Chapter 85
The cars ahead started to move, and Christian followed suit. âYouâre one of the heads of the Thatcher
Family. So you donât need to ask for anyoneâs opinions, including mine, for the things you want to do.â
âThen what if⦠I ask you to let Tori go? Sheâs suffered enough in the past two years. Can you let her
go now?â When Evelyn found out that her son was forcing Victoria to work at Delta Club today, she
experienced a wave of mixed feelings.
He didnât respond, and she didnât broach the matter further, so for a long while, silence filled the car.
Finally, they drove past the traffic as they reached the highway, so he increased the carâs speed.
Evelyn fidgeted the clasp of her wallet repeatedly; the clicking sounds were extremely crisp amidst the
stony silence.
She turned to look at him. âI can see that you have no romantic feelings for Bella. If thatâs the case,
then the incident where Tori knocked into Bellaâs legs, breaking them the other night, has nothing to do
with you. So why did you stillâ¦â
âMom.â Christian interrupted and said seriously. âI wonât interfere with whatever goes on between you,
Dad, and Tracy, so I hope you can also respect my boundaries.â
A hint of awkwardness flashed across Evelynâs face, but she managed to regain her composure soon.
Finally, she closed her purse, held it in her hand, and made no further comments.
Their parents arrived within half an hour of Vincentâs departure from the hospital. Denise scanned the
ward and found no signs of him, making her blurt out anxiously, âWhereâs your brother? I heard that he
came here to look for you!â
It turns out that theyâre not here for me but for Vince. The hope in Victoriaâs eyes dimmed. âMy
brotherâ¦â
Just as she was about to speak, Glen cut her off sharply, âNo matter how the outsiders slander Vince,
he has never talked back to me before. But since you were released from prison, he disrespected me
and even threatened to leave home! Did you egg him on?â
âMe?â Victoria pointed to herself as she laughed mockingly. âI egged him on?â
âWho else could it be if not you? You were mischievous as a child, and Vince always went along with
your plans. Both of you fooling around as kids was fine, but how could you urge him to leave home? He
dotes on you so much and has adored you since you were young. Donât you feel guilty toward him for
things youâve done?â Glen roared; his expression was grim, and his face slightly flushed from anger.
Victoria just stared at him dazedly in the face of his fury. Suddenly, her father felt like an unfamiliar man
to her. It was like she had never truly understood or knew him.
âGlen, Tori is your daughter too. Donât be too harsh with your words.â Denise could not bear seeing
Victoria suffer from Glenâs wrath, but she was also anxious about Vincent. âTori, tell me. Where did you
hide Vince?â
With her head hung low, Victoria said with trembling lips, âI didnât hide him.â
With her head hung low, Victoria said with trembling lips, âI didnât hide him.â
âAnd you said I was too harsh with my words?â Glen pointed at Victoria as he said to Denise, âDo you
think sheâll tell you the truth when you speak nicely to her?â
Denise let out a long sigh and held Victoriaâs hand, her tears falling. âTori, you need to be considerate
toward us too. Youâre not a Coleman anymore, so if your brother doesnât come home, do you know how
the outsiders will talk?â
Victoriaâs entire body was taut when she heard her parents completely disregarding her again and
again. She barely managed to suppress her tears by gritting her teeth.
âEven if you hate us, you should think for the sake of your brother and your sister-in-law too. Your
brother is incapable of doing anything, so how will he survive after he leaves the Coleman Group? His
children just turned one, and theyâre still so young. Could you really bear to watch them suffer because
of your selfishnessâ¦â
âThatâs enough!â Victoria let out a low yell. I must be considerate of this and that, but who will be kind
toward me?
Denise, surprised by her sudden volume, was stunned for a moment. When she returned to her
senses, agony filled her face while tears ran down her cheeks.
âYouâve spoiled them too much! Theyâre like this now because of you,â Glen enunciated solemnly.
Denise wiped her tears as she choked, âItâs all my fault. If I had listened to you back then and were
stricter toward them, they would not⦠turn out this way.â
âVince went home, and we wonât be meeting up anymore after today.â Victoria held the corner of her
hospital gown tightly. When she raised her head again, her eyes were bloodshot as she said, âAre the
two of you happy now?â
âSo he went home alreadyâ¦â Denise said, embarrassed.
Glen wanted to speak, but before he could do so, Victoria said, âMr. and Mrs. Coleman, the both of you
may leave now.â
When Denise saw the hostility in Victoriaâs eyes, it pained her, so she scrambled for an excuse, âTori,
your father and I were just anxious earlier. We didnât mean anything with our words.â
Victoria lowered her gaze. The sunlight came in through the windows, shining on her and wrapping her
up in a halo. Instead of looking holy, it just made everyone present notice how thin she had become.
âThe both of you should probably leave now. If anyone were to spot you here and inform President
Thatcher about this, you would place the blame on me again.â
Her voice was soft, but the mockery in her voice was evident.
âIf Vince wasnât here, do you think I would come here?â Glen felt that his pride had been bruised
because Victoria kept dismissing them, so he stormed out of the room.
Denise, standing in front of Victoriaâs bed, had a lot to say, but she did not know where to start. She
nervously looked at Victoria before she took a card out of her wallet and pushed it into Victoriaâs hand.
âTake this.â
âMrs. Coleman, weâre not related at all, so Iâm afraid I canât accept this.â Victoria dispassionately
returned the card to Denise.
Her action hurt Denise, who tried to force the card back into Victoriaâs hand.
âMomâ¦â Victoria looked up at Denise, and Denise could see her own reflection in her daughterâs hazel
eyes. âThis is the last time Iâm calling you Mom. Iâm not who I used to be, and pocket money canât
cheer me up whenever Iâm upset.â
Under Deniseâs crestfallen gaze, she said softly, âThis is it. Iâll take it as Iâve never had you as my
mother, and youâll do the same toward me.â
âTori, youâ¦â Denise wiped her tears with a handkerchief, choking and unable to mutter any words.
At this moment, Glenâs impatient voice sounded from outside the ward. He was urging Denise to leave.
Denise took a few more forlorn looks at Victoria before answering Glen and strode out of the ward.
âI need to obey my Father when Iâm at home. I will have to obey my husband when Iâm married, and I
will need to obey my children when my husbandâs dead.â When Victoria smiled, even though she was
smiling, it couldnât stop the rivulet of tears falling down her cheeks.novelxo.com fast update
She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and retrieved the gift box under her blanket. No one
can help me. I can only depend on myself now!
After she was hospitalized for two more days, Evelyn brought her back to the Thatcher Residence.
Victoria had been looking for an opportunity to attract Christian, but she had only seen him once during
dinner on the first night she moved in. In the next two days that followed, she didnât even manage to
catch a glimpse of him anymore, so there was no way she could execute her plan.
During lunch on the third day, Evelyn was chatting about random topics with Victoria. Without warning,
she dropped the bomb, âItâs your birthday tomorrow. I want to throw a party for you.â
Victoria widened her eyes while her cutlery dropped to the ground with a clatter.
All the memories came rushing back to her; the conversation she had with Bella under the oak tree,
Bella knocking into her car in front of the Thatcherâs mansion, the socialites reprimanding her during
the birthday party as well as Christian breaking her legs in his mansion. All of that was torturing her
mind one by one.
September 28th was a nightmare for her; it was a day she would avoid doing anything in the last two
years