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Chapter_4
The door closed behind Arabella, and the silence that followed was heavy with tension. Dorian, his patience already stretched thin, slammed his cup down onto the table, the sharp sound cutting through the air. “What a pain in the ass!” he muttered angrily, his voice thick with frustration.
Cordelia, ever the calm one, poured him a glass of water. “Come on, don’t get your knickers in a twist,” she said soothingly, placing the glass in front of him. “She doesn’t consider us family anyway, so what’s the point of getting mad?”
Dorian let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping as the weight of the situation bore down on him. Arabella had been their adopted daughter for years, but over time, she had become a stranger to them. At first, Dorian had been desperate to find Vivienne, but after years of searching, he had stumbled upon Arabella. With her striking resemblance to Vivienne and his own longing for his lost daughter, he had taken her in, hoping to fill the hole in his heart.
Arabella had been well-behaved, charming even. She knew how to win people over, including Beatrice, who had quickly become infatuated with her. Two years after her adoption, Arabella was taken in by Beatrice, and she had flourished under her care, becoming a celebrated talent in Havenwood. But with her success came distance. She had stopped considering Dorian and Cordelia as family, her words sharp and often cutting.
“It’s all my fault,” Dorian muttered, regret lacing his tone. “I shouldn’t have taken her in.”
Cordelia shot him a look, her gaze softening as she placed a hand on his. “You were only doing it out of the goodness of your heart, Dorian. You wanted to help her, just like you wanted to help Vivienne.”
Vivienne, who had been quietly listening, looked up from her phone, her expression pensive. The information about Percival on her screen flickered for a moment, and then her attention shifted back to her father.
“The issue now is how to call off this marriage,” Cordelia continued. “Beatrice has her mind set on marrying Vivienne off. If we disagree, she won’t back down easily.”
“I’m determined to call off this marriage,” Dorian said firmly, his voice full of conviction. “Even if she takes this apartment back, I can still keep the home fires burning.”
Cordelia sighed, clearly worried. “But what if she makes things difficult for us here in Havenwood? Beatrice is relentless when it comes to getting what she wants.”
Vivienne, however, seemed unfazed. She straightened in her seat, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. “Don’t worry about it,” she said confidently. “I can call off the marriage myself. And as for where we’ll live, I’ll buy a house for you.”
Dorian’s eyes widened in surprise, but before he could say anything, Vivienne stood up and, without hesitation, dialed a number on her phone.
“Mr. Ellington? I’m the young lady of the Hawthorn family.” Vivienne’s tone was clear and decisive as she addressed Percival, cutting straight to the point.
On the other end of the line, Percival was momentarily taken aback. “Yes?”
“I’d like to call off the engagement,” Vivienne said, her voice unwavering.
There was a pause before Percival, to Vivienne’s surprise, responded with a casual laugh. “I agree.”
Vivienne stared at the phone in her hand, stunned. He agreed? Just like that?
Percival lounged on the sofa of a sleek club, his long fingers wrapped around a glass of wine as he stared at the phone in his hand. A cold smirk played at his lips, his eyes gleaming with amusement as he reviewed the call log.
Leopold, who had been watching him closely, raised an eyebrow. “Is that really the young lady of the Hawthorn family, Arabella?” he asked, his voice tinged with disbelief.
Percival, still gazing at the phone, answered lazily. “She said so herself.”
Leopold chuckled, amused by the turn of events. “Ha! She’s quite the character. I’m starting to find her interesting.”
Despite Percival’s reputation for being a troublemaker, his family’s wealth had always attracted women. Yet, his engagement to the Hawthorn family’s daughter had seemed like a formality—one that no one had expected to be called off. After all, with the Hawthorn family’s declining fortunes, the engagement was more about business than love. The Ellington family’s investment in the Hawthorn company had been a key factor. Percival had assumed that Beatrice would never allow the engagement to be dissolved.
But to his surprise, Vivienne had called it off herself.
Leopold leaned in closer, eyes still fixed on the phone. “How did you manage to save the recording of your conversation with her?” he asked in astonishment.
Percival’s fingers moved quickly over the phone’s screen, his expression unreadable. “How could I not save such good news to share with Grandpa?” he replied with a wicked grin.
Leopold snorted in disbelief. “Your grandpa might have a heart attack from the excitement, right?”
“He might not have a heart attack,” Percival said with a shrug. “But he’ll definitely throw a fit. He’s been pushing me to marry Miss Hawthorn for ages. Now that she’s called it off, I think he’ll quiet down a bit.”
Leopold, still curious, took a sip of his wine and turned to Percival. “Speaking of which, why don’t you want to marry Arabella? She’s beautiful, accomplished, and likely to get into a prestigious university. She’s a rare find.”
Percival put down his glass, his face hardening. “If she’s so amazing, then why should a cripple like me hold her back?” he said with a hint of bitterness in his voice.
Leopold glanced at Percival’s legs, then looked away awkwardly.
Vivienne entered her room, her thoughts racing as she processed what had just happened. Before she could settle into her thoughts, her phone rang again. She checked the caller ID, her face immediately hardening. This time, it wasn’t Percival. It was someone else—someone with information she had been waiting for.
She walked to the window, phone pressed to her ear. “We found something,” a deep voice said from the other end of the line. “The day your mom died, the Four Prominent Families of Rivenwood were all at your house.”
Vivienne’s heart skipped a beat. “The Four Prominent Families of Rivenwood?”
“Yes. The Ashford family, the Pendleton family, the Churchill family, and the Ellington family.”
Her eyes narrowed. “The Ellington family? Percival’s family?”
“Yes,” the man continued. “The Ellington family is the most powerful among the Four Prominent Families. Of the families associated with yours, the Ellington family is the only one with true influence.”
Vivienne’s pulse quickened. “What was Percival looking for?”
The voice on the other end paused before responding, “It seems he was looking for someone.”
Vivienne’s gaze grew colder, her mind racing with questions. What was Percival really after? Why had he been at her house that day?
She took a deep breath, her fingers tapping the windowsill. “Keep investigating what the other three families were looking for,” she instructed. “As for the Ellington family, don’t bother. I’ll look into it myself.”
“Got it,” the voice replied, and the line went silent.
Vivienne stared out the window, her thoughts spinning. Something didn’t add up. And she was determined to find the answers—no matter what it took.
