Irene's breath was heavy, nostrils flaring as she turned to Roland, her voice trembling with restrained rage. "Mr. Roland, tell your family to steer clear of me. The next time any of them insult my mother, they might as well say their goodbyes to each other."
Without another glance, she stormed out, leaving a heavy silence in her wake.
Victor turned to his mother and brother, shaking his head in disappointment. "Mom, can you and Daniel stop this? Since when did the two of you become so close, having this tacit understanding?" His tone dripped with sarcasm before he walked out as well.
Roland exhaled tiredly. "Can't we all just live in peace?"
Rosalyn's cold voice sliced through the room. "We can only have peace when your illegitimate daughter leaves this house."
Roland's gaze darkened, but instead of arguing, he simply said, "Suit yourselves." Then, he left, leaving Rosalyn and Daniel behind, simmering in their anger.
---
Victor had barely settled into his chair when a knock sounded at his door. He groaned, already knowing who it was.
The door creaked open without permission.
"What do you want?" Victor asked lazily, not even bothering to look up.
Daniel walked in, ignoring his annoyed tone. "I want to talk to you."
Victor raised an eyebrow. "This is my room. At least if you want to see me, try knocking."
Daniel smirked. "Don't worry, I won't do that." He leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "Victor, do you know that Victoria loves Brian?"
Victor let out a short laugh. "Of course! Who doesn't know? Everyone in Country B does—maybe even other countries." His tone was light, but his expression turned guarded.
Daniel's smirk faded. "So why are you shipping him with Irene? Victoria is your biological sister, you know."
Victor sighed, leaning back in his chair. "How did I ship them? Isn't it obvious that Brian likes Irene? And Victoria should use this time to grow up and understand that Brian will never love her."
Daniel's jaw tightened. "You're her older brother. Shouldn't you watch out for her? Don't you know she'll feel down if her own brothers act nonchalant about her love life?"
Victor ran a hand through his hair, clearly uninterested. "It's her love life, not mine. So why should I stress myself over someone else's love life?"
Daniel's patience snapped.
"Victor?!" He barked, his voice filled with frustration.
Victor finally looked at him, unimpressed. "What?"
The tension in the room was suffocating, the weight of their different perspectives hanging between them like an invisible battlefield.
Victor exhaled, rubbing his temples as he looked at Daniel with frustration. "Understand one thing—Victoria is my sister, and I love her a lot. But Irene is also my sister. We shouldn't be biased just to make one happy. If Brian likes Victoria, so be it. If he likes Irene, why should there be a problem?"
His voice softened as he added, "Irene has no one but herself. She also needs somebody to protect her."
Daniel narrowed his eyes. "Are you planning to divide the family?"
Victor scoffed. "Of course not. But can you force Brian to be with Victoria? Can you make him fall for her? If you could, you should have done it years ago. But you couldn't, right?" He let out a bitter chuckle. "And why blame me? If anything, blame Brian for falling for someone else instead of our beloved little sister, Victoria."
Daniel clenched his jaw. "Are you kidding me right now?"
Victor shrugged. "Why would I? You've spent enough time arguing with me. You better go check on our little beautiful sister—she's probably crying right now."
Daniel sighed, turning toward the door. But before he left, he threw a parting shot over his shoulder. "Just a reminder—Victoria is our immediate sister, not Irene."
Victor's jaw tightened as he muttered under his breath, "Irene is my immediate-ly sister too."
---
Irene's Room
A soft knock sounded at Irene's door. She rolled her eyes before calling out, "Come in."
Roland stepped inside hesitantly.
Irene glanced at him, her expression unreadable. "Hope no problem?"
Roland shook his head. "No problem. I just wanted to talk to you." His voice was calm, almost pleading.
Irene leaned back in her chair, arms crossed. "If it's about your family, I don't give a fuck about them." The venom in her words made Roland sigh.
"I know you're angry with me for everything that's happened in the past. But I'm sorry, Irene. I really am. Back then… I didn't have a choice."
