Chapter 4
Just then, a black car drove into the yard.
The Aldens arrived sooner than Clarinda expected.
Adrienne’s expression stiffened at once.
The sight of the familiar car outside sent a wave of panic deep
down her heart.
She glared at Clarinda, fury twisting the delicate makeup on her
face. “You did it on purpose! Didn’t you?”
“Adrienne, what are you talking about? I was upstairs,
preparing a gift for Corby. How could you accuse me like this?”
Clarinda’s eyes were glistening with tears.
She seemed like a perfect victim, filled with grievances.
This was what Allen Todd, the housekeeper of the Alden
family, saw when he stepped in.
He frowned as he looked around at the unbelievably messy
state of the villa. “Mrs. Adrienne Alden,” he began, his voice
formal and cold. “Madam Alden has instructed me to inform
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you that your failure to raise your son properly has
consequences. She will now see to it that you are corrected.”
Adrienne jerked her head up to him. “What?”
Allen made a gesture toward the courtyard and said, “Please
step outside and bow there for three hours.”
“Allen…”
Allen had anticipated her reaction. Before she could say more,
he interrupted her in a deceptively kind tone, “Mrs. Clarinda
Alden, you needn’t put in a good word for Mrs. Adrienne Alden.
You put so much effort into Mr. Duncan’s funeral. Please be
careful not to exhaust yourself.”
Clarinda didn’t say anything.
In fact, she hadn’t been trying to put in a good word for
Adrienne at all.
She just wanted to know if Stacey felt better.
If so, she planned to go over there soon to talk to Stacey about
the divorce.
Although Corbin was in charge of the Alden Group, it was
Stacey who called the shots in all family matters.
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And so, no matter how reluctant Adrienne was, she had no
choice but to bow in the courtyard.
It was bone–chillingly cold today.
She totally deserved it.
Clarinda was ready to go upstairs, not even shooting her a
glance.
Sarah looked torn. “Mrs. Alden, what about the painting?”
“Leave it. Someone will come and collect it later. It’ll be sent back
once it’s repaired,” Clarinda said concisely.
Of course, she would never tell anyone that the damaged
painting was a fake.
The real one was safe, being displayed in her friend’s gallery.
It was left intact.
After all, Myron’s greatest wish before he passed away was for
his paintings to be seen by as many people as possible.
It would have been a profound waste to hide his final
masterpiece away at home.
“Bad woman!”
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Just as Clarinda was about to walk upstairs, Leonel said with
hatred, “I’ve already called Uncle Corbin. You’re finished once
he comes back!”
“I’ll be waiting then.” Clarinda didn’t even stop in her tracks.
“He’ll divorce you! You’ll be damaged goods! No one will ever
want you!”
She couldn’t help but chuckle, amused. “He won’t.”
She was a fig leaf for him and Adrienne.
If Corbin divorced her, it would mean him and Adrienne living
under the same roof.
Given the facade of their relationship, there was no doubt that
Adrienne’s reputation would be in ruins.
Corbin would never allow such a thing to happen.
Corbin soon rushed back.
Clarinda had checked the time–it had actually taken him less
than twenty minutes from when Adrienne was commanded to
bow in the courtyard.
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His black cashmere coat accentuated his tall, slender frame and
steady, refined presence.
He strode directly toward Adrienne, gathered her into his arms,
and hurried her back into the villa.
He gently settled her onto the sofa. As he rubbed her hands,
reddened from the cold, the distress in his eyes was palpable.
“Why would you be so foolish?” he murmured, his voice thick
with emotion. “Why did you listen to them?”
“It was Madam Alden’s order. What choice did I have?”
Adrienne tugged at Corbin’s sleeve, her doe–like eyes glistening
with tears, her voice shaky.
“Corby, please… Could you divorce her? She’s horrible…”
Corbin frowned slightly. “You mean Clarinda?”
“Yes!” She bit her lip.
“Do you know why Leon ruined Sir Alden’s painting? She put
him up to it.”
“Mommy’s right!”
Leonel pouted, tears glistening on his long lashes. “Uncle Corbin,
Auntie Clarinda tried to scare me today! She said a monster that
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would eat my arms was hiding in that painting. That’s why I..!”
“That’s impossible,” Corbin cut him off without a moment’s
hesitation.
He ruffled Leonel’s hair dotingly and said gently, “You must have misheard her, Leon. She’s the most good–tempered person I know. If she said she wouldn’t be mad at you, then she meant it.
She’d never try to scare you.”
He paused, and his tone shifted slightly. “Besides, Grandpa doted
on her more than anyone. The last thing she would ever do is
disrespect his painting.”
The last part of his sentence was clearly intended for Adrienne.
Adrienne immediately looked up at him, her eyes wide with
disbelief. “Are you suggesting that Leon and I are lying to smear
her?
“Corbin!
“You’ve changed so much! I can barely recognize you now!”
Her accusation sent a surge of fury through him. But as he met
her eyes, brimming with disappointment, he could only take a
deep breath and suppress the feeling. “Adri, I haven’t changed at
all.”
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She stared at him intently, her gaze challenging. “Oh, really?
Then say it. Look me in the eye and say that you’ve never had
any feelings for Clarinda and that you’ve never touched her.”
Corbin had always believed his conscience was clear where
Adrienne was concerned.
But somehow, in that moment, the words wouldn’t come.
Lateefa Khanam is a spirited writer who finds freedom in horse riding. She cherishes her mare and the newborn foal, calling them her little happy family.
