Chapter 262
No One Wants Their Sinking Ship
Valerie pulled Katie and walked toward the fifth row.
The Knox family’s seats were in the seventh row.
“Mrs. Alford, wait…” Wendy tried to stop her.
The Alfords were not one of the top families in Seacrest, but they still held considerable influence in Gildcrest. These days, people in Seacrest barely showed the Knox family any respect ever since the Marlows cut them off.
Wayne had blown up at home, calling her useless. Wendy was filled with grievance.
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Before coming to the banquet, Wayne had heard Valerie’s youngest daughter worked at Anton’s law firm. He’d ordered Wendