Chapter 8: She Stopped Caring Long Ago
“Even if you’re going on a business trip, you still have to apologize to Auntie Queenie. Do you know how long she’s been upset because of what you said? She couldn’t even eat today!”
Hands on hips, Michael glared righteously at Wendy.
“If you don’t apologize to her, I won’t let you go to work today!”
So that’s why he’d suddenly come looking for her–because of Queenie.
Of course. Whenever father and son sought her out, wasn’t it always for Queenie?
She was their lifeblood. The moment she felt the slightest discomfort, they panicked.
And what did any of that have to do with her?
Leaning back, Wendy’s red lips curved in a sneer.
“If your Auntie Queenie has no appetite, she should see a gastroenterologist. I’m a cardiothoracic surgeon–I can’t treat that.”
“You’re doing this on purpose! I told you to apologize to her, not to find a doctor!”
He shot back at once.
She wasn’t angry–only struck by the irony.
She remembered once running a 40°C fever, so weak she nearly fainted. She’d asked him to bring her a glass of water; he’d called her lazy and ignored her.
She had dragged herself to the hospital alone for an IV.
Halfway through, Steven called to order her home to cook.
That was the “treatment” she’d received all these years. In the eyes of the Steven men, she had never been a person–only a tool to summon and
dismiss.
“I will not apologize to her. If you care that much, you go apologize.”
Michael’s eyes went round.
“How can you be like this? You made Auntie Queenie angry and you won’t apologize? How can there be such a vicious woman as you!”
Vicious?
Looking at his sputtering rage, she laughed–but ice spread in her eyes.
“If I were truly vicious, would you have grown up safe and sound?”
“Don’t forget–when you were sick, who carried you to the hospital? Who cooked your soup? Who sat up all night, terrified you’d take a turn for the worse? Would your Auntie Queenie do any of that for you?”
Her words left him speechless.
Before he could recover, she stood and nudged him aside.
“I have work to do. Don’t stand here getting in the way.”
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Chapter 8: She Stopped Caring Long Ago
She hadn’t pushed hard, but he’d been lost in thought and didn’t brace. He landed on his butt with a thump
Staring at the cold glint in her eyes, he pouted–and burst into tears.
“You pushed me! I’m telling Grandma!”
He scrubbed at his tears and ran out.
Watching him go. Wendy’s expression stayed indifferent.
So what if he complained to Madam Price?
She didn’t care anymore.
That evening, the moment she walked in the door, Madam Price’s scolding crashed down.
“You still have the face to come back? Look what you’ve done to poor Michael!”
“He cried at my place all day, said you yelled at him and even laid hands on him. What kind of mother does that!”
Looking up, Wendy saw Michael lounging smugly in his grandmother’s arms.
“Grandma, you have to punish Mom!”
Wendy didn’t want to engage and headed upstairs, but Madam Price’s voice snapped out again.
“Listen here–Michael is my precious grandson. If you dare bully him again, get out of this house! And another thing…”
She set the boy down and came closer, face dark.
“Steven hasn’t been home much lately. What kind of useless wife are you, not even smart enough to win him back?”
“If you ask me, hurry up and give him a second child. Tie his heart down so he stops running to other women. If word gets out, what will people think of our Price family?”
The tirade made Wendy’s head pound. She gave a perfunctory reply and continued upstairs–only to nearly collide with Steven at the landing.
He clamped a hand on her chin, eyes cold as ice.
“Wendy, you really are shameless. Whatever my mother says, you do. You drugged me back then to get pregnant with Michael–what, planning to drug me again?”
Pain shot through her jaw, but she didn’t show it. She met his gaze, unflinching, and let out a low laugh.
“It’s your mother who wants a second child. If you’ve got any spine, take her on. What are you doing snarling at me?”
She knocked his hand away, eyes glacial.
“Let me tell you, Steven–no matter what your mother says, I will not have another child with you. You don’t deserve it.”
His pupils contracted–his pride stung.
But before he could explode, she’d already turned and gone to her room, giving him no chance to speak.
His chest burned with fury.
That crazy woman–she didn’t know what was good for her.
Chapter 8: She Stopped Caring Long Ago
A little after nine, the hospital called to ask her to cover an extra shift.
She didn’t refuse.
She’d rather be busy there than stay in that house with those people.
They disgusted her.
After half an hour of work, she finally had a moment to breathe–when Queenie appeared.
“Sister, you probably don’t know–Steven gave me a gemstone ring today. He said I’m the only one he loves. And Michael said he likes me very much,
too.”
“So?”
Wendy looked at her as if at an idiot, eyes full of scorn.
“Is winning Steven and Michael’s favor supposed to be an honor? Or are you just that eager to become someone’s stepmother?”
Queenie’s face changed, anger flashing. She slapped her palm on the desk and ground out,
“Don’t play games with me. Let me be blunt–Steven will marry me. If not for you in the way, we’d already be together!”
“Wendy, if you have a shred of decency, get out of Steven’s life and bless us. Otherwise, I won’t let you off.”
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