Chapter 77

Chapter 77

The crash of shattering glass broke the tense silence in the mansion. The sound was punctuated by Daniel’s near-hysterical screams. Furniture toppled, and expensive vases lay in pieces on the marble floor. The air hung thick with the scent of cologne and seething rage. Daniel flung another antique lamp, which exploded into a shower of white fragments. “This isn’t fair!” he bellowed, his voice cracking with a mixture of anger and hurt. “Why are you not doing anything about your son?” he demanded, glaring at his father.

“Daniel, please,” Teresa Beaumont was already crying as she tried to stop her son from lashing out. “Daniel, calm down.”

“My brother is currently with my ex-fiancée, yet you are not doing anything to stop it? Father, I know you always favor my older brother, but this...” Daniel’s eyes were full of rage as he glared at his father.

“Take him outside,” Daniel’s father said. “I don’t want to see him around this place.”

“So you’re going to kick me out?” Daniel hissed. “Is this the only thing that you are good at? Kicking your sons out?”

“Call him back!” Daniel roared, his voice thick with a slur that hadn’t been there before. “Tell him to stop messing with my life!”

Arthur’s jaw clenched tight. “It is not your place to interfere in Alexander's life. Nor is it my place to interfere in his personal choices.”

“So it is his place to mess with my life!” Until now, Daniel could still see his brother’s smirk when he saw them on that balcony. “He’s messing with my life!” Daniel repeated, his voice rising. “He has no right to go after Sofia!”

“That’s between Sofia and Alexander,” Arthur said firmly, his voice low and dangerous. “Stay out of it before you do something you’ll regret.”

“I already regret it!” Daniel shouted, throwing another fistful of something at the wall, missing a framed portrait by a hair. “Tell him: I regret ever thinking he was a decent brother!”

“Daniel, stop this! You’re hurting yourself! Please,” Teresa cried out, trying to grab Daniel’s arm.

He swatted her hand away, his eyes blazing. “Don’t touch me! This is all your fault too! If you hadn’t—You—This is your fault!” Teresa flinched, tears streaming down her face.

“Leave,” Arthur hissed. “Leave now before I call the cops.”

“Arthur! How could you kick your son out?”

“You can leave too if you want to,” Arthur said. “Both of you have been throwing tantrums because of Alexander. Since you truly wanted to intervene, then go and talk to him.” With that, Arthur walked back to his study, ignoring the mother and son.

Seeing this, Daniel was unable to contain his anger. He always thought that Sofia would come back to him. He always thought that she would be back soon! That she would forgive him for his mistake! After all, they have been together for years!

Who would have thought that she would actually go to Alexander? A primal roar escaped Daniel’s throat, raw and full of pain that twisted his features. He stumbled back, knocking over a chair that clattered to the floor. It was a childish reaction, he knew, but the image of Sofia in his mind, laughing with his brother on that damned balcony, sent a fresh wave of fury crashing through him.

The servants stayed away. This was not the first time Daniel had a tantrum like this, but she already consulted a specialist and she was assured that what happened in the past would not happen again as long as Daniel continued taking his medication.

Who would have thought that this would happen again?

Naturally, Teresa immediately blamed Sofia for this mess. Something like this would not have happened if she had simply forgiven her son. Instead, that woman made things more complicated!

After what felt like forever, the medical personnel finally arrived and helped calm Daniel down.

Seeing her son sleeping peacefully on his bed, Teresa could not help but grit her teeth. “Are you really not going to involve yourself in this matter?” Teresa asked. “You are a coward! What kind of father would abandon their child like this?” She glared at Arthur, who stood silently beside her.

However, instead of saying a word, he simply snorted and left Daniel’s room.

Obviously, this only made Teresa even more furious. Who would have thought that Daniel actually loved that woman? No. This was not love. This was an obsession!

Teresa allowed herself to be consumed by her rage as she stepped out of Daniel’s room. Then she went to the balcony and made sure that no one was around before she dialed someone’s number. “I need you to take care of Sofia Lockhart,” Teresa uttered.

