Faux Vows, True Desires

Chapter 227

Janice was glued to her phone when she suddenly snatched it from Lucinda's hands. She swiftly hung up the video call, deleted Keith from Lucinda's contact list, and even turned off the phone.

Everyone was stunned.

Janice returned the phone to Lucinda with a stern look. "Lucy, don't have anything more to do with that guy. He's bad news!"

Lucinda took the phone back nervously and asked, "Mom, did he bully you?"

Janice thought for a moment before replying, "Well, he didn't exactly bully me. In fact, he'd help me when others did. But the way he looked at me, I got the creeps. He's definitely a bad egg. His gaze was devilish." All content © N/.ôvel/Dr/ama.Org.

Lucinda breathed a sigh of relief.

She could accept that her biological father, Nathan, was a piece of work, but if he and others were bullying her mother, she didn't know how she could face him.

"Lucy, listen to me. He's a rotten apple. Stay away from him. His whole crew is just as bad. He might look a bit like my husband, but he's not him." Janice started spacing out again.

Seeing this, Lucinda quickly served some dishes to Janice. "Mom, let's eat."

"Okay, let's eat. And you too, stop playing with your phone."

Lucinda nodded.

As long as Janice stopped dwelling on the past, she wouldn't be so confused, and her condition would improve.

Everyone resumed eating. Lucinda felt relieved to see Janice happily eating her meal.

Lucinda and Stefan exchanged glances.

Stefan gently squeezed her hand. Lucinda replied with a warm smile.

Fortunately, Stefan had always been by her side.

He was very considerate and would help her with many things, some of which she hadn't even thought of.

"Janice."

Nathan softly called out Janice's name.

Unfortunately, the video call had been hung up.

To make matters worse, when he tried to call back, he couldn't get through.

He guessed that Janice had deleted him from her contacts or maybe blocked him.

Keith watched Nathan's pained expression, especially when he called out Janice's name; the anguish was palpable.

He looked at Nathan with mixed feelings.

Keith thought back to the past. Although Nathan didn't send Grandma Savannah to take Janice to the suburban mansion, he didn't do much to protect her either. He couldn't use his busy work as an excuse because, as the head of the family, he could have had his trusted people protect Janice and prevent her from being bullied.

In Keith's eyes, Nathan was terrible, ruthless, and heartless.

He had always thought Nathan no longer had feelings for Janice, and they hadn't divorced simply because of him.

He was their only son and the only child who grew up by Nathan's side.

Now, seeing Nathan in such pain, Keith was confused.

What role had Nathan been playing all these years? What else had he been hiding?

Just as Nathan said, many external forces had infiltrated. Was the Blue family going to face a major change soon? How much pressure had Nathan been under all these years? How many unseen attacks had he shielded him and Janice from?

Keith didn't know and couldn't ask.

Before this, the father and son had a strained relationship and rarely had peaceful conversations.

People outside were spreading rumors that Keith would be replaced sooner or later and that when Nathan married Madeleine, it would be the end for Keith and Janice.

Looking up at Keith's complex expression, Nathan forced a bitter smile. "You think I'm putting on a show, don't you?"

Keith was silent for a while before he delivered a stinging remark. "You know your own situation. Whatever you've done behind the scenes, the fact is that you haven't protected Janice all these years. People are saying that once you marry Madeleine, you'll kick me and Janice out. Seeing you distressed when Janice hung up, who are you putting on the show for? It's ironic to watch."

Nathan bitterly smiled and said, "Yes, it's ironic. It's a show. I can say that I've been fair to you, but not to Janice. That's a fact, and I don't expect Janice to forgive me."

He just hoped that Janice could recover her health after finding their daughter, Lucy.

"Dad," Keith suddenly pleaded, "once Janice recovers, let her go. Give her a divorce and let her live with me or Lucy. I think she wouldn't want to stay in the Blue family."

Nathan picked up a few books and threw them at Keith.

Keith didn't dodge and let the books hit him.

"You ungrateful son, which child wishes for their parents to divorce? Janice doesn't have many people left in her family, with only Hayes Brooks left managing some property. Where would Janice go after a divorce? To stay with you? Aren't you also part of the Blue family? To stay with Lucy? Lucy is already married. The Anderson family is influential. If Janice's relationship with the Anderson family isn't good, it will affect Lucy's relationship with them."

Keith said bluntly, "Your marriage with Janice is beyond repair, man. Whether she's crazy or sane, she ain't going to spend her life with you. If you have any ounce of love left for her, let her be. Let her have some peace in her twilight years. And besides, you've already got a new squeeze. Your new chick is younger, prettier, and comes with a powerful family background. Marrying her would bring the Blue and Porter families together. Why the hell not?"

Nathan's face darkened. "You don't have to stick your nose into my business with Madeleine. But let me tell you, Keith, I ain't divorcing Janice! Janice is mine, in life and in death! Don't be so damn naive. Even if I divorced Janice, they would still be after you two. As long as you and Lucy are still breathing, they won't leave Janice alone. Only when you three kick the bucket will they back off!"

Nathan's got billions in the bank. Now, he's made it clear that his wealth will be split evenly between his two kids.

And the chunk that Nathan got from Blue Corporation was earmarked for his wife, Janice.

The Dewey family's gone to pot.

Janice can't lean on the Deweys anymore. If Nathan kicked the bucket before Janice, leaving her some money, at least she’ll be set for her later years.

As the head of the Nathan family, he got a pretty penny from Blue Corporation.

Sometimes, Nathan regretted piling up all that wealth, causing his biological daughter Lucy to wander around for over two decades with people out to get her.

Their goal was simple: they didn't want Lucy to come back. They didn't want her to inherit everything she's entitled to.