Chapter 19
Veronica had no doubts about leaving things to Douglas. Back when she set her sights on him at Harrington Fine Jewelers, it was exactly because she recognized his street smarts.
After giving him instructions, she raised a hand to cover her mouth as she yawned and walked off.
“Ms. Weston, you’ve had a long day.” Alicia suddenly appeared, startling Veronica. “Are you heading back to Weston Villa or to the private villa Mr. Harrington arranged for you?”
Veronica gave her a sidelong glance and chuckled, “Did no one tell Mr. Harrington that holding someone against their will is a crime?”
Alicia maintained her polite smile. “Shall I pass that along?”
Veronica nodded and bent down to get into the Lincoln limousine.
Meanwhile, in Northware, Raymond had just stepped off a plane when Alicia’s message came in. He read it and let out an enraged snort. He pressed his tongue against his molars, replaying Veronica’s words over and over in his head
As he thought back to the short time he had spent with her in Oakrella, a time that had left him with memories he couldn’t shake, the comers of his mouth slowly curved upward.
“Crime, huh?” Raymond murmured. He thought, That doesn’t scare me. So what should I do about it?!
He looked down, opened his messages, and with a faint smile on his lips, typed out a text and hit send.
At this moment, a group of veteran paparazzi who had been waiting at the airport for a certain celebrity suddenly noticed Raymond in the VIP terminal typing on his phone.
They recognized him as the heir of the Harrington family in Northvare Curious, they couldn’t help wondering what Raymond was doing, if he was texting his girlfriend.
Without hesitation, the paparazzi all swung their cameras around and started snapping photos like crazy of Raymond in the distance.
At the Weston Villa in Cloudhaven, a Lincoln limousine stopped on the road more than thirty feet away from the house. Veronica stepped out of the car, took the umbrella Alicia held open for her, and walked unhurriedly toward the villa.
She hadn’t been back for over two weeks. As soon as she reached the outer wall, she noticed it had been built up higher, with an electric fence running along the top. A heavy lock now hung on the ornate iron gale,
Veronica curved her lips into a small smile and thought, ‘Dad really went all out trying to keep me from coming back
“M–Ms. Weston?” the gardener, Gina Pickett, who had been watering the plants in the yard, stammered the moment she spotted. Veronica.
When Veronica raised an eyebrow, Gina jolted and spun around, bolting toward the house, muttering, I’ll go inform Mrs. Weston and your sisters.”
The way Gina looked at her wasn’t like she was seeing someone who had been gone for over two weeks–it was like she had seen a ghost.
Behind her came Veronica’s voice, calm and unreadable. “Don’t take too long. I might blow the door open.
Gina’s knees buckled. She nearly tripped and fell but quickly forced herself upright and scrambled into the house. “Mrs. Weston, M–Ms.
Vero-
Linda, who had been showing off her newly purchased diamond ring to a few other ladies, frowned in annoyance. “What’s wrong with you, Gina? Why are you so flustered?”
Gina wiped the sweat off her forehead and stood straighter. “M–Mrs. Weston, Ms. Veronica Weston is back.”
“What?” Linda’s diamond ring slipped from her fingers and rolled under the table. She didn’t even bother picking it up and jumped to her feet “Why is she back? Did she bring anything with her? Lock the doors and get me the pepper spray.”
5:09 PM
Chapter 19
The ladies who had just spent the whole afternoon watching Linda play the elegant high–sociery lady were stunned. They thought, “Lock the door? Pepper spray? Mrs. Weston doesn’t seem anything like the persona she’s been putting on just now.”
The two ladies‘ meaningful stares made Linda snap out of it. She then realized she had accidentally spoken her mind and then quickly forced a smile. “You must’ve misheard me. That’s not what I meant.”
“Oh, really? Then what exactly did you mean?” Veronica’s melodious voice cut in. She pinched her chin with one hand, her face a mix of innocent and alluring, her lips curled in a lazy half–smile as she strolled in.
The moment Linda saw her, her cheeks began to burn. Linda instinctively took a big step back, questioning, “H–how did you get
Veronica tilted her lips. I walked in, obviously.”
in!”
Linda muttered, “No way. I changed the gate and raised the walls. There’s no way you could’ve….” She suddenly realized she had said too
much.
A sharp gasp sounded from the side, and in the next second, the smile on Veronica’s face disappeared. Her eyes lowered, and she spokej with a wounded tone, Linda, I always thought you didn’t hate me that much.
“But I didn’t expect that as my stepmother, you’d go so far as to change the gate and raise the walls just to keep me from coming home. Why? Did I do something wrong?”
The socialites who had been listening to Linda boast all afternoon–who had also thrown in more than a few complaints about their own stepdaughters–suddenly understood everything.
It was a textbook case of a stepmother refusing to accept her husband’s daughter and smearing her name every chance she got.
One of the more blunt and outspoken ladies stood up and said. “Veronica, what’s there to be confused about? Your stepmother clearly doesn’t see you as family.”
Another lady chimed in, “Exactly. You lost your mother at two and were sent off to the village for eighteen years. Now you’ve finally come home, and instead of caring for you, Mrs. Weston had the gate changed and the walls raised? That’s just wrong”
The women all stared at Linda, their expressions filled with disappointment, disdain, and judgment.
Linda grew nervous. Although she had kept the truth about not being David’s first wife under wraps, there was no such thing as a perfect
Ever since Veronica had exposed her at that dinner party, the entire Cloudhaven upper circle knew. They might not have said anything to her face, but the ladies she used to be close with had already begun distancing themselves.
Today, it had taken a lot of effort for Linda to gather a few of them for afternoon tea in an attempt to salvage her image. Now, Veronica had ruined everything again. Linda made up her mind–she wasn’t going to let this happen.
“Veronica, what are you talking about?” Linda took a deep breath and forced what the thought was a charming smile. “Why would I ever keep you out? You must’ve misunderstood.”
Veronica looked up, her lashes damp with tears, fluttering ever so slightly. Then can you please stop people from spreading lies about
me
“Of course I…” Linda paused mid–sentence. The women around her were no longer just gasping. They were openly scoffing.
Linda fumed, suddenly realizing she had walked straight into another trap.
One of these ladies, clearly the leader of the group, let out a mocking snort and stood up. “A mistress is still a mistress. Even after marrying into the Weston family, Linda still can’t shake off that cheap little habit.
“Right? I heard she used to be Mrs. Claudia Weston’s maid, another one snickered, clicking her tongue repeatedly.
The group walked off with knowing smiles Just before leaving, one of them gently squeezed Veronica’s uninjured arm and said, “Don’t be afraid, sweetheart. If anything happens, go to Mr. Mason Weston. He’ll stand up for you.”
Veronica gave them a grateful nod. With these women spreading the word and Douglas handling things on his end, she believed the rumors about her in Cloudhaven would shift soon enough
Linda was furning. She watched helplessly as the ladies walked off. She then quickly dropped the haughty act she had been putting on and chased after them to explain, Veronica let out a cold laugh, turned, and headed upstairs to her room.
5:09 PM P
Chapter 19
The moment Veronica pushed the door open, a loud noise came from above. She instinctively stepped to the side, just in time to avoid a full bucket of water that crashed to the floor. A few filthy drops still splashed onto the hem of her pants.
That foul–smelling water had clearly been sitting for a while. Veronica sneered, thinking, “Well, I guess it’s only fair I return the favor.
