Marry My Billionaire Second Husband - Chapter 136

Chapter 136: Plethora of Secrets
“Oh…” Amelia’s mouth fell open, her blood running cold the moment her mind registered the implication of Joshua’s words. “I… I…”

Her tongue was numb and it felt heavy in her mouth, unable to form words. Then again, she was wholly unprepared to respond to what she had just heard.

What could she say to such a devastating recount?

Blood continued to drip onto the tablecloth, staining it red. Joshua’s eyes were fixed on her, his pupils pulsating with hatred. Amelia had to repress a shudder; her uncle was most likely visualizing her mother in her stead. For once, her resemblance to her departed mother was doing her no favors.

Still, Amelia could not convince herself that her mother was such a callous woman. Growing up, her mother was always a bright spot in Amelia’s life, a warm blanket shielding her from harm.

“…Could it be an accident?” Amelia asked weakly, only for her uncle’s face to turn darker than a stormcloud. Gone was the false civility from before, and he immediately leaped to his feet, brandishing the broken wine glass in her direction.

“As if! Back then, Germaine’s belly was rounder than a ripe watermelon. Only a blind woman would have missed the fact that she was pregnant. And your mother still had the nerve to shove her, causing her to fall!” Joshua roared. “Everyone knows you don’t push pregnant women around― everyone except the rich spoiled heiresses!”

Amelia’s mouth was dry. She wanted to defend her mother, but how could she, when she only heard one version of the events?

And it wasn’t as though she had the best impression of rich heiresses. The twin images of Kelsie Friesent and Emmeline Hawthorne floated in her mind, unbidden.

Maybe her mother never meant to shove her. Maybe she did, but it was an impulse done out of anger. Maybe she only wanted Germaine to step away from her.

No matter what, there was only one thing she was absolutely sure of― Amelia’s mother would never have done what she did on purpose if she knew it would result in the death of an unborn child.

But there was no explaining this to Joshua, who had decades to stew on such an injustice.

“How… How was Aunt Germaine then?” Amelia asked, hopeful. “Did she recover from the… miscarriage?”

Since Joshua mentioned he had another son, albeit a lot younger than she expected, she assumed that Germaine would have bounced back eventually. Perhaps reconciliation was still possible.

However, at her question, Joshua closed his eyes, as though he had been struck by a heavy blow. In the end, his lips peeled apart to reveal a broken laugh, that caused goosebumps to form on her skin.

“Oh, your precious father really didn’t tell you anything about us.” He spat a glob of spit on the table, narrowingly missing Amelia’s face. Amelia discreetly scooted further back, scrunching her face in disgust.

“My darling Germaine is dead. The loss of our child was too great a blow for her to endure, and I walked home months later to find her hanging from our ceiling fan.”

Amelia gasped in horror, and Joshua smirked despondently, as though seeing her despair brought him some form of twisted joy.

“Oh yes, you didn’t expect this turn of events, did you, my little niece? You thought everything ended up fine in the end? Well, it didn’t. Your bitch of a mother was responsible for not one, but two deaths in our family. She destroyed my life, and the life of my parents too!”

“But your son Levi…” Amelia began, and Joshua scoffed.

“Germaine and I never got to marry. She was carrying our son out of wedlock, and after he died, she was in no mood to live, much less marry. After those years, I married my current wife. You, out of all people, should be an expert on such a topic.”

Amelia bit her tongue to stop herself from arguing with Joshua. He was in a world of hurt, and nothing she said would help matters.

“Of course, my brother sided with his new beloved girlfriend over his actual family, even though everyone with eyes knew who was at fault,” Joshua continued bitterly. “He still continued to claim that we were misunderstanding his dear Elaine, who only wanted to stand up for him. After that incident, my parents were insistent that he leave Elaine, but he hung onto her like a limpet, refusing to budge.”

A twisted smile crossed his face. “I guess he was willing to marry a murderer if the murderer came attached to a wealthy family. I have to give my brother props for this. He had us all fooled!”

“My father didn’t marry my mother for her money,” Amelia retorted, her tongue finally loosening enough to muster a response. She knew enough about her parents and their relationship with each other to refute that much, at the very least.

“For her stunning good looks then,” Joshua leered at her, and his lecherous gaze made her want to take a scorching hot shower to wash off the uncleanliness. “At least you inherited her looks and not his ugly mug. And now you have her money too.”

“That’s what you’re here for, isn’t it?” Amelia guessed.

After her estranged uncle went on one huge tirade, revealing a plethora of dark secrets that painted Amelia’s deceased mother in a terrible light, there could only be one reason why he wanted to see her desperately.

“Good. You have some brains, unlike my brother. Don’t you think some money is the least your family can give me after all the grief you caused?” Joshua’s eyes glinted with greed.

Amelia’s heart sank. “How much are you asking for?”

“Ten million. I’m sure you have more than that tucked away― even if you don’t, your precious husband definitely does!”

“That’s extortion!” Amelia gasped at the figure. “I don’t have that kind of money!”

“Then give me what you have, unless you want me to go to the tabloids,” Joshua said threateningly. He rose and picked up the cutlery knife and pointed it at her.

“After your mother heartlessly snuffed out two lives, ten million is the least I could ask for. Human lives are priceless.”