Chapter 6
The tension in the grand living room was a suffocating, physical weight. Adrian stood perfectly still, his eyes boring into Theresa with a predatory intensity that made the surrounding guests physically recoil. The bright, cinematic colors of the estate felt like a grotesque mockery of the sinister rot that had infected the family.
"Adrian, what did she say to you?" Walter demanded, sensing the catastrophic shift in the atmosphere. The older man stepped closer, his fair, rosy face lined with deep anxiety. "What is going on?"
Adrian did not look at the patriarch. He kept his dark eyes pinned exclusively on Theresa.
"How long?" Adrian asked. His voice was incredibly quiet, a lethal, controlled hum that vibrated through the floorboards.
"How long what?" Theresa scoffed, though her eyes darted nervously around the room. She crossed her arms, trying to project a defensive arrogance. "I have no idea what lies the child is whispering in your ear, but you need to get a grip on reality."
"How long," Adrian repeated, taking one slow, deliberate step forward, "have you been stealing her inhaler when I am not in the room?"
The collective gasp from the guests sucked the air out of the room. Walter’s jaw dropped in absolute shock, his eyes snapping toward his daughter.
"That is a lie!" Theresa shrieked, her voice pitching into a hysterical frequency. She pointed a trembling finger at the four-year-old girl. "She is a manipulative little brat! She is trying to turn you against me because I am the only one who actually disciplines her! I have never touched her medication before today!"
"My daughter does not lie," Adrian stated, his tone carrying the heavy, immovable weight of absolute fact.
"She is four years old!" Theresa yelled, desperation coloring her features. "She has a wild imagination! You cannot possibly take the word of a toddler over your own sister! Walter, tell him! Tell him she is lying!"
Walter looked between his adopted son and his biological daughter, entirely paralyzed by the sheer magnitude of the accusation. "Theresa... tell me you haven't been doing this."
"I haven't!" Theresa screamed, tears of genuine panic welling in her eyes. "Adrian is unhinged! He is looking for an excuse to push me out of the family trust! This is a setup!"
"A setup," Adrian murmured, his strikingly masculine face tilting slightly. The chilling, measured delivery of his words felt like a tightening noose. "You believe I would instruct my child... to feign a severe asthma attack... to secure a financial advantage."
"Yes!" Theresa cried, latching onto the excuse with pathetic desperation. "You always want more power, Adrian! You want to completely take over the firm! You’re using her to eliminate me!"
Adrian slowly shook his head, a dark, terrifying calmness settling over his features. The sheer absurdity of her defense only solidified his resolve to tear her world apart. He adjusted his grip on Lila, preparing to walk out of the estate and permanently sever his ties with the Mercer family.
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"I don't need your money, Theresa," Adrian whispered, the volume of his voice so low it forced the entire room to strain to hear his promise. "But I am going to take your life."
Before the threat could fully register, a sudden movement near the edge of the crowd broke the standoff.