Irene let out a sharp, bitter laugh. "Enough. I'm not interested in your excuses." Her gaze darkened as she continued, "Do you know that your past is my present? No matter where I go, I carry the 'illegitimate' label over my head. It's a stain that can't be washed away. You know that, right?"
Roland's face fell. "I'm sorry." He hesitated before adding, "But can you stop causing problems? This house hasn't been peaceful since you got back. Can we just… live as a family?"
Irene tilted her head slightly, a knowing smirk playing on her lips. "We can only be a family if I consider you one. But I don't."
Roland's throat tightened. "Irene… I am your family. You know I love you, right?"
Irene's expression turned to ice. "I don't care. I don't want to be family with you."
Roland swallowed hard. "Irene—"
She pointed toward the door, her voice unwavering. "Enough. You can leave now."
Roland stared at her for a moment, as if searching for something—some hint of warmth, of forgiveness. But there was none.
"Okay." He nodded slowly, standing up to leave.
Just as he reached the door, Irene spoke again, her voice quiet yet firm. "Thanks."
Roland turned slightly, his expression unreadable, before walking out.
As the door closed behind him, Irene exhaled, her mask slipping for just a moment. But only for a moment.
Brian's Office
Brian exhaled sharply, his patience wearing thin. "What do you want?" He glanced at Richard, who had been sitting in his office for over thirty minutes without saying a word.
Richard grinned mischievously. "Me? I don't want anything."
Brian rolled his eyes. "Just say whatever you came here to say or get out."
Richard placed a hand over his heart in mock offense. "Come on, I'm your only brother. You shouldn't be so hard on me. You're all I have since Mom left." His voice carried a dramatic lilt, playing the pity card.
Brian scoffed. "Do you plan on going to meet her?"
Richard blinked. "Meet who?"
"Mom." Brian's voice was calm but pointed. "Don't you miss her?"
Richard sat up straighter. "Hey, how can you say that? If someone has to go meet Mom, let Edward go."
Before Brian could reply, a knock interrupted them.
"Come in." Brian said.
Edward stepped in, holding a file.
Richard immediately turned to him. "What do you want?"
Edward raised a brow. "I'm here to give Brian a file. And you?"
Richard smirked. "I'm here to see my brother." His voice carried an exaggerated sense of pride.
Edward let out a dry chuckle. "That's why Dad never takes you seriously—you're always on Brian's tail."
Richard shrugged, unfazed. "I don't mind being his errand boy." He grinned. "Better that than being invisible."
"Enough, you two," Brian cut in, his tone edged with irritation. He turned to Edward. "What do you want?"
Edward leaned against the desk. "Bro, can you at least be nice to me? I am your brother, your beloved stepmom's son." His tone was teasing, but the meaning behind his words was clear.
Brian shot him a blank stare. "Are you done? If you don't have anything to say, get out."
Richard snickered, giving Edward a look that screamed see your life.
Edward sighed and held up the file. "This needs your signature. I told you about it yesterday." He placed it on Brian's desk.
Brian didn't even glance at it. "Okay. I'll go through it and send it back when I'm done."
Edward exhaled. "I really need it urgently."
Brian shrugged. "If you can't wait, take it back." His indifference was absolute.
Edward clenched his jaw, realizing there was no use arguing. "I'm just saying you should be fast about it."
Brian didn't respond, already moving on in his mind. Edward sighed and about to leave, while Richard leaned back in his chair, grinning.
"You can leave," Richard said dismissively.
Edward crossed his arms. "Do you have work to do?"
Richard smirked. "None of your concern."
Brian, already irritated, snapped. "Get out."
Richard grinned and turned to Edward. "Did you hear that? Get the fuck out." His tone was mocking, as if he were relaying a royal decree.
Brian's patience was wearing thin. "Both of you, get the f*ck out." He said oint his hands at the door
Richard shot him a don't disgrace me look, but Brian didn't care.
Edward chuckled. "Looks like we're leaving together." He threw a mocking glance at Richard as they both walked out.