CHAPTER 280: CHAPTER 280

He then turned to his father more fully. "Please, don’t let her drag you into her little performance. There’s nothing wrong between Abigail and me. I know what’s expected of me. I know what the family wants, and I’ve made my peace with it." His voice softened just slightly, though the frustration remained. "Was I thrilled about it in the beginning? No. But does it matter now? I’ve already decided. I’m going through with the marriage, just like we planned."

Robert held his father’s gaze. "I’m not backing out. So please, don’t let her manipulate the entire narrative again."

He didn’t even spare Victoria a glance as he finished, but from the corner of his eye, he could see the sly grin tugging at the edge of her lips. She wasn’t rattled by his words. In fact, she looked even more amused.

But their father didn’t respond immediately. He was silent, staring at both of them as if weighing everything all over again.

At that moment, without wasting another second, Victoria suddenly stood up from where she was seated, her eyes sharp and her voice rising with frustration. Her movements were quick and full of tension, and her father and Robert both looked at her, startled by her sudden outburst.

"It’s clear now," Victoria said, her voice cracking slightly, "none of you actually believe me. You all think I’m lying. You think I’m crazy again, right? That’s fine. But if that’s the case, then let me lay everything bare."

She took a deep breath and then pointed at Robert, her eyes burning.

"This all started because of that same girl, Cora. Yes, Cora. The one you all keep trying to act like she’s not a problem. She is the problem! She’s the reason someone came to Robert’s office and threatened him! Why are we pretending like we don’t know the truth here?"

Immediately her father furrowed his brows, visibly confused now, while Robert’s jaw tightened.

However Victoria continued with even more force, "That’s why Robert is acting this way. That’s why he suddenly wants to back out. He’s scared. Scared of what might happen next. And you know what? I don’t even blame him. Because the person who came to threaten him didn’t come empty-handed. From the look on Robert’s face after that incident, it was clear he got a warning he couldn’t ignore."

Robert looked away briefly but didn’t say a word. His silence only seemed to give Victoria more fuel.

"And don’t sit there and act like you don’t know, Dad," she said, turning sharply to her father. "It was even me and Abigail that have been doing everything fighting, doing all we can to push that girl away from Robert’s life. We didn’t want her messing everything up. We didn’t want this family name in the mud because of some unnecessary emotional drama."

At that point, she placed both her hands on the table, leaning slightly forward.

"But now, Robert wants to act like he’s the victim? Like this is about me?" She shook her head. "He’s trying to twist the story now, and it’s not going to work. The one who was warned wasn’t me. It was Robert."

Her voice dropped slightly, but her words hit harder.

"Dad, you can ask him yourself. Ask him didn’t he come to Abigail’s office, when I was there too, to warn us? Didn’t he threaten both of us to stay away from that same girl, Cora? Tell me, Robert, am I lying?"

However the room went quiet for a moment. Even the air felt heavier now.

Victoria stood tall, not blinking, not backing down. Her words hung in the air like smoke after a fire.

At that moment, upon hearing what Victoria had just said, the entire atmosphere in the room shifted dramatically. Victoria’s father, who had been quietly observing the growing tension, suddenly stood up from his seat, his face a mixture of disbelief and frustration. His voice rang out, sharp and commanding, as he pointed a firm finger at Robert.

"Is it true?!" he demanded. "Robert, answer me right now did you actually go to Abigail’s office to threaten her? Did you tell her to stay away from that girl, Cora?"

The room fell into a tense silence. Robert, who was standing awkwardly near the corner, looked completely stunned. His throat tightened, and he hesitated, glancing briefly at Victoria who sat with a smug, quiet confidence on her face, like someone who had just fired the perfect shot.

He wanted to explain himself. He wanted to say that Victoria was only twisting the truth that he had his reasons, that there was more to the story but he knew this was not the time to argue over details. Especially not when his father’s glare was burning right through him like a flame.

His lips parted slightly, but no words came out at first. His eyes shifted again between Victoria and his father. And in that moment of hesitation, his father’s voice cracked through the air again.

"Robert, I asked you a question!" he barked, his tone even more furious now. "Is it true or not? Did you go there and threaten Abigail?"

Again Robert swallowed hard. His jaw clenched, and after a long pause, he finally gave a slight nod. "Yes..." he said quietly. "Yes, it’s true. I went there. But what Victoria is trying to—"

"Enough!" his father’s voice boomed with sudden rage, cutting him off sharply. "Not another word!" He took a step forward, raising his hand halfway as if to emphasize every syllable. "If you say one more thing just one more I swear, I will shut that mouth of yours myself right now!"

At that moment, Robert’s father visibly shaking with anger pointed his trembling finger at his son, his voice rising with every word. "How could you? Robert, how could you actually do something this reckless going all the way to Abigail’s office just to threaten her over that same useless girl? What has come over you, boy?!"

Then he took a step forward, the weight of his disappointment crashing down on the room like a heavy storm.

"I sat here, defending you! I thought everything that happened your mood, your paranoia, that incident at your office I thought it was all because of Victoria! I believed you when you said she was stirring things up. But all along, it was you! You were the one causing the fire, then blaming someone else for the smoke!"

Then Robert clenched his jaw, but he couldn’t say a word. His lips trembled slightly, but his father didn’t give him the chance to speak.

"And now you twist the story to make it look like she’s the one causing trouble? For what, Robert? For what?! Is that girl really worth all this madness? What is it in that lady that has tied your senses up? Is it a spell? Has she caged your heart, your mind, your brain?! Because clearly, you’re not thinking like my son anymore!"