“Really?” A voice suddenly echoed behind her. Teresa flinched. She immediately turned around and found Alexander standing not too far away from her. “You—Why are you here?” Why was she not warned that Alexander was back in the mansion? Then she recalled how she told her maids not to disturb her as she was inside Daniel’s room.

“I heard someone just threw another tantrum.” Alexander took a step towards her.

“You—Get away from me,” Teresa said as she took a step back.

However, Alexander did not stop. “You are not going to hurt Sofia,” he said, his voice as cold as his gaze.

A gasp escaped Teresa’s lips, her heart hammering against her ribs. “Alexander,” she stammered, her voice cracking with fear and surprise. She didn’t expect him to arrive just in time for her to call her people! “I wasn’t...”

Alexander’s gaze remained icy. “You were about to make a grave mistake, Teresa.” He stepped closer, each step echoing ominously in the silent hallway. “Sofia has nothing to do with what happened. It was your son who made a mistake. Don’t you dare bring her into this mess.”

Teresa wanted to argue, to justify her actions. She wanted to scream and shout, fueled by her anger at Sofia and the helplessness she felt watching her son spiral, but under Alexander’s cold stare, her words stuck in her throat. Teresa wanted to say so many things, but right now, she couldn’t say a single word. She only blamed herself.

“Are you still punishing him for what he did in the past?” Teresa said. “I just told you, I didn’t hurt your mother. I—”

“Bullshit,” Alexander sneered. “Do you really think I’m still the five-year-old boy that you met that time?”

“I—” Teresa paled. There were a lot of things that she regretted doing in the past, but she did not have the courage to say it in front of Alexander. “He is your brother.”

“Right, of course, he is,” Alexander smirked. “A three-year-old toddler making a mistake is cute, but a nineteen-year-old boy who clearly knew the difference between right and wrong is a different story.” Alexander stopped walking just in front of Teresa. “Listen, bitch...” he uttered, his voice dark. “The only reason why you are still alive is that I wanted you to suffer for what you did to my mother. You are unscathed now, but I can assure you that if you touch a single strand of Sofia’s hair, you will suffer.”

“You—”

“Along with your son.” Alexander gave her a sadistic smile that sent shivers down her spine. “You wouldn’t actually want your son to suffer along with you, right?”

“Alexander...” Teresa’s hand started trembling. The air crackled with tension, thick enough to choke on. Teresa’s voice trembled as she tried to speak, but no sound emerged. Her mind raced, searching for a way out of the suffocating situation, but every avenue seemed blocked by Alexander’s chilling words and menacing presence.

His cold, calculating gaze held hers captive, stripping away any shred of defiance she might have harbored. “Tread carefully, Teresa. I am no longer the weak boy of the past.” Alexander said before he suddenly patted her shoulder. “Now, it seems that everything ended up fine. I suggest that you put him in rehab or a facility. That would be good for his mental health.” On the outside, Alexander sounded like a caring and kind brother. But Teresa knew what he really meant by his words. He wanted to send Daniel away. “He is your brother, Alexander. Your own flesh and blood,” Teresa said. “Don’t go too far.”

“What are you talking about?” Alexander asked. “Sending him to a facility would be good for him. Keeping him away from Sofia is going to heal him. Unless you wanted him to read the news about Sofia’s upcoming wedding with me!”

“What?” Teresa felt like a cold bucket of water was poured into her soul. “You—” Seeing the smirk on Alexander’s face, Teresa knew that he was not merely joking.

He really intends to marry Sofia!

“You cannot do this!” Teresa gasped, horror apparent in her eyes. “How could you marry your brother’s fiancée? You—What the hell do you think you’re doing? Are you out of your damn mind!”

“Why can’t two people who like each other get married?” Alexander arched an eyebrow. Then he suddenly chuckled, “Stop being so dramatic, Teresa. Everything has been taken care of.”

Instead of feeling relieved, Teresa felt even more panic. “Yes, he is evil to the core,” she thought, as Alexander left. All she felt was extreme fright. That man is wicked.