Claimed And Marked By Her Stepbrother Mates - Chapter 596

Chapter 596: 596-The Cunning Bitch
Helanie:

“What is going on?” Emma was the first one to ask, shamelessly forgetting the fact that she had done something extremely terrible the other day.

We had been gathered in the living room ever since the family returned. Nobody had said a word. Actually, Norman and Lord McQuoid had talked before the rest of the family arrived.

“There has been some work going on in the basement. We are preparing weapons and poisons there, so it is advised that nobody goes downstairs until further notice,” Lord McQuoid took the hold of the situation to make the announcement.

But I could tell my mother already knew about Maximus being down there. Even Charlotte must have known. I was just confused whether Emma was aware of Maximus’s condition or not.

I knew that Charlotte used to wander around the mansion all these years—since she was a part of the family—and during one of her such investigations on a faithful night, she had found out that Maximus is a lycan.

The maids nodded in agreement, along with the other helpers, and walked away. But now that it was just the family members, Norman started walking toward Emmet, who nowadays only stood in the corner.

“An incident happened the other day that left me deeply bothered,” Norman leaned back against the table with his hands in his pockets, his broad shoulders giving him the look of a giant.

Everyone exchanged confused glances, trying to remember which incident he was referring to—since a lot had been happening lately.

“You accused my brother of a lie. Let’s talk about that,” Norman’s eyes narrowed at Emma, who instantly began looking around in confusion.

“I didn’t accuse—” she tried to explain but I raised my palm to hush her.

“I was there, and I know what happened. My mother arrived and saw that I wasn’t in bed with Emmet at all. But you claimed that I told you he had attacked me,” I began, and noticed Emmet only raising his eyes to look at me while keeping his head down.

“You said it,” Emma repeated herself.

“Well then, in that case, we have no choice left but to look at it with witnesses. Ursula, you were right beside your daughter—maybe a few feet away or behind—but you must have heard something. There is no way Helanie told Emma such a story in the few seconds it took you to walk from the passage to the living room, and you didn’t hear it. So tell me—what did you hear?” Norman asked my mother, who was probably not expecting to be called out.

She straightened her spine, but her eyes remained on Emma. I watched Emma grow more confident. They had been friends forever, and my mother had made it painfully clear that she would always pick her over me.

As Emma’s chest swelled with confidence, my mother responded, “I did not hear Helanie make such a claim. In fact, Helanie told us that Emmet didn’t hurt her—and that we should not make a deal out of a simple argument.”

My jaw was hanging so low that one could see my tonsils if they tried.

Everyone exchanged glances before their angry gazes landed on Emma, who had been watching my mother’s face in shock.

“Ursula,” she uttered, almost as if upset that my mother didn’t lie.

“I will not let anyone lie in my home and ruining the peace. I am so sorry, Emmet, for yelling at you. Her words got to me in the moment and I failed to act properly,” my mother said, taking a deep breath. But when her eyes landed on me, I watched a strange longing there.

I didn’t get why she suddenly felt emotional for me. It was like I had been noticing it here and there, but I didn’t believe her.

“I think I heard her—” Now that Emma was being called out for a lie, she changed her statement again.

“It is very shameful that you accused my son of such a thing. Do you not know how sensitive that topic is around here? Helanie had suffered real abuse, and you thought you could lie like that?” Lord McQuoid finally took a step forward, yelling at her and putting her in her place. She had been saying so much weird stuff, and nobody calling her out had me in shock.

“I think I heard it wrong. Oh my Goddess, I feel so terrible, and now everyone thinks I am such a bad person,” she began to dramatically sigh and cry. Even her own daughter looked so done with her.

Charlotte stood beside her with her arms folded over her chest.

“Maybe apologize to Emmet, then?” Norman hissed, and Emma raised her head, bobbing it repeatedly.

“Of course. Emmet—you are like a son to me. Please forgive me,” she tried to reach him, but Kaye stretched his arm out to stop her.

“Are they going to live with us for the rest of their lives? I mean, get them a new place or something?” Kaye shocked everyone with his blunt approach toward Emma and Charlotte. Charlotte, who had been silent this whole time, moved for the first time. She looked worried and made eye contact with me, almost like asking for help.

“That’ll be too harsh a punishment, don’t you think? Rogues don’t have homes. They live in the woods unless it is this mansion. You want us to move out and live in some cabin or house far away from you guys so that the Zharns could get to us?” Emma was now yapping quickly, fearing they’d be thrown out of the mansion.

“There will be no need to kick anyone out of the mansion. She apologized, and I accepted her apology. I don’t want anyone talking about this matter again,” Emmet spoke up in his commanding, loud voice, causing everyone to fall silent and listen.

Emma smiled with tears in her eyes. “He is such a nice man. And I am such a horrible woman to think so wrong about him.” She broke down again, but this time, nobody came forward to comfort her. We all started to leave for our rooms; even Charlotte left before her.

Norman held my hand and made me walk behind him to our bedroom, leaving Emma alone in the living room.