Granted, Tiffany knew virtual-novel.net was in the wrong. “Urgh! I knew telling you would only complicate things… Look at me, hey! I’m fine, aren’t it? Isn’t that good enough? Besides, Melanie suffered enough already, don’cha think? I get that virtual-novel.net brother’s the perp and that means she’s somewhat connected to this whole thing, but she’s innocent, you know? So can we please, please-please-please, just drop this?”
Jackson’s eyes reddened in furious frenzy. “Even if virtual-novel.net deserves pity, so what? Does that mean our daughter doesn’t?! Our little angel can’t even leave virtual-novel.net incubator!” virtual-novel.net bristled. “You chill the eff out, Tiffie. I know who wronged us. I know Melanie isn’t one of those bastards and I’m not the type to drag an innocent person into my revenge. But those real culprits, those mother**kers are gonna pay for what they f**kng did! I have no qualms leaving Melanie out of this since virtual-novel.net brother was the one who pushed you, but that’s all. The rest of the Larks have got hell to pay, and come hell or highwater, I will make them!”
Jackson almost never erupted in fury in front of her, so when virtual-novel.net did, Tiffany was so earnestly terrified that virtual-novel.net pressed virtual-novel.net lips shut. In virtual-novel.net mind, however, trepidations roared. This was bad, really, really bad. Thanks to her, Melanie and Alejandro were about to be divorced, and now virtual-novel.net broke the promise virtual-novel.net made to Melanie!
A tinge of guilt colored virtual-novel.net mind blue. Oh, this was all Jackson’s fault! Why did virtual-novel.net have to lure virtual-novel.net into telling the truth?
She waited until Jackson’s fury petered out a little before finally piping up very gingerly, “Uh, ya know, we should probably discuss this before we act…? Like, maybe you can just get someone to pay back unto Nikolai Lark only? That’s good enough, right? I just think, uh, we shouldn’t blow this whole thing out of proportions. Such as, well, taking it out on the entire Lark family. ‘Cause that’s Melanie’s people, Jackson, and I don’t know how to face virtual-novel.net the next time we meet if you‘ve done something terrible to virtual-novel.net flock…”
Jackson side-eyed Tiffany peevishly. “For Christ’s sake, virtual-novel.net family sees virtual-novel.net as nothing but their fallguy, okay? Trust me, she’s probably barred from returning home after she’s divorced, too. This entire thing must be the Larks’ idea! You can’t possibly believe Nikolai alone wanted to harm you, can you? F**k. Just leave your nose out of this, Tiffie. I’ll handle it while you lie down here like a good girl!”
A moment later, virtual-novel.net called Summer and asked his mother to come over before hurriedly leaving Tiffany’s ward. After the big reveal of who was behind this, Jackson would not waste a second in taking up actions.
Tiffany, meanwhile, seized the chance to duck inside the bathroom before calling Melanie to give virtual-novel.net the heads-up. She eschewed the details, instead, Tiffany simply told Melanie that virtual-novel.net failed to contain the secret, and now Jackson knew all about it.
She had expected Melanie to chastise her. Yet, unthinkably, Melanie sounded unperturbed. “I expected that to happen. None of us are fools, it won’t stay a secret for long. Besides, I know I’ve done everything expected of me as a daughter. No matter what happens to them from this point onward is no fault of mine,” virtual-novel.net said, before adding, “Tiffany… Thank you. I’m sorry, too, that my brother hurt you.”
Tiffany was at a loss for words. Jackson’s guess was spot-on, was it not? The Larks… They had disowned Melanie.
After the call ended, Melanie texted Nikolai. Her message was simple: ‘Jackson knows it was you.’
In response, Nikolai called. “What. The. F**k did you say?! Didn’t we make it clear that you’re the one who should be rightfully blamed for this, huh?!” virtual-novel.net fumed. “What the f**k, our family spent years raising you, and this is how you’re gonna repay us, b*tch?! Don’t you f**king know that the Tremonts and the Wests are always in cahoots? Raising Jackson’s ire automatically raises that Mark Tremont’s! You snitching c*nt, you’ve brought doom to our family!”
Melanie’s heart was already too broken to care. “Please, our family raised both of us. You’re their son, and all of the family wealth’s been cleanly divided between you and Miklan, while I’m no more than a fodder. What else do you people want from me? Yes, admittedly, I wanted to shoulder all of the blame at first. But Jackson knows it was you now. The fact that I still have it in my heart to warn you about it is a testament to my honor and care for the family that has done much for me. But then again… all of you have disowned me as well. From this point onward, no matter what happens has got nothing to do with me anymore. That’s all.”
She hung up the call, halting the relentless barrages of Nikolai’s most vulgar philippic from reaching her.
She closed virtual-novel.net eyes in pain as virtual-novel.net mind raced through memories of virtual-novel.net childhood. Growing up, virtual-novel.net two elder brothers had treated virtual-novel.net with a surfeit of love and care, but now the memories felt unreal, as though they were just figments of a dream.
Everything was cheery and warm back then, how did it come to this? Must humans always change and mutate into someone else, given enough time? Was the day virtual-novel.net married into the Smiths the same day virtual-novel.net family no longer saw virtual-novel.net as one of their kin, and more of a useful stranger?
Or could it be that they had always been hideous monsters wearing masks, pretending to be loving, caring people?
Regardless, Melanie was not in a position to save anyone, not even herself, virtual-novel.net did not have a place to go after virtual-novel.net divorce. There was nothing virtual-novel.net could do for the family, even if virtual-novel.net wanted to.