Chapter 201
Chapter 201 A Gift of Deceit
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“Naomi, if I remember right, you were pretty food of this necklace yourself. You hardly ever took it off. What’s with the sudden gift?” Ruby looked at Naomi, her confusion evident.
“You’re my closest cousin, aren’t you? Of course I’d want you to have nice things. Besides, my style has shifted–I don’t really reach for statement pieces like this anymore. Since you’ve always loved it, and it was just gathering dust in my jewelry box, it seemed right for you to have it.” Naomi forced out the affectionate word masking her true reluctance,
Taking the explanation at face value, Ruby accepted the necklace with a delighted smile. “You’re always so thoughtful. You know exactly what I like. Thank you!”
Naomi watched her with a tight, gracious smile.
“Naomi, could you help me put it on?” Ruby was already eager to try it on, figuring that once it was around her neck, it would be firmly hers.
Naomi hadn’t expected such immediacy, but seeing no polite way to refuse, she kept smiling. “Of course, let me help you.”
With the long–coveted necklace finally around her neck, Ruby beamed with satisfaction. She couldn’t help but admire it. “Naomi, it’s stunning. It looks perfect on me, don’t you think?”
“It certainly does,” Naomi complimented, her smile unwavering.
Little did Ruby know, each gleeful comment felt like a subtle twist of the knife to Naomi.
“We should probably get going,” Naomi suggested. She had already packed a few things and had no desire to watch Ruby preen any longer. She led the way downstairs.
But when they entered the great room, Arabella and Ethan were nowhere to be seen.
“Mom, Dad, where did Ethan and Arabella go?” Naomi began, then paused, noticing their absence.
“They went out for a bit. Are you still planning to stay over at Ruby’s?” Florence asked.
“Yes, we’ve been training at the same flight academy lately, so it’s just more convenient to stay together,” Naomi replied smoothly.
“Alright then, take care,” Florence said, making no move to persuade her to stay.
“We will. Bye, Mom, Dad.” Naomi offered a final smile to Florence and Jonathan before heading out.
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Chapter 201 A Gift of Deceit
As she and Ruby stepped through the front door, they spotted Ethan pushongArabella hex wheelchair along one of the estate’s garden paths
“Even in that state, she’s got Ethan playing chauffeur. How irresponsible: Kobry mattered irritated by the sight of the two chatting and laughing easily.
Naomi watched them for a long moment, her gaze inscrutable. I genuinely don’t understand what’s so amusing about it all,” she said coldly,
“Let’s just go. Forget about them,” Naomi said, not wanting to dwell. She shot a final, displeased look in Arabella’s direction before getting into her car and driving off.
Arabella, mid–conversation with Ethan, caught the departing car from the corner of her eye.
“They’re gone,” Ethan noted.
“Ready to head back in?” he asked Arabella.
“Might as well,” she agreed.
At that moment, a car pulled into the driveway. It was Alfred, finally returning home.
Seeing the familiar vehicle, Ethan remarked, “Speak of the devil. Look who’s back.”
Hearing this, Arabella turned her attention to the car idling at the entrance.
Alfred stepped out, and his eyes immediately zeroed in on Arabella in the wheelchair. His brow furrowed, and he strode directly toward them.
“Ten bucks says he’s coming over to grill you about how this happened,” Ethan predicted under his breath, watching Alfred approach.
“You’re on,” Arabella replied, sharing a knowing glance with her brother.
“Arabella, what happened? Who did this to you?” Alfred asked, his expression a mix of seriousness and concern.
Arabella offered a light smile. “It’s really not as bad as it looks. Just a deep cut on my foot. I was being careless, that’s all.”
Hearing her downplay it, Alfred looked even more skeptical, his eyebrows drawing together. “You managed to cut your own foot that badly?”
“Yeah, unfortunately.”
“Then you really need to be more careful,” he said, his tone softening slightly before turning to Ethan with a frown. “And you, Ethan. How did you let this happen on your watch? What
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Chapter 201 A Gift of Deceit
were you doing?”
“Why is this suddenly my fault? You’re never even here, and the second you walk in, you start pointing fingers. If you’re so worried, maybe you should stick around and look after her yourself,” Ethan retorted, his annoyance clear.
“My work keeps me on the road, you know that. You two are here all the time. Letting her ge hurt like this is just irresponsible,” Alfred shot back, clearly believing they hadn’t been vigilant enough.
Caught between her brothers starting to bicker over her the moment Alfred returned, Arabella felt a wave of awkwardness.
She quickly steered the conversation elsewhere. Alfred, what brings you back so suddenly? Is your assignment finished?”
“Yeah, finally wrapped up. Means I get to crash at home for a few days,” Alfred said, the clear exhaustion on his face underscoring his words.
“Well, perfect timing. Since you’re so concerned about Arabella’s well–being, you can take over supervision duty,” Ethan seized the opening. If Alfred was going to assign blame, he could shoulder some responsibility.
Seeing the argument threatening to reignite, Arabella interjected with feigned concern. “Alfred, you always look completely drained when you come back. You should go upstairs and get some proper rest. We can catch up properly later.”
She needed to extract Alfred from the situation before the circular debate could continue.
Alfred, who was ready to fire back at Ethan, softened at Arabella’s worried tone. “Fine. For your sake, I’ll drop it. I’ll go get some sleep.”