I continued to look at her.

"Are you gonna tell your father what you just told me?" Eleanor sniffed and asked.

"Yeah, when Brandon is ready," I replied, observing her reaction. However, her expression remained blank.

"Anthony is like a second father to Brandon, and Samuel is the only brother he's got. I understand his frustration now. But he has to come clean with them and embrace the painful reality," Eleanor said, tears once again streaming down her cheeks. Suddenly, she started smiling.

"Jared! Who would've thought my stepson Jared would step up tomorrow and try to off Brandon? He never had any love for those trying to take over Zenith," Eleanor said, still wearing a painful smile on her face. I noticed that the story I had shared with her was messing with her mind, causing her to battle confusion. She continued to act strangely, and I didn't know how to help her.

"When Julian Henderson's ex-wife divorced him, she won custody of their five children and also changed their names without Julian's permission. Then, Julian Henderson was very poor. He had nothing," Eleanor chuckled while tears welled up in her eyes.

"Julian Henderson's luck turned around the day Brandon was born. He wanted to marry me, but I turned him down," Eleanor said, a painful smile touching her face again.

"As the only child with his name, Julian left everything he had to Brandon in his will. The ex-wife's kids saw this and quickly changed their names, but I couldn't do anything. Julian was already dead. Since then, it's been a constant battle between them and Brandon. All they want is to see him lose it all," Eleanor said.

The painful smile on her lips was replaced by a stream of tears as though Brandon's step brother's wishes had finally come. Eleanor stopped knitting and fixed her gaze on a distant point as though she could see.

"They want nothing more than to see my son lose everything," Eleanor whimpered, her gaze still fixed.

"What about Jared?" I murmured after a few minutes. Eleanor snapped back to reality and resumed knitting as if I had brought her back to the present.

"He showed up three years after Julian Henderson's death, claiming to be his son. People said he looked just like Brandon. I invited Brandon and we did a DNA test, and would you believe it, they turned out to be brothers. I started taking care of his expenses. He said he wanted to be a soldier, and I made sure that became a reality," Eleanor said. After contemplating for a moment, she turned to me and tousled my hair.

"Emma, go to bed," she whispered. "Don't talk to Rachel anymore. I'll talk to my son," Eleanor said.

"Thank you," I said and I got up from my seat.

A lady who had been leaning against the door the whole time I was talking to Eleanor quickly ran off as soon as I stood up, and I shuddered and halted. I only saw her back, and unfortunately, I didn't know all the domestic workers well enough to figure out who it was.

As I climbed the stairs, an eerie quiet filled the air, broken only by the occasional sound of Rachel's laughter echoing from one of the rooms. I couldn't help but feel that she was purposely taunting me, causing my heart to break even further.

It became clear that the place where I had hoped to find joy was actually where I encountered the most sadness. It seemed like the only option left for me was to go back to Malmö with my son.

When Brandon is ready to hear what happened, he will find us. I thought to myself as I slowly ascended the stairs.