Chapter 5
As soon as Christina stepped into the Steele residence, Gideon’s voice roared at her.
“You’ve finally decided to come back, huh?”
“Didn’t you ask me to come?” Christina shot back, her voice cool and measured.
Gideon had never felt any respect or admiration from his daughter, and the sting of her words only fueled his fury. In a fit of rage, he hurled a cup at her.
The cup missed, crashing into the floor at her feet, its shards scattering across the room. One small piece of glass flew out, cutting Christina’s delicate hand, leaving a thin streak of crimson on her fair skin.
Christina didn’t even flinch. She looked at the blood with the same indifference she had shown for years. Still, her tone remained impassive as she addressed her father.
“Is this why you called me here? To throw a tantrum? Now that you’ve vented your anger, I’m leaving.”
Without a second glance, she turned toward the door.
“Enough, Gideon. Don’t lose focus,” Miranda interjected, having watched the spectacle for long enough.
Gideon, his fury simmering but now reminded of their true purpose, clenched his fists and forced himself to calm down.
“Stop right there,” he demanded, his voice low and commanding.
Christina paused, her back still turned to him.
“I heard Nathaniel has divorced you?” he asked, his voice dripping with disbelief.
“Yes,” Christina answered without hesitation, her voice steady and unwavering.
Her response only seemed to stoke the fire within Gideon. “You insolent girl! Go back to the Hadley residence right now! I don’t care how you do it, but you are not leaving that family!”
The Hadley family was crucial to the Steele family’s survival; without their support, the Steeles would be buried under their debts.
Christina laughed bitterly. “Do you think I’m dumb enough to step into that hellhole twice?”
Miranda, sensing the growing tension, spoke up with an almost pleading tone. “Christina, you know we can’t survive without the Hadleys. Please, don’t do this.”
Christina’s eyes narrowed as she looked at her stepmother. “What does that have to do with me? I’m not a Steele.”
Her voice held no warmth, no attachment to the family that had long since ceased to be hers.
Miranda tugged at Gideon’s sleeve, silently urging him to do something.
Gideon’s face hardened. He had run out of patience. “Fine, then. I’ll call and terminate the financial support for your mother’s medical treatment.”
Christina’s expression didn’t change, but her pulse quickened. Sharon’s illness had always been a painful leverage that Gideon and Miranda used to manipulate her.
Gideon knew Christina couldn’t afford her mother’s treatment on her own, so this threat had always been an effective tool in his arsenal.
Christina, however, remained unmoved. “Do you honestly think Nathaniel is some gullible fool you can manipulate over and over again?”
The mention of Nathaniel’s name took the wind out of Gideon and Miranda’s sails. Their faces fell.
The Hadleys had originally wanted Emilia as their daughter-in-law, but Miranda had refused to marry her daughter off to Nathaniel, whom she deemed unattractive and “allegedly” gay. So, she had drugged Christina and sent her to the Hadley family instead.
Christina’s lips curled into a sardonic smile as she glanced at them. “You can’t even handle your own business. No one is going back to the Hadley residence unless Nathaniel himself comes to get me.”
A flicker of triumph shone in her eyes as she spoke, knowing full well that Nathaniel would never return to the Steele residence.
However, her small victory was short-lived.
Just then, a housekeeper hurried into the room, looking nervous and flustered.
“Mr. Steele, Mrs. Steele, someone from the Hadley family is here.”