Chapter 117
Love at the Wrong Table
Chapter 117
âWhat do you plan to do now, Mom?â
Emmanuel thought he should at least get his motherâs opinion.
He no longer felt a thing for his grandfather, Hermånn, his uncle, Emerson,
and that side of the family, but he feared his mother still did. Blood is
thicker than water, after all.
If his mother decided to rescue his uncle, he, as her son, would help her
think of something.
âI donât know what to do. We donât have the money.â
Alessandra was practical.
Despite the pressure exerted by her family, she would not ask her son for
help, nor would she ask her daughterâinâlaw.
We already owe her too much!
âIf Granddad calls you, Manny, just tell him you have no money. They must
not know that Mackenzie ownâs a large enterprise, or Iâm afraid they would
force you to ask her for money.â
Alessandra knew just how moneyâminded her father was. That was why
she did not dare inform him of their arrival when Mackenzie visited them
with Emmanuel.
If the old man knew how rich his granddaughter-in-law was, he would do
everything he could to extort her.
In fact, her purpose in calling Emmanuel was to put him on his guard, not
ask him for money.
âI know, Mom,â Emmanuel assured her.
He had decided not to aid his uncle, who had asked for help one too many
times. Despite being a man in his forties and a father of two, Emerson had
no sense of responsibility: the man would rather show off his wealth
whenever he had money instead of spending it on his children.
Accompanying his mother, Emmanuel had on occasion visited her family
and saw how shabbily those two children were dressed. Their parents had
separated, and their father did not care about them. Often bullied in
school, they had low selfâesteem.
Uncle Emerson is arrogant and doesnât understand how fleeting life can
Emmanuel knew that his grandfather, Hermann, had set aside a betrothal
gift worth a hundred thousand to his father which somehow went to
Emerson for launching a business venture, who had lost it almost
overnight.
Besides handling the business badly, he had taken up a gambling habit
under the delusion that his fortune would turn around by the next hand.
As a result, he lost everything and incurred a mountain of debt. Hermann
sold his land and took some loans to help his son pay it off. His mother
gave him thirty thousand of her hardâearned savings. Even his sister had
been forced via a guilt trip to give their uncle twenty thousand.
I canât believe heâs pulling this cr*p again.
Emmanuel had known all along that was who his uncle wasâa soul
beyond redemption.
Heâll probably survive decapitation before he turns over a new leaf.
Being a doctor, he knew that truth better than most.
Sure enough, Hermann came calling when he was about to take a bath
that evening.
As Emmanuel had just drawn a hot bath, he opted to go ahead with the
bath first.
Upon emerging, he picked up his phone and found a dozen missed calls.
âWhatâs going on? More girls after you?â
Mackenzie could not resist teasing him when she appeared.
With a smile that looked more like a grimace, he was just about to
respond when the phone rang again.
This time, he picked up the call.
5
âWhatâs going on? How many times do I have to call you before you pick
up? Are you intentionally avoiding this old man?â
Like always, Hermann began accosting as soon as he opened his mouth.
âIâm sorry, Granddad. I was taking a bath.â
âA bath? Hmph! I think you know why Iâm calling, so youâre avoiding me. Iâm
telling you, you canât hide forever!â