CHAPTER 267: CHAPTER 267

At that moment, Abigail’s father stood still, his arms crossed tightly, his chest rising and falling with silent fury. His eyes slowly scanned Abigail from head to toe not with the warmth of a concerned father, but with the cold gaze of a man barely holding his anger together. His lips parted slightly as if he wanted to say something, but for a few seconds, no words came out. The room was dead silent, except for Abigail’s soft sobs and her mother’s low breathing behind her.

Then finally, in a firm and measured tone, he spoke.

"If you know what’s good for you..." His voice was low, almost a growl. "Just like Mr. Oliver warned... just like your mother promised him—" he paused, pointing a rigid finger at her, "you will stay far away from anything that has to do with that lady. I don’t care what you feel or think. I don’t care what you planned or what story you want to spin."

He took a step forward, his hand still raised as if warning her again. "When you see her coming, Abigail, you turn around and run. You hear me? You run like your life depends on it because it does. This isn’t a game. This isn’t one of those silly competitions you enjoy dragging people into. This is bigger than you. Bigger than all of us."

Abigail sniffled, trembling, her head still lowered.

"I don’t want to hear anything. I don’t want to see anything. I don’t even want to smell trouble because if I catch even the slightest whisper that you’ve done anything again to provoke Mr.Oliver or that woman..."

He clenched his jaw and looked to the ceiling, as if holding back another outburst, then stared back down at her.

"...then you better not come back into this house. Because by then, we would have already lost everything. Do you understand me?" His voice cracked slightly at the end, not from weakness but from the heavy pressure weighing on his shoulders.

Then he continued, more slowly this time. "This is the height of it all, Abigail. You’ve danced on the edge too many times, but this time... this time, you almost dragged us into the abyss."

He turned his back to her, exhaled deeply, then shook his head again.

"Any little mistake," he muttered, "just one more mistake... and everything we’ve worked for will go down the drain. Overnight. Just like that."

At that moment, Abigail’s father fixed a sharp and stern gaze on her. His finger slowly pointed toward her, trembling slightly not from weakness, but from the intense anger he was trying to contain.

"I hope you understand what I just said, Abigail," he began, his voice cold and steady. "I hope you fully, completely understand it."

Abigail’s lips trembled, and her eyes were already brimming with tears. Her cheeks, still red from the earlier slaps, stung with shame and regret. Slowly, she nodded her head, her voice shaking as she whispered, "Yes, sir... I understand. I promise. I’m going to stay away from Cora. I won’t go near her again... I won’t say anything about her. I’m very, very sorry. I misjudged everything... I didn’t mean for things to turn out like this."

Her voice cracked near the end, and her shoulders sank, completely defeated. She couldn’t even meet her father’s eyes anymore. That cold fury in his face made her heart feel like it was shrinking inside her chest.

Abigail’s father gave a deep sigh, but it wasn’t a sigh of relief. It was disappointment heavy and bitter.

"Good," he said quietly but firmly.

Then he slowly turned to face Abigail’s mother. His voice was now lower, more serious but filled with pressure.

"She’s under your care now." He said it slowly, almost like he was placing a curse. "If anything goes wrong... if she dares to go against what she just promised, if I even hear her whisper the wrong thing about that girl again..." He paused for a moment and looked into his wife’s eyes deeply, "Then you know what’s going to happen. I won’t remind you. I won’t even need to say it. You know exactly what I’m capable of. Don’t test me."

Abigail’s mother, who had remained silent with folded arms up till now, felt a cold chill run down her back. She had known her husband for decades, and she could see in his eyes that he meant every word.

Without hesitation, she nodded. "Yes," she replied softly. "I understand everything. I will handle her. I’ll make sure nothing goes wrong. I’ll do everything I can. You won’t hear a word from her again about that girl."

The room fell into heavy silence after that, no one moved. No one dared breathe too loudly.

Even Abigail, still wiping the tears from her face, kept her eyes lowered, afraid that any sudden word or glance could spark another fire.

Her father’s warning wasn’t just a threat. It was a final line she knew she could never cross again. Not unless she wanted to risk everything her family had everything they built being destroyed in one night.

At that moment, the tension in the room was still heavy when Abigail’s father, now completely fed up, turned sharply toward her. His voice was low but heavy with anger. "Get out of my sight," he snapped. "I don’t want to see your face right now."

Abigail flinched slightly, her hands trembling as she slowly got up from her knees. Her cheeks still stung from the earlier slaps, and the weight of shame pressing on her chest made her feel smaller than she had ever felt. Her eyes, watery and dull, stared at the ground as she quietly turned and walked out of the living room, not saying a word.

As she stepped into the hallway, her knees almost buckled from the pressure, but she kept herself steady and slowly made her way to her room. The door clicked softly behind her as she entered, and for a moment, she just stood still breathing in and out, trying to calm the storm inside her chest.

Then her eyes fell on the phone resting on her bed.

It was lighting up, she blinked and picked it up. A long message had come in. Her eyes scanned it quickly it was a reminder about the appointment she had booked. One she was supposed to keep quiet about. One she had scheduled for a reason, but now... now it didn’t make sense anymore.

Her heart skipped a beat when she read the part that said the order would be processed again and couldn’t be reversed after today.

Abigail froze, the reality hit her hard.

That appointment... it wasn’t just any regular meeting. It was tied to something terrible. Something that could still cause more damage. Something that now, after what happened with Oliver, had to be stopped immediately.