Chapter 74

Phyllis's face contorted with rage, her features twisted into something almost unrecognizable.

Marie studied her daughter's pathetic expression and felt fury surge through her veins.

She had spent countless days drilling the same lesson into Phyllis's thick skull-cunning was acceptable, even admirable, but stupidity was unforgivable. Yet this girl remained hopelessly dense.

"You should stay away from Vivian," Marie snapped,her voice cutting through the air like a blade. "She orchestrated Brenden's dramatic entrance at your wedding, and even if chaos followed, she would walk away unscathed. Her brother runs the Vasquez Group empire. We're nobodies compared to them.Why do you think she wastes time with you? Because your foolishness makes you the perfect puppet."

Marie's words gained momentum, each one sharper than the last. "We had our chance with Gabriela and we botched it completely. Now she has Mr. Moss's protection, so swallow your wounded pride and learn from your mistakes!"

Marie stared at her daughter, a crushing wave of disappointment settling in her chest. How could she be so stupid?

Even Gabriela possessed the intelligence to align herself with power, while Phyllis had stolen her worthless boyfriend and strutted around like she'd won some grand prize. The sheer stupidity made Marie's blood boil.

Marie's harsh criticism struck deep, and Phyllis bristled with defiant indignation. She opened her mouth to deliver a cutting response when Josh's footsteps echoed through the hallway before he appeared in the study doorway.

Marie's demeanor shifted instantly. "Leave us," she commanded Phyllis with cold authority. Phyllis offered a curt nod and retreated toward the exit, her movements stiff with barely contained resentment.

As her hand touched the door handle, she allowed it to remain slightly open-just enough to catch fragments of the conversation within.

The moment Phyllis disappeared, Josh's stern expression melted away, replaced by a warm smile directed at his wife. "Gabriela called earlier," he announced, settling into his favorite chair. "She won't be joining us for New Year's this year."

Marie's heart plummeted like a stone dropped into dark water.

If Gabriela chose to spend the holidays elsewhere,it confirmed what Marie had feared-Wesley treasured her deeply.

"Mr. Moss may be Gabriela's boyfriend, but they haven't exchanged vows yet," Marie ventured carefully, adopting the concerned maternal tone."Living together so openly seems rather improper.

Perhaps she should return home where she belongs."

Marie had perfected this role over the years-the responsible guardian who worried about Gabriela.

Josh's laughter rippled through the room,warm and genuine. "There's nothing to worry about. Gabriela explained that Mr. Moss owns an enormous estate,complete with more than a dozen staff members and numerous guest quarters."

He practically glowed with satisfaction over Gabriela's romantic fortune. Wesley possessed both substantial wealth and refined manners-a combination that seemed almost too perfect to be real.

With Josh speaking so enthusiastically about the arrangement, Marie found herself trapped without room for further argument.

Josh's mind wandered to a promise he had made to Gabriela not long ago, and inspiration struck him.Now seemed like the ideal moment to bring it up. "Marie," he began thoughtfully, his fingers drumming against the desk, "We moved into this house originally to care for Gabriela, just as I promised my sister. Sixteen years have passed since then, and Gabriela has blossomed into a capable young woman. The time has comne to return this property to its rightful owner."

Marie's face transformed into stone, her features hardening as shadows seemed to gather around her."What exactly are you suggesting?"

She had grown intoxicated by the luxury of their sprawling villa. The thought of cramming herself into some modest apartment made her stomach turn with revulsion.

Josh recognized the battle ahead would require patience and diplomacy, so he chose his words with deliberate care. "When my sister was dying, she gave us money to clear your gambling debts. We must conduct ourselves with honor and integrity..."

"What are you implying?" Marie's voice exploded through the study, her interruption sharp enough to cut glass. Her eyes blazed with crimson fury. "Your sister did provide money, but we've been supporting Gabriela for sixteen years straight. Doesn't that count for something? You bury yourself in dusty books and fancy yourself some kind of philosopher,completely divorced from reality. Do you have any comprehension of how expensive it is to raise a child?"

"Please calm yourself," Josh murmured, his voice shrinking as it always did when Marie's temper flared. He offered gentle reassurance like a man trying to soothe a wild animal. "You've been managing the company brilliantly all these years and must have accumulated substantial savings.We can purchase another villa once we vacate this one."

Marie's lips curved into something that might have been a smile if not for the bitterness that poisoned it,her expression growing more thunderous by the second.

Before taking control of Haynes Group, she had harbored a destructive addiction-gambling consumed her like a disease.

Sixteen years earlier, she had accumulated gambling debts exceeding three hundred thousand dollars, a crushing burden that Gabriela's mother had paid in full before her death. Then Gabriela's mother entrusted both the company and her daughter's welfare to Josh's care.

Josh possessed the soul of a scholar, finding deep contentment in poetry, but business management remained as foreign to him as a distant planet.

Though Marie lacked experience initially, she burned with ambition and determination, quickly seizing control of Haynes Group with iron-fisted efficiency.

During those early years, she had thrown herself into the work with religious devotion, genuinely abandoning her gambling habits, but temptation had crept back gradually until addiction reclaimed her completely.

Just last month, during what was supposed to be a business trip to Ceswienia, she had succumbed to the glittering allure of a high-end casino, losing tens of millions in a single devastating night and secretly draining company funds to cover the catastrophic losses.

How could they possibly afford a new house when financial ruin lurked around every corner?

Josh studied his wife's increasingly stormy expression and lowered his voice to barely above a whisper. "But if Gabriela's boyfriend discovers we're occupying what rightfully belongs to her, his displeasure could create serious complications for us."

Marie seemed genuinely intimidated by Wesley's influence, so invoking his name should provide the necessary leverage, shouldn't it?

Marie instantly felt an oppressive weight settling over her chest like lead.

The world had shifted beneath their feet, and while she might successfully deceive her naive husband indefinitely, Wesley possessed the sharp intelligence of a predator who saw through deception with ease.

If Gabriela decided to voiced complaints to her powerful boyfriend, they might find themselves stripped of not only their luxurious home but the company that sustained their entire existence.

Faced with this reality, Marie surrendered to the inevitable. "You have a point. Gabriela has matured into adulthood, and the house must be restored to her rightful ownership..."

Phyllis pressed herself against the study door,eavesdropping on every damning word, and felt ice crystallize in her veins.

She retreated to her bedroom like a ghost haunting familiar corridors.

After her wedding ceremony, she had discovered that adapting to Dustin's cramped and deteriorating apartment proved impossible, so she continued to stay in her own home.

This particular room had once served as Gabriela's sanctuary-the most magnificent and spacious chamber in the entire villa-but Phyllis had claimed it as her own territory through sheer audacity.

She had inhabited these walls for sixteen years.There was no way she would surrender her domain to Gabriela now.

Dustin occupied the bed's edge, absorbed in reviewing a stack of corporate documents with laser-focused intensity.

He possessed genuine dedication and burning ambition, yet remained a mere manager at Haynes Group.

Why had the man she had battled so fiercely to capture turned out to be such a disappointment?

Meanwhile,Gabriela had somehow ensnared Wesley,a man wealthy enough to purchase the entire Haynes Group as casually as ordering coffee.

Shouldn't Gabriela be wallowing in some shady bar,degraded by revolting old predators who traded money for sex?

Resentment burned through Phyllis like acid.

Dustin sensed the weight of her burning stare and looked up to discover her eyes blazing with something that resembled barely contained madness.

"Phyllis, what's troubling you?"

Phyllis jolted back to the present moment as though awakening from a nightmare.

Dustin abandoned his paperwork, crossed the room with purposeful strides, and pressed his lips against hers with tender affection. "Phyllis, do you want to..."

Phyllis recognized the hunger in Dustin's voice and touch, but irritation suddenly flooded her system like poison. She pushed him away with sharp movements. "I'm feeling unwell today."

The sun still blazed outside their windows, and this man couldn't conceive of more productive pursuits to occupy his time?! Phyllis escaped to the bathroom's privacy and dialed Vivian's number with trembling fingers.

She launched into her interrogation without preamble. "Vivian, you swore you witnessed Gabriela's boyfriend was Brenden with your own eyes. How has Wesley suddenly materialized as her romantic partner? Do you comprehend the catastrophic position you've placed me in?"

Vivian's jaw tightened, the same frustration coiling in her chest.

The wedding disaster had reached her brother's attention like wildfire, resulting in days of brutal lectures that had nearly shattered her sanity, and her monthly allowance had been slashed as punishment.

She fired back with venom, "You also claimed with absolute certainty that Gabriela's boyfriend was some disgusting older man, didn't you?"

Phyllis's exasperaton erupted like a volcano. "This catastrophic blunder has created an enemy out of Mr.Moss himself. Gabriela might exploit this golden opportunity to snatch my family's home."

Vivian's curiosity sharpened to a razor's edge."Explain the situation to me in detail."

Phyllis recounted the conversation she had overheard between her parents, carefully editing the narrative to cast herself in the most sympathetic light possible.

Vivian detected something peculiar in the story."If the house belongs to your family legitimately, why would you fear her?"

"The property originally belonged to Gabriela's late mother," Phyllis confessed reluctantly. "But my mother possesses substantial wealth, so she undoubtedly secured legal ownership years ago through proper channels. After sixteen years of my parents' care, she graduates and immediately attempts to seize the house, leveraging Mr. Moss's intimidating influence. Ultimately, it's my father's bleeding heart causing this mess-he feels guilty about failing to assist Gabriela's mother in her final days and now seeks to compensate Gabriela for his perceived failures."

After absorbing Phyllis's bitter complaints, Vivian's mind sparked with malicious inspiration. "Phyllis, I maintain connections with an influencer who commands thirty million devoted followers. Let's orchestrate something spectacular that will obliterate Gabriela's reputation completely. Are you prepared to join this war?"

Recognizing Vivian's proven capabilities, Phyllis felt excitement surge through her bloodstream like electricity.

Without hesitation, she declared her allegiance."Why would I refuse such a perfect opportunity?"