His Ex wife is a billionaire Chapter 353

Chapter 353

With about eighty percent of his strength. Thaddeus slapped her.

He knew the power of his hands, forged in the military, wielding weapons with lethal force. If he had used full strength, Elspeth would not only be searching the floor for her teeth, but likely knocked out cold.

He didn’t want to give her the excuse to leave. There was still a score to settle between Evadne and her!

Everyone was in shock, witnessing Thaddeus strike Elspeth, yet no one dared intervene.

In this house, even Mr. Frederic couldn’t control Thaddeus, so who could?

“Ah!” Glynnis screamed, covering her mouth, her b*dy trembling in fear, legs shaking violently.

Seeing her mother get hit, she didn’t even have the courage to step forward and stop it.

The folks of the Fairhaven family were also flabbergasted.

Even though Elspeth had crossed lines with her words, she was after all Frederic’s wife, Thaddeus‘ stepmother, and technically an elder. Thaddeus dared to slap her in the face in front of everyone?

Such audacity! This wasn’t just a slap on Elspeth’s face, but also a slap on his own father’s face!

Only Jareth was looking at Thaddeus with fervent admiration. He took a deep breath, a slow smile forming on his l*ps, as a wave of deep emotion stirred within him.

He knew Thaddeus had been holding back for a long time. As his only close friend, no one understood better than him how Thaddeus had endured all these years in this house.

“Frederic, my ears. I can’t hear anything!”

Elspeth, covering her ears and crying hysterically. threw herself at Frederic, clinging to him desperately. Blood was trickling down her l*ps, her meticulously styled hair was a mess, and her makeup was ruined by her tears. Her dignified image as a lady was completely shattered. “I’m deaf. Your son has made me deaf! Are you just going to let him do this? How could he dare to strike an elder?”

Evadne clearly saw blood seeping from between Elspeth’s fingers. She looked at Thaddeus, whose face was as hard as iron.

As expected, Elspeth’s eardrum must have been ruptured.

Damn, that felt good!

Frederic looked down at Elspeth, his gaze complex.

There was still a faint ache in his heart, but he knew clearly that the pain wasn’t for Elspeth, but for a woman he had buried deep in his heart long ago.

“Thaddeus, what has gotten into you? How could you strike an elder?” He had to step in.

Thaddeus curled his l*ps in a chilling smile, “Elder? Which tree does she fall from to be my elder? In the entire Abernathy family, my grandfather is my elder, you are my elder, and Alva is my elder. She does not have a place among those I respect.”

“Mr. Thaddeus.” Alva, being referred to, showed a grateful smile.

Elspeth’s swollen face was as red as a piece of liver, a surge of anger and humiliation welling up within her.

Was Thaddeus suggesting that, in this house, even Alva, an old maid, ranked higher than her?

This was outrageous! This bastard!.

“I respect you for your age and your long service to my father. Elder? Hah, you wish!” Thaddeus‘ cold laughter was spine–chilling, but his eyes were stunning.

The Fairhaven family realized a fight was about to break out. They couldn’t leave now.

Who would miss such a spectacle?

“My mother is my bottom line. Whoever crosses it should not blame me for not showing respect. I can even take their life.”

Thaddeus‘ eyes were cold, his words punctuated by a glance in Evadne’s direction.

He didn’t say it out loud.

Evadne was also his bottom line.

But in Evadne’s heart, was he her bottom line? Probably not even close to Avery.

Thinking of this. Thaddeus felt a pang of heartache, frustration, anger, and loss. He forcibly averted his gaze from Evadne, refusing to look at her any longer.

As if they were connected, Evadne sneaked a glance at him at that moment.

Seeing him simply looking straight ahead coldly, she felt her heart skip a beat.

Elspeth shivered, feeling as if her heart had jumped into her throat, making it hard for her to breathe.

Frederic wasn’t able to control Thaddeus anymore, her once solid rock was no longer reliable.

What if Thaddeus found out that it was her who had worsened his mother’s depression years ago? She would be doomed!

Back then, she had bribed one of the maids, whom Cynthia trusted, to replace her depression medication with drugs that stimulated the central nervous system. Over time, not

only did it worsen the physical symptoms caused by depression, but it also led to mood swings, breathing difficulties, and even hallucinations!

Cynthia spent the last few months of her life in such unbearable physical and mental torment before leaving this world.

This secret could never be exposed!

The day it’s revealed would be her, Elspeth’s, doomsday!

“Frederic, are you really just going to stand there and watch me get beaten? I am your wife.” Elspeth clung to Frederic’s clothes, her tearful eyes begging for mercy.

If being tough didn’t work, she had to play the victim.

She knew Frederic well; he had always been a sucker for such acts.

Frederic took a deep breath, his grip on Elspeth’s arm a bit stiff. “Go clean yourself up. I’ll have Glynnis and the secretary take you to the hospital.”

“No.” Thaddeus interjected coldly.

“Thaddeus, what are you trying to do now?” Frederic frowned.

Thaddeus looked at him, his eyes intimidating. “It’s just a slap. It won’t kill her. But the grudge between Elspeth and Ms. Evadne needs to be settled tonight.”

Evadne’s heart tightened, and she pressed her l*ps together.

“How many times do I have to say it? I had nothing to do with Myra’s situation. I don’t even know the culprit! Evadne is just defaming me!” Elspeth screamed hysterically.

“Elspeth, I think you should take Frederick’s advice and visit a doctor, just to make sure you aren’t showing any early signs of dementia.” Evadne sneered, her cold gaze fixed on Elspeth whose face had turned pale.

Elspeth gritted her teeth, “Evadne!”

Upon hearing this, Barry raised his gray eyebrows, “This Ashbourne girl has a sharp tongue, doesn’t she?”

“Indeed, Dad. Miss Ashbourne has always been so, with a temper as fiery as her words.” Mrs. Fairhaven disapproved of Evadne’s behavior.

Barry cleared his throat. “There’s nothing wrong with a girl having a bit of a fiery spirit, especially when her family background suits her temperament. She’s a pretty one too, it’s a shame she’s already been married once. Otherwise, she would make a great match for Jareth.”

Mrs. Fairhaven’s expression turned into one of surprise.

Edith’s heart skipped a beat, “Grandpa! What are you saying? Evadne, a woman discarded by Thad, is not worthy of my brother!”

“Discarded? A woman as accomplished as Ms. Evadne would still be desirable even if she were to divorce a hundred times. There would be plenty of men lining up to be the hundred–and–first.”

Jareth smirked, his eyes twinkling with mischief, “Grandpa, I must admit, the moment I laid eyes on Ms. Evadne, I was deeply attracted and pursued her passionately.”

Edith clenched her teeth in anger.

“What? You pursued Ashbourne’s girl?”

Barry looked shocked and curiously asked, “Why didn’t you two end up together? I heard you’ve got quite a knack for wooing ladies.”

Mrs. Fairhaven remained silent.

“Ah, well. She wasn’t interested in me.” Jareth said, scratching his head in embarrassment.

“She’s not even interested in you? Does she aspire to marry the Almighty himself?” Barry was quite indignant.

However, considering that Evadne’s ex–husband was Thaddeus. his grandson losing out to him wasn’t too disgraceful.

“Alex, the rogue who worked as a TV station crew member thirty years ago, not only collaborated with you in several shows but also served you tea and water for a long time. Your relationship with him is not ordinary. Even Myra and many well–known directors at the TV station know Alex, but you say you don’t know him. If you’re not suffering from dementia, then what is it?” Evadne looked at Elspeth with contempt.

This level of intelligence, suitable only for manual labor, had somehow climbed up the social ladder to be the lady of the Abernathy family. It could only be said that Frederick was more blind than his son.

“I don’t know any Alex! Just because he knows me, do I have to know him?” Elspeth remained defiant.

“Elspeth, your memory seems to be failing you. Allow me to jog it for you.”

Evadne descended the staircase leisurely, her demeanor poised and elegant as she approached Mr. and Mrs. Abernathy.

Suddenly, Elspeth felt a chill run down her spine.

A silver lily–shaped platinum pendant was swinging before her eyes, like a sharp blade ready to slit her throat at any moment!

Elspeth’s heart pounded in her chest and her l*ps quivered slightly.

How could it be?

How could it end up in Evadne’s hands?

Frederick frowned, feeling Elspeth trembling violently in his arms. Despite her best efforts to contain it, it was still quite evident.

“What’s this? Why show me this?” Elspeth averted her gaze.

“Elspeth, I remember this is your n*ecklace.“.

Frederick’s brows knitted together even more; he said solemnly, “You wore it all the time when we first met. You said it was your mother’s keepsake, the only thing you had left from your past life. You treasured it deeply. But one day, I noticed you stopped wearing it and asked where it was. You said you lost it while filming and were upset about it for a long time. I remember, it was this lily pendant n*ecklace.”

A loud buzzing sound echoed in Elspeth’s ears!

She remembered that she did say these words to Frederick. To be precise, she told this lie.

In order to have Frederick, to win his heart, she had told countless lies and ruthlessly cleared all obstacles in her path to ascend the social ladder.

Elspeth, as a person, was built upon a million lies. So many years had passed, she couldn’t remember most of the lies she had told.

“So, this n*ecklace is a keepsake from your mother, Elspeth. Oh, that makes it quite important to you then.”

Evadne looked at the swinging pendant, her beautiful eyes cold and glittering, “How did such an important item end up in the hands of that rogue? When we found it, it was in a delicate jewelry box. It seems this n*ecklace is also very important to Alex.”