Chapter 20 Whose Fault Is This?
Hugh’s face darkened.
There was no denying it–this time, the fault lay with them.
And with Eric’s life still hanging by a thread, who cared about anything else?
“Whatever!” he snapped, grinding his teeth.
Then he turned to leave.
But just then, a car horn honked from nearby.
Startled, Hugh paused. That car–it was Eric’s.
“Mr. Eric?” he muttered in disbelief, rubbing his eyes as if trying to shake off a hallucination.
But it wasn’t a dream.
The car door opened.
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The first to step out was Alice–the one the folks at the mansion all regarded with a mix of awe and caution.
Then Stanley appeared and carefully helped Eric out of the car.
Hugh’s eyes widened in shock.
“Mr. Eric, y–you’re home?”
Alice glanced at him with a fake smile. “Hugh, you don’t seem all that happy to see us.”
Snapping back to his senses, Hugh stammered, “N–No, not at all! Of course I am.”
Alice then turned her attention to William, whose expression was still frozen in disbelief.
“Did the items get delivered? Did anyone handle the payment?”
William could’ve kicked himself.
Had he known this would happen, he’d have left the moment he got there–instead of wasting time arguing with Hugh.
Alice could read him like a book.
She sighed inwardly. Typical–always bending with the wind.
“Mr. William, come with me,” she said casually. “I will get someone to settle the bill to save me a trip to your store later.”
William felt like his heart had just shattered.
That was a lot of money.
His tears had run dry; he had no choice but to silently follow Hugh back toward the mansion.
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12:48 PM
Chapter 20 Whose Fault Is This?
Hugh took William to handle the payment, while Eric and Alice returned to the grand living room.
Although Irene and Ruby knew Eric was alive, they didn’t feel particularly joyful about it.
Oscar was still unconscious.
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Melanie had already stopped by earlier and warned that if Oscar didn’t wake up by nightfall, he might not make it.
The entire household was shrouded in gloom.
Ruby wiped her tears, choking on her words. “Irene, what are we supposed to do now?”
Irene’s face was pale with sorrow.
“I really thought, if Oscar woke up, we’d finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. But now…”
Sandy, standing off to the side, let out a cold snort.
“This is all because of that jinx. Dad was fine until she showed up. Then everything fell apart!” Alice said nothing, but her expression might as well have said, Fine, blame everything on me.
Sandy’s outburst had drawn everyone’s attention to Alice.
Then Sandy laughed coldly, eyes glinting with malice.
“Alice, aren’t you the one blessed with luck? Said to bring good fortune when you married into this family?”
Alice gave her a chilly look. “Why don’t you just say what you mean?”
Now that Alice had called her out, Sandy didn’t bother with subtlety.
“You better go see my dad now! If he dies because of you, don’t think you can just walk away.”
Alice chuckled.
“Mr. Oscar was already gravely ill long before I showed up.”
Sandy refused to back down. “He was getting better! When you got involved, things took a turn for the worse!”
Alice nodded thoughtfully. “You’re right. I did get involved, and he started to improve. But if he collapsed today, then something must have happened. Care to explain?”
Sandy’s face froze.
Alice suddenly smiled.
“Or should I take a wild guess?”
She stepped forward with a steady gaze that bored into her.
“Could it have something to do with Eric’s accident?”
Sandy coughed dryly, her expression awkward.
Ruby, who knew her daughter better than anyone, could immediately tell Sandy was hiding something. Her guilty expression said it all.
Chapter 20 Whose Fault Is This?
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Coulditbe…?
Ruby’s face darkened, but she stayed quiet.
Alice continued, “Eric and I were simply shopping at the mall. How would the car suddenly malfunction- unless someone planned it?”
Sandy’s heart raced in her chest, almost jumping out from her throat.
“How would I know?!”
Alice scoffed. “You don’t? That’s strange–because your father collapsed because of that.”
Sandy blinked. “What??”
“He passed out from sheer anger,” Alice said confidently.
Sandy wasn’t buying it.
“He was upset because Eric was in the accident! He fainted from grief! You just want attention. You don’t know anything about medicine–you’re just pretending to be some miracle healer!”
Alice’s gaze softened, tinged with pity.
“You’re still lying to yourself? That’s just sad.”
She sighed.
“Mr. Oscar wasn’t just anybody. In his prime, he could get just about anything done with his power. The city had to bow to his order. Do you truly believe he wouldn’t have been able to see through a scheme like this?”
She looked around the room, her voice calm but cutting.
“Eric had been in a coma for years. Oscar knew his son wasn’t doing well. Even if he heard about the accident, it wouldn’t have shocked him like this–not unless he knew there was something else behind it.”
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