Chapter 217

Jeff stood in the living room, phone pressed to his ear,lines of worry etched into his face.

The steward from the Stewart family's estate spoke with a nervous edge in his voice on the other end of the call. "Mr. Benton, I'm truly sorry. Mr. Stewart grew so agitated that he fainted, and he's not in any condition to answer the phone right now. Please accept my sincere apologies."

There was a heavy pause before Jeff finally replied,"Please see to it that his needs are taken care of.l actually called to talk about breaking off my daughter's engagement to Nolan."

After turning it over in his mind, Jeff realized that dragging things out would only make matters worse.He had rather end it cleanly.

The document he had reviewed had shaken him to the core.

If Norwood ever saw it, things would be worse. The fallout wouldn't stop with Lainey; it could tarnish the entire Benton family's name. Downstairs, Lainey had just reached the last step when she heard Jeff's words echo through the hall.

She froze, shock and anger flooding her features "Why are you ending the engagement?" she demanded.

Jeff set the phone down, sighing.

He started toward her, hand half-raised in comfort,before he stopped himself.

His tone was gentler than she expected, almost cold in its restraint. "Lainey, Nolan doesn't love you. If you forced this marriage, it wouldn't bring you any happiness."

But Lainey was having none of it.

Losing her composure for the first time in front of Jeff, she lashed out. "Who are you to decide what makes me happy? Didn't I tell you l care about him?I really do! If you won't fight for me, at least don't sabotage me behind my back."

Her voice cracked as she pushed on. "Now I get it.I know you've always looked down on me, just because I didn't grow up like everyone else, or because I'm not the perfect daughter you pictured. But what did I do wrong? You're the ones who lost me, not the other way around!" She had been on the verge of getting everything she wanted,and now Jeff was tearing it all apart.

He was such a disappointment.

Jeff listened to her outburst, sadness overtaking any frustration.

He knew the pain in her words wasn't all her fault. In the end, it was the family who had failed her.

Jeff let out a weary sigh, a heaviness settling over his words. "Lainey, none of what happened in Zerovia is on you. If anyone should be apologizing, it's us. I've made arrangements for us to go back to Breoqua.Once we're there, I promise to help you find someone who's your equal in every way, someone who truly deserves you."

He didn't wait for a response. Turning away, he headed upstairs, leaving Lainey standing in the echo of his words.

Stunned and motionless, she dug her fingernails into her palms.

Zerovia? Did Ryland's report expose what she had done there?

A tremor ran through her body as dread crept in. Just how much had they figured out?

That explained why Jeff had so suddenly backed out of transferring the shares.

No,she couldn't risk going to Breoqua.

If she set foot there, Fraser,who still carried a heavy grudge against her, would no doubt go out of his way to make things unbearable. He might even start running DNA tests behind her back every chance he got.

Panic clawed at her chest, but desperation sharpened her thoughts.

One ruthless idea took shape: if Jeff, Hilda,and Eleanor were all gone, she would be in line for the Benton inheritance.

That kind of fortune would force the Stewart family's hand; they would have to accept her, no matter what.

As for Fraser and his brothers, they were oceans away and no threat to her plan. Once she secured her title as Nolan's wife and locked down the shares, nothing could touch her, even if old scandals surfaced later.

Malice slowly overtook her fear, darkening her gaze with resolve. Upstairs, Hilda had just stepped out and caught sight of Lainey's twisted expression.

A cold shiver of unease crept over her. Whatever Lainey was plotting, she could feel the danger looming,but she had no idea what storm was about to break.