Chapter 730 The Scapegoat
Lately, whenever something upset Marie, she dumped the blame on Dan.
No matter what it was, it all ended up on his shoulders.
Abraham let out a low chuckle. “Yeah, he’s pretty unlucky.”
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“And Victor’s just as bad,” Stella added. “He didn’t say a word either? Marie’s been tearing herself apart looking for Tessa in the Ashen Pact. He could have at least told her something. Even if she still wanted to go after Dan, she could have pretended not to know and kept going.”
“Victor’s letting her vent her anger,” Abraham explained calmly. “She hits harder when she doesn’t know.”
With that single sentence, Abraham laid bare Victor’s intentions–crystal clear.
Stella frowned. “Then Marie must be worried sick. And the Ashen Pact is dangerous enough as it is.”
Of course, Dan deserved to be punished. But still, going after him in his own territory? What if something happened?
Seeing her so concerned, Abraham reached out to ruffle her hair. “Don’t worry. Derrick’s with her.”
“But Derrick’s not reliable.”
Stella huffed.
That was the truth. To her, Derrick had never been dependable.
Just thinking of that incident three years ago made her heart prickle with resentment. If Derrick had been even a little more dependable, she wouldn’t have been separated from Abraham for those long years.
Abraham said nothing more, simply cupped her head and kissed her deeply.
In their tangle of lips and breath, the cold shower he had taken seemed wasted all over again…
When Victor returned, he found Tessa sitting blankly on the sofa while Lewis lounged beside her, laughing at videos on his phone.
Victor’s face darkened. Striding forward, he kicked at Lewis without a word.
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Chapter 730 The Scapegoat
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Lewis reacted instantly. The moment Victor’s leg swung in, he snatched Tessa up and leapt aside with surprising agility.
Tessa: “…”
Victor: “…”
Tessa, who had always thought Lewis was hopeless, found herself at a loss for words.
This man wasn’t weak at all—his reflexes were sharper than a leopard’s.
Lewis, thinking it was an attack, nearly lashed out before realizing it was Victor.
“You can’t even make a sound when you come in?” he grumbled. “Really?”
Victor’s irritation had been fueled by Lewis’s laziness, but after seeing such quick reflexes, his anger faded.
“Come here.”
Victor’s cold eyes shifted to Tessa.
She hurriedly pulled her arm from Lewis’s grip and ran over. “You’re back! Have you eaten?”
“No. I’ll take you out.”
“We can go out?”
“Of course. Why?”
“I thought we weren’t allowed.”
He never took her with him when he went out. She had assumed she was confined to the hotel.
Her innocent gaze made Victor laugh softly. “Silly girl.”
Then he pulled her along, ready to head out.
But Tessa stopped short, tugging his hand. “Wait. I need to ask you something.”
She still hadn’t recovered from her call with Stella.
Truth be told, she had wanted to ask Lewis earlier, but he’d been glued to his videos and ignored her completely. That was why Victor had come home to find her glaring resentfully at Lewis.
Now, hearing her say she had a question, Victor frowned. “About your mother?”
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Chapter 730 The Scapegoat
“Yes–and you said you had a lead. What is it?”
Besides her own troubles, her mother weighed heavily on her heart.
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The Morris family had treated them so cruelly that her worry only deepened.
Growing up, she had only known her mother as a woman consumed by her career, rarely around. She had almost never felt the warmth of family.
She longed for her mother’s love, and sometimes even fantasized about being with her father.
But what had her mother told her back then? She had said, “Tessa, your father’s been dead a long time.”
The words had broken her heart.
And now? Alive seemed worse than dead. Death at least wouldn’t have brought this endless pain and trouble. Alive, he was nothing but torment.
“Your mother’s fine,” Victor said. “She’s with Silas.”
“Where are they?”
“That, I don’t know.”
But he was almost certain Diana and Silas were together. Where exactly, he couldn’t say.
Still, he was equally certain they were safe.
“How can you be sure if you don’t even know where they are?” Tessa demanded.
“Silas left a sign.”
It was a signal only Victor could read–one that meant “all is well.”
All is well…
That could only mean one thing: the two of them had gone off to handle something related to the Ashen Pact, and it was up to Victor and the others to hold the line, buying Diana time.
“Really?” Tessa asked softly, her worry still gnawing.

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