Sylvia’s breath caught in her throat.
She had a bad feeling that whatever her mother wanted to say at this moment would definitely not be a good one at all.
Across the phone, Eloise drew in a deep breath before she began.
“It is expected of you to return with your husband tomorrow, as culture demands.” She paused slightly before continuing, her voice taking on a more careful tone.
“But now, the Evercrest family are yet to fulfill their own part of the deal.” Sylvia’s brow furrowed as she silently analyzed where the statement was headed.
She had learned enough about her family over the past few days to know that whenever they spoke in circles, there was usually something unpleasant waiting at the end of it.
When her mother kept silent for a few seconds longer, Sylvia finally parted her lips and breathed out five words.
“So what do you mean?” she asked, a hint of wariness laced in her voice.
She had already been plotted against once, and she wouldn’t be surprised if they were preparing another scheme again.
Seeing how insatiable they were when it came to exploiting her, Sylvia had the growing feeling that her days in the Evercrest family might only be for paving the way for the Quinns.
She couldn’t help but wonder how her life had suddenly capsized to this extent.
It was almost like a movie playing out before her eyes, except she had been given no script and every new scene came with another plot twist she had never seen coming.
“I hope you can get the old man to honor the arrangement before coming,” Eloise concluded.
Sylvia’s lips curled into a bitter smile.
The words had finally been spoken plainly enough for her to understand.
“Mom, are you saying…if I don’t get the old man to sign off on the investment…I shouldn’t bother returning?” For a moment, Eloise remained silent.
Sylvia was ready to accept that silence as her mother’s acquiescence, but Eloise suddenly spoke again.
“Why do you have to think that way?” Her voice carried an almost forced gentleness as she continued.
“Besides, your returning for the visit wouldn’t be necessary since your husband is crippled and blind.” Sylvia’s fist curled tightly against her duvet as she listened to her mother’s scornful voice.
It sounded all casual but the implication was quite clear.
As a crippled and visually impaired heir he wasn’t worthy of them.
Yet they still forced her to marry him.
‘What a considerate parent?’ “Oh!
Did you just finally realize what it meant to marry a crippled and visually impaired man?” Sylvia countered immediately, unable to hide the sarcasm in her voice.
‘Do they think I’m a child who can’t read the meaning behind their words?’ For the first time, she felt genuinely disgusted by the way her family spoke about Damian.
They had forced her to marry him because they needed something from the Evercrest family, yet they couldn’t even conceal how little they thought of him.
‘Wouldn’t that be the same way they see me?’ “Sylvia, why are you being so difficult?” Eloise hurried to explain.
“I only mean that it might be inconvenient for him.” She couldn’t make any mistake now.
Though Damian might not have appeared at the wedding, she didn’t dare speak rashly.
After all, someone from the Evercrest family might still be close by, and if they heard her say something that offended them, it could cost the Quinn family a fortune.
Sylvia wasn’t satisfied with her mother’s excuse.
If anything, she understood something else from it.
Because of Damian’s condition, they had considered him nothing more than a tool to be used for their own benefit and just like her.
Now waiting for the money, they hadn’t even bothered to consider him as a human being with feelings.
‘How beautiful.’ The bitter thought carried no amusement whatsoever.
Unable to let her have it easy, Sylvia spoke up.
“Why are you the one thinking about it as inconvenient when he hasn’t said it was for him?” Her voice becoming colder.
For one thing she had come to learn about her family was that arguing with them would accomplish very little.
They would simply change their explanations whenever she challenged them.
No matter what reason they hid behind, she promised herself that she would peel off their masks one after another…layer after layer.
“Sylvia,” Eloise called with faux sweetness.
“I know you feel aggrieved, but think about it.
With his situation, you need to care for him, and making you bring him back might even tire you out.” Sylvia couldn’t help but chuckle at the absurdity of the excuse.
“Well, Mom…you don’t have to bother yourself about it.
Even if Damian isn’t coming back with me….” She deliberately paused, allowing the implication to linger between them.
“I will be coming back.
There are a whole lot of things I need to get from home.” Eloise gave a nervous laugh, and Sylvia could immediately hear the uneasiness in her voice.
“What…what is that?” “You don’t have to bother about it.
I will only be coming to get it, and then we can discuss other things.” Seeing that she couldn’t persuade her daughter, Eloise sighed.
“Alright.
You be careful.
Remember to have him sign it.” Sylvia didn’t bother with any further formality before ending the call.
The moment the screen went dark, her fist clenched tightly around the phone.
Her eyes remained cold as she replayed the entire conversation in her mind, going over every word her mother had said.
And her eyes narrowed.
Something about her mother’s behavior felt odd.
After going through this pain…she only had one purpose.
To tell her not to return.
‘Is there something I don’t know?’ The question lingered in Sylvia’s mind, refusing to settle.
No matter how much she wanted to care about her parents, she had discovered that after everything that had happened with the wedding, she had lost all trust in them.
It was ridiculous to think about, but she had finally come to realize that trust, once broken, couldn’t be easily recovered.
‘No matter what, I will have to return to the Quinn family tomorrow.’ Her gaze hardened as she considered her a few other things she needed to do.
‘Leslie was working at the company before she left…I cannot only replace her wedding.
I will replace her work.’ She hadn’t thought about this deeply before, but after the situation at the dining hall and this call now, Sylvia had discovered that she needed some leverage.
She was already kicked out and sacrificed by her family, and she couldn’t live off the Evercrest family…not when almost everyone there including Damian seemed to think she was unworthy of being his wife.
She needed something that belonged to her.
She needed a position that would allow her to stand on her own feet.
So, in the end, she needed the Quinn family to support her.
Besides, returning to the company would provide a convenient cover for whatever she eventually decided to do.
With that thought settled, Sylvia placed the phone back on the bedside table and prepared to sleep.
She had barely settled beneath the duvet when a soft knock sounded against the door.
Her brow furrowed slightly.
‘Who could that be?’ She pulled the duvet away and hurried out of bed.
When she reached the door, she placed her hand against the handle but didn’t immediately open it.
“Who is there?” she asked but there was no answer.
Sylvia frowned and pressed her ear against the door, listening carefully.
For several seconds, she heard nothing at all.
Then came another knock.
This time, it was slightly louder.
Sylvia drew in a deep breath, assuming it might be a servant who had come to deliver something.
She turned the key and slowly pulled the door open.
Her eyes widened.
Before she could react, the door was pushed wider, and Damian wheeled himself into the room.
“What are you doing here?” Sylvia rasped, memories of the dinner immediately flooding back into her mind.