CHAPTER 541: WHAT ARE THE ODDS? (2)

"Will it work?" Shelby had asked sometime before breakfast that day, and Ian smiled, cuddling her close. That was all the answer she needed to hear. Though she was skeptical, she still marvelled at how Brad had been cornered without him knowing or suspecting a thing.

Both she and Ian had been in on the plan from the time that Geneva had made that call. However, she had not known how Ian had decided to corner or convince Brad to accept the new bride willingly or unwillingly.

Sometime in the morning, the phone rang, and Geneva picked up with a smile already on her face, thinking, I love working with efficient people.

"She just set off," came Mr. Carmichael’s deep voice on the other end. "Should be there within the hour at most."

Geneva’s eyes twinkled, and Alex couldn’t help but laugh at the joy Geneva was deriving from this. "Wonderful," Geneva said sweetly,

"I’ll let you know how that turns out, but with Ian spearheading it, I guarantee that no issues will arise. I am looking forward to the day we sit down as official in-laws!"

Carmichaels laughed at the other end of the phone.

After the call, Geneva then promptly turned to her mobile, placing a call to Ian.

"She’s on her way," she announced casually, as if it were no big deal—never mind the three-hour-long late-night meeting that had just taken to plan this exact moment.

Ian didn’t need such elaborate plans, and all he wanted was to spend time with his wife, but to reassure his mother, Ian indulged her the night before, leaving Shelby to spend more time with the kids to their amazement.

Exactly an hour after this call, and at the estate gate, the guards watched a sleek little inconspicuous car roll up. One tapped his earpiece.

"She just drove in," he reported. "Should reach the main house in about fifteen minutes."

Inside, Currey stood by a foyer window like a hawk in a well-tailored suit, arms folded, eyes narrowed—not out of suspicion, but sheer logistics. He had a mission, and he was ready to execute it clean. Currey didn’t even blink as Fanny pulled up, stepped out gracefully, and handed her keys to the valet with the soft confidence of someone who had no idea she was walking into a trap.

In perfect synchrony, the maid stationed at the entrance stepped forward, all sunny smiles and light chatter, guiding Fanny along the estate’s sprawling corridors like she was just being polite. Except this was no random stroll.

Anyone who might have stumbled into the corridor—another maid, a field worker, a random person wandering in for snacks—was intercepted just in time.

They were either redirected, tasked with the same random task, or asked to clean something suspiciously dusty on the other side of the house. Nothing was ever dusty in the Thornston estate, but when those diverted were tasked to clean, they found it suspiciously so.

Well, almost everyone. One poor soul slipped through the net, and this was the wannabe maid. Satisfied that she had not messed up their plan, Currey let her be. In fact, her enthusiasm to please the higher-ups and her rushed entry gave way to the fact that made this whole shitshow of a trap seem legit.

Only one maid had some insight into some part of the plan, and that was why she had stopped at the grand door. That was her cue. She wasn’t supposed to go in. The final act required subtlety.

In their line of work, they never asked why, as such reasonings were left to the employers.

From inside the room, Madam Geneva’s voice rang out, crisp and clear,

"Well, are you going to come in or are you going to keep us waiting?"

She played along and then replied, My apologies, Madam Geneva. The governess is here, but I opened the door a bit early; she has just arrived, and she wanted to greet Master Ian and Miss Shelby, as she had never met them before.

Part of the reply was legit, but it included all the clues to tell Geneva that the right person was at the door.

So, Geneva could not contain her smile when Fanny stepped in. The rest was history, and all depended on Fanny’s answer. Even with this, Geneva was not perturbed, because she had plans B, C and so on, to make Fanny agree out of her own will.

Geneva probed again, "Alicia?"

"Erm... Madam Geneva, I am flattered but-"

"Well, if you are flattered to take this boy off me, then just agree..."

Fanny smiled at Geneva’s statement. She took in a deep breath, mulling over the pros and cons, but Alicia Fanny could not see many negatives in this. The only thing she settled on was that probability... if and only if, Brad will come to like her.

Despite this, looking at how the men in the Thornston displayed their love for their chosen women, though all arranged, Alicia knew that she was safe to gamble given the stakes. Agreeing will get her to meet her father’s deadline, and she knew without a doubt that her father would never have any issues with a Thornston groom.

"I agree."

Alicia said, her voice growing smaller. Then, she turned to look at Brad, who had remained quiet and shocked throughout all this. Though Alicia was unsure of how they had pulled this off, Alicia could see that Brad hadn’t even noticed the chess pieces moving around him. However, she also knew that with how Brad’s mind worked, it wouldn’t take long for him to piece some things together.

For a moment, the room stilled and then,

"Welcome to the family, Alicia Fanny Carmichaels! You two look good together, don’t you think?"

Brad blinked, then blinked again. The moment was too shocking.

Alicia smiled again. This time, she lowered her gaze with perfect decorum and gave a slight nod—shy, sweet, polite.

The room erupted, but looking at Brad, she could not read his reaction. If this were some other people, Alicia would have been worried, but in their circles, such marriages were uncommon, and she knew that Brad would come around with time. Despite that, she wished that he would say something.

"Is Miss Fanny going to my new aunt?! Yay!!!" Gabriel leapt off his chair and clapped hard! Cheering!

Geneva almost flung her tea into the air at the surprising ease with which this had gone. She knew that she had to strike while the iron was still hot.

Even Shelby and the girls couldn’t help but smile at the euphoria. Geneva had already pulled out her phone to begin making calls, and Alex shook his head, but the corner of his lips turned up.

"Great, great! I’ll call Carmichaels! Let’s have a family dinner this week or wait—should we just go ahead and set a wedding date?!"

Brad froze.

"Wait. What?"

He looked left. Right. His mother was excited. His sister-in-law and the kids were beaming, and Ian was looking at him pointedly. It was as if Ian was daring him to back out. Brad wanted to say, ’Why are you doing this?’

But he could not make out the words, and he could not bring himself to turn and look at his new fiancée.

Brad finally turned to Alicia after a short moment. She was now delicately sipping tea with a knowing sparkle in her eye, which Brad did not understand. He was too immersed in himself to follow her line of sight, but another storm was brewing quietly and had caught Alicia’s attention.

Alicia was more than used to environments like these and accepted her second cup of tea like she had always belonged. But her eyes weren’t on the chattering and excited elders.

The Thornston ambience was not as formal as most rich homes. It had that subtle unity and emotional warmth of a home as well. This was part of the reason she had decided to accept the family’s proposal, but at this time, she was watching one of the maids.

A young one, not very discreet—eyes full of fury, arms stiff at her sides, lips slightly curled in contempt and apparent dissatisfaction. It didn’t take a genius to recognize that this maid had been harbouring fantasies. Wild, delusional ones, but fantasies, nonetheless. She was like an open book.

And now? Now, the maid looked like she wanted to throw a teapot at Alicia’s head, given the chance. She looked as if Alicia had stolen from her, which was precisely what this maid thought.

Alicia tilted her head, more amused than threatened.

’Ah. So, this was the atmosphere in the estate? Competitive. Prideful. Maybe a little feral?’ But Alicia was not threatened.

Just then, Suzie appeared silently behind the fuming maid, tapped her twice on the shoulder, and whispered something into her ear that made the girl’s face go pale instantly. With clenched fists, the venomous maid was gently escorted out, still glaring daggers over her shoulder like a jilted character in a palace drama.

More than getting overwhelmed or offended, Alicia was fascinated.

This was the look Brad chanced upon when he saw her, and not being privy to Alicia’s thoughts, he came to his own conclusions very far from the issue.

His mind was foggy, filled with many things that Brad could not process at once, but two words pushed through, ’Oh no!’

His mind screamed at him.

It all hit him in a flood. The carefully timed arrival. Ian’s subtle threat of his past actions. Alicia’s sudden identity and so many more. It all felt a little too perfect. It was at that moment when he couldn’t think straight that Brad also asked himself, ’What are the odds?’

Brad stood up so fast he nearly toppled the tea set. His chair scraped loudly, drawing everyone’s attention.

"I-I need air," he said, voice cracking.

And before anyone could stop him, he stormed out of the room like a man fleeing a surprise engagement, leaving behind a trail of surprised and amused people.

A wave of silence ensued before two people got up simultaneously.

*********

Thank you so much to all for your votes and comments! I hope we can keep it up ^_^

Support the author by reading only on Webnovel :) ~Uploaded only on webnovel by Loctovia ~