Chapter 23

Chapter 23:

🍙 🍙 🍙 🍙 🍙

Cathryn had long since seen through her parents’ marriage for what it was: a calculated trap. She remembered how her mother had once been, at worst, emotionally unstable—then, inexplicably, her condition had declined over time, worsening until her clarity was stolen entirely.

Cathryn couldn’t shake the suspicion that Richard had been responsible for her mother’s illness all these years.

“That’s rich, coming from you! You’re the one she didn’t want near!” Richard barked, fury flashing as he raised his hand to strike Cathryn.

But before the blow could fall, one of Cathryn’s bodyguards caught his wrist in a crushing grip and shoved him back a step.

Richard staggered, then quickly recovered. He yanked a folded sheet of paper from his jacket and thrust it overhead for the entire crowd to see. “This—this is Bettina’s final will. In her own handwriting, it forbids Cathryn from inheriting any of her assets.”