Chapter 189

Xander clinked glasses with a group of well-dressed guests, laughter spilling around the banquet hall like fine wine. His mood was light, arrogant, and unbothered—until Elias leaned in beside him.

“Dad,” Elias muttered under his breath, “Vane and his family just left. No word. They looked... pissed."

Xander scoffed and waved him off. "Let them go. Who needs dead weight ruining the air?"

"But-"

"They gave me trash for a birthday present. A broken pill? What kind of mockery is that?" His voice dropped to a bitter growl. "That wasn't a gift. That was a curse. Let them starve. I'd rather feed the leftovers to the strays out back."

He turned away, wine swirling in his glass, his smile returning as though the Thornfells had never existed.

Outside the hotel, the air was thick with resentment.

Nora spun toward Jaden the moment they hit the parking lot. "Brilliant. That was your idea of a gift? That pathetic pill? You just painted a target on all our backs. Did you see the way they treated us? Served us scraps like mongrels."

"Mum-" Selena started, but Nora wasn't done.

“They laughed at us, Jaden! Laughed. Your grandfather looked like he wanted to toss the table over. We could've left that banquet with some dignity. Instead, we crawled out of there like beggars."

Selena stepped between them. "He didn't do it to humiliate us. He thought it would help.”

"Well, it didn't,” Nora snapped. "It was a disaster."

Vane rubbed his temples, his expression drawn and weary. "Enough. What's done is done. We lost face tonight. There's no coming back from that My father already despised me. Now, he probably wants to erase our names from the family register."

"I told you we shouldn't have gone," Nora muttered. "He set us up from the beginning. That corridor table was a warning shot."

Jaden remained calm, his voice measured but steady. "You're all overreacting."

Vane looked up, eyes tired. "Are we?"

"They'll regret it,” Jaden said. “Mark my words. That pill—they'll come crawling back for it."

Selena shook her head with a faint smile, the kind meant to soften disbelief. "You really believe that?"

He nodded without hesitation. "Completely."

"Jaden..." Nora said, exasperated. "He threw the pill away Right in front

of the entire hall: Do you honestly s think he'll swallow his pride and beg you for it now?"

"He won't have a choice."

Selena raised an eyebrow. "Even if something were to happen, Grandpa has money. Access to every top-tier doctor in the country. He wouldn touch that pill even if his life

depended on it."

Jaden met her gaze. "You said the same when Mr. Raze was coming to apologize.

Remember how that turned out?"

Silence settled over the group.

Vane crossed his arms but said nothing. Nora folded her arms too, clearly unconvinced. Selena bit her lip, her thoughts tangled.

They had doubted him when he Said Mr. Raze would come to apologize, and it did happen exactly as he predicted, but Xander Verrick was a different kind of breed.