To Love a Shadow, To Be the Sun novel Chapter 20

Gareth stared in shock, his jaw nearly hitting the floor.

He turned to Nanette, disbelief etched across his face. "How could you lie to me?"

Nanette was trembling so hard she could barely stand, her words caught in her throat. All she could do was shake her head over and over.

Brian's gaze shifted to Elara, and his voice softened. "Relax. No one here is going to hurt you."

Elara, having gotten what she wanted, finally let go—she lowered her hand along with the knife.

Nanette collapsed at Gareth's feet, sobbing uncontrollably.

Elara, utterly drained, clutched the collar of her shirt where the button had been torn off. She wanted nothing more than to cry, but this wasn't the time for tears.

Brian, his heart aching for her, stepped forward as if to comfort her.

But before he could reach her, Elara raised her hand and slapped him hard across the face.

The room froze. For a moment, you could hear a pin drop.

Elara's eyes were rimmed red as she pointed at him. "Favoring Lina only gives her mother more ammunition. Lina humiliates me time after time, and all she gets is a meaningless scolding. But I'm the one nearly exposed, I'm the one whose reputation is in ruins. Other than offering a few empty words, what have you ever actually done for me?"

She drew a shaky breath, fighting back the tears that threatened to spill.

"Brian, I've had enough of your hypocrisy and your lies!"

A cold glint flashed in Brian's eyes, but even after she finished, he didn't retaliate.

His face was icy, his voice colder. "Yves Caldwell, don't let a single one of those intruders from Platinum Bay get away."

Everyone knew Brian's style; he never needed to get his hands dirty—he simply made sure his enemies regretted ever crossing him.

The living room erupted with desperate pleas for mercy.

Yves Caldwell gathered the troublemakers and dragged them out, leaving Brian to turn back to Elara. "Is this what you wanted?"

The truth was, he'd never really known what he wanted at all.

"Gareth, you're the one who can't keep your hands to yourself. Whether you divorce or not is your business, but I will no longer recognize Nanette as my daughter-in-law."

Gareth understood what his mother was really doing—this was her way of retreating just a little. She'd never liked Nanette, but had tolerated her for his sake. This time, though, Nanette had gone too far.

He sighed. "I'll make sure she changes. Just give me a little more time."

But Elara couldn't stomach any more of these hollow reassurances.

"Mrs. Vincent, I can't keep putting my life on the line every time and expect to walk away unharmed—"

"And what do you want from the Vincent family, exactly? Even if you're in the right, there's a limit."

"I'm not arguing about who's right or wrong. I just—"

"Enough. A wise woman knows when to quit. Look at yourself—what are you even wearing? Go get changed."

Felice's tone was uncharacteristically forceful, cutting Elara off before she could even utter the word "divorce."