Chapter 18 Repulsive Faces Quiana wore a bitter expression as she said, âRhia, please donât speak like that. They are your relatives, after all.â
Melinda huffed in agreement, âThatâs right. Is that how you speak to your elders? Moreover, when your father was left paralyzed after being beaten up previously, our family was willing to lend you two thousand, so whatâs wrong with asking you to lend us some money now?â
âHow do you have the audacity to say that?â Rhiannonâs face flushed red with anger. âYou lent us the two thousand after my mother begged you on her knees. Moreover, you even shamelessly charged us interest and made us pay four thousand!â
âIsnât it customary to charge others interest when lending money to another person? Just cut to the chase and tell me whether your family is willing to lend us the money.â
âAunt Quiana, your family will receive four million in compensation for the relocation, so whatâs the harm in lending us three million?â
âRelatives should help one another. How can you be so heartless when we need assistance now?â
Melinda acted willfully while her son, Max Lane, and her daughter, Helen Lane, chimed in with their opinions, preventing Rhiannon from interjecting.
Hearing that, Finnegan roughly figured out what had happened.
Poker-faced, he pushed open the metal door and entered.
Rhiannon hastily approached him and said, âFinn, hurry up and chase Uncle Adrian and his family out of here. They are without shame. When Dad was met with mishaps in the past, and we needed money, Mom begged them on her knees for half a day, yet they only loaned. us two thousand. After that, they demanded we repay them four thousand for the principal and interest. Now that they know weâll receive the relocation compensation, they knocked on our door early in the morning to borrow money from us.â
Finnegan patted Rhiannonâs shoulder to calm her down. Only then did he turn to gaze at Adrian and his family.
Melinda immediately uttered with a smile, âYouâre back, Finny. Weâve missed. you. You should persuade your parents to lend us the money now that youâre here. Max needs to buy a house for his wedding. Otherwise, the girl wonât agree to marry him!â
On the day of his return, Desmond invited Adrian and his family over to have a meal, but they mercilessly rejected the invitation. Hence, Finnegan doubted those relatives, who would only show up when there was something to gain, would actually miss him.
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âAunt Melinda, doesnât your family own a house and a commercial property? Canât you give one of the properties to Max for him to get married?â
âThat wonât do!â Melinda shook her head. âNot to mention, we have rented out one of the properties for three thousand a month. Even if we donât rent it out, we must keep the properties ourselves. In the future, your Uncle Adrian and I will each stay in one unit, so Max and Helen still lack a property each.
Therefore, after your family receives the relocation fund, weâll borrow three million from you to purchase another house.â
Her selfish and entitled demeanor disgusted Finnegan.
Nonetheless, after glancing at his mother, who was caught in a tight spot, Finnegan didnât ask them to leave at once. âIf we lend the money to you, where will we stay?â
Unexpectedly, Melinda provided an utterly inconsiderate response. âYou can rent a house temporarily.
Weâll repay you when Max makes money. Relatives should help one another. Besides, Max is the Lane familyâs only male descendant. You and your family canât just do nothing and watch as he fails to get married, right?â
Suppressing his rage, Finnegan retorted, âIâm also my familyâs only male descendant. Moreover, Iâm one year older than Max. Donât I need to buy a house and get married?â
Melinda was instantaneously displeased. âFinny, Max is your cousin, so shouldnât you care for him?
Youâre too selfish!â
Max cut in, âThatâs right. How can you compare yourself to me? The Lane family relies on me to extend its bloodline since Iâm the only male descendant. On the other hand, the Larkin family still consists of your Uncle Raymond. Your family name will be passed on even if you donât get married!â
Melinda waved her hand impatiently. âThatâs enough. Heâs too self-centered and only thinks about himself. Letâs stop talking to him!â
Then, she turned to target Quiana. âQuiana, just tell me whether youâre willing to lend me the money.
You promised to take care of our family after Mom and Dad passed away. Youâll be as lowly as a person can be if you go back on your words now.â
Quiana felt a little helpless. âMelinda, three million is too much. We also wish to pay the downpayment for a property to prepare for Finnyâs wedding in the future. Iâll lend you five hundred thousand after I receive the relocation fund. What do you say?â
âFive hundred thousand? Thatâs just being stingy!â Melindaâs voice turned shrill. âLend us three million if youâre going to do it. Weâll contribute a little and buy a house outright for Max. Otherwise, whoâll pay for his loan in the future? Quiana, as Maxâs aunt, how can you be so selfish and let Max suffer?â
Quiana hurriedly explained in a panic, âThatâs not what I meant. 1-
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Finnegan stopped his mother and stared impassively at Melinda, who was a selfish person accusing others of being self-centered.
âAunt Melinda, I think you donât need to buy a house for Max because he wonât live long enough to move into the new house.â
âB*stard! How dare you curse your cousin!â
Melinda immediately lashed out at Finnegan. However, he merely pulled Quiana aside and dodged the assault without retaliating. Failing to steady herself, Melinda tripped on a stool and fell onto the ground.
She yelped and bellowed, âAre you two blind? Canât you see Iâm getting bullied?â
Only then did Adrian and Max come back to their senses.
Max, who had snapped out of it first, tried booting Finnegan right away. âF*ck you! How dare you say that? Iâll kill you!â
Finnegan didnât hold back when facing Max. He kicked the latter and sent him sprawling on the ground while simultaneously roaring, âThis is my house. Iâll forcefully chase all of you out of here if you continue causing a stir!â
Adrian, Melinda, and Helen shuddered. They didnât dare to move an inch afterward as they didnât anticipate Finnegan to be so fierce.
Quiana tugged at Finnegan. âWhy did you hit him out of the blue and utter such nonsense?â
Finnegan calmed himself and said, âMom, if I donât fight back, should I have let him harm me instead?
Besides, Iâm not spouting nonsense. Max is indeed not going to live much longer. He has leukemia.â
Max, who was being helped up from the floor, scolded, âBullsh*t! Iâm fine.â
Hearing Maxâs vulgar remark, Finnegan kept his murderous intent under control. âYou experienced three episodes of fever in the past month, and the condition recurred a few days. after you got well.
You also occasionally vomit and feel lethargic. Also, the wound on your arm hasnât recovered even after twenty days, right?â
The enraged expression on Maxâs face instantaneously stiffened. âHow did you know that?â
He had been feeling under the weather recently, and the total time he had spent on a drip was over ten days.
Adrian, Melinda, and Helen stopped throwing fits too.
Finnegan sneered, âQuit visiting clinics. Youâre suffering from leukemia, so your bodyâs |||
immune system is weakening. Receiving drips and taking medication can only temporarily relieve your symptoms but wonât help cure the illness. I suggest you go for a checkup at the hospital as soon as possible. Perhaps you can live for another six months by doing that. Otherwise, youâll start experiencing persistent high-grade fevers, and the wound on your arm will become severely infected.
By then, you wonât even last for another two months.â
Max gulped. He wanted to refute Finneganâs statement, but the latter had accurately described all his symptoms.
He immediately lost his cool and urged his parents, âHurry up and bring me to the hospital for a health checkup.â Then, Max turned around to warn Finnegan, âIf nothing is wrong with me, and your family is still unwilling to lend us the money, Iâll beat you to death!â
Subsequently, Max and his family left in a hurry. Peace and quietness ensued in the courtyard.
Quiana rebuked, âFinny, how can you scare your Uncle Adrianâs family in that manner?â
Finnegan replied, âMom, Iâm not scaring them. Max, that disrespectful and rude piece of trash, is indeed ill with leukemia. Just wait for it if you donât believe me. They will definitely come here again later today or tomorrow.â
Recalling the medical expertise displayed by Finnegan, Quiana uttered worryingly, âMax is still so young. How did he develop this disease?â