Chapter 65 Family Reckoning
Sadie stood transfixed by the spectacle when a soft, derisive laugh sounded behind her.
Zephyr sauntered over, mockery dripping from every syllable, “Your family is truly fascinating, Sadie
Zephyr made no effort to soften his voice, and the careless volume drew Quincy, Oliver, Daisy, and the rest straight toward him and Sadic.
“Sadie, stop standing there. Come over here and talk some sense into your mother!” Quincy barked.
Sadie shot Zephyr a look layered with confusion and accusation. He is doing this on purpose. He cannot stand to see me untroubled, so he is pushing me into the center of their quarrel.
She drew in a steadying breath, stepped forward, and offered the simplest of greetings. “Mother. Father
Eleanor’s face remained an untouched sheet of frost. Even as her former husband and their children launched accusations, she stood apart, as though the commotion had nothing to do with her.
All my life–both the one before and the one I am living now–I have never been able to read what stirs behind Mother’s calm eyes. When I was little, I blamed her, wondering why a woman who felt no love for me chose to bring me into the world. After two lifetimes, a new thought has come. Perhaps she never chose any of this. She may have been forced into Father’s house, a friendless, delicate woman with no family to shield her, compelled to bear him five children. If that is true, then my brothers, my sister, and I are not her children at all–we are the stain he left upon her life. The idea makes my heart race with a fear I can barely bear.
“Stop gawking! Talk your mother around!” Quincy snapped.
Oliver scoffed. “She calls The Duke of Northwatch ‘Father‘ now; she thinks she’s above us. All day, she flutters around Alexander, desperate to please The Duke’s people. When has she bothered planning for Father’s future? She’s nothing more than a mongrel we never should have fed!”
The onlookers, hearing Oliver’s outburst, turned sardonic eyes on Sadie.
“Government appointments are decided by merit,” Sadie said calmly, her gaze sweeping across the circle.
“Father wants Mother to beg The Duke so he can become the provincial secretary of Aurelia Province. If blood ties secure offices, what are the scholars who burn midnight oil supposed to think? How can Father justify such selfishness?”
Her words snapped the audience from their gossip; suddenly, they saw the issue for what it was.
A man at the back drawled, “Mr. Francis, leaning on family ties is bad enough, but bragging about it in public? Other men toil for their merits, yet you intend to rise on a woman’s skirt hem. Have you no shame?”
Laughter rippled through the courtyard. Quincy blanched, cheeks flashing from red to pale, and glared at Sadie, yet no rebuttal would form on his tongue.
Sadie turned on Daisy. “And you, Daisy, are even more absurd. If you truly believe the simple way of living is life’s ideal, why adorn yourself in gold and silk today and scramble so hard for Father’s advancement? If you have no thirst for power, you should retreat to the mountains and live the quiet life you prea
Exposed, Daisy flushed scarlet and wished the ground would swallow her whole.
“Sadie, mind your manners. This is a public place!” Adonis warned, stepping protectively in front of Daisy.
Chapter 65 Family Reckoning
“And you, Adonis. You demand Mother shoulder responsibility, yet what of yours? While she lived at the Francis Estate, did you ever greet her in the morning? You grumbled that she had no plans to pave your path, yet your entrance to Cranesong Academy depended on the very influence you now despise.
Speechless, Adonis pointed a trembling finger at his sister, his mouth opening and closing without a single word.
Oliver and Neville stared at Sadie as though she had grown wings, stunned by the sheer audacity of her words.
Eleanor paused long enough to let her gaze linger on Sadie, then swept away behind a wall of guards and maids.
Quincy spun on the gawking pilgrims and roared, “What are you staring at? Move along! I am the magistrate. My family’s affairs are none of your concern!”
When the worshippers finally scattered, he rounded on Sadie, his face dark as thunder. “Wretched girl!”
His palm cracked across her cheek before she could flinch, five vivid welts blooming on her snow–pale skin.
Behind her, Zephyr’s eyes narrowed to a glacial gleam.
As Quincy lifted his hand for another strike, Zephyr stepped forward, fingers locking around the man’s wrist like iron.
Quincy barked, “Commander Gates, isn’t commanding two hundred thousand soldiers enough? Must you meddle in how I discipline my daughter? This is a private matter!”
Zephyr’s voice dropped to a low, controlled rumble. “Private? Have you forgotten that Sades now belongs to the Gates Estate? She is my sister, cherished above all. You forfeited any right to touch her.”
Quincy’s pupils shrank.
Meanwhile, Daisy’s fingers clenched around her lace handkerchief.
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Scorned Heir’s Second Life. The Rebirth That Made My Brothers Weep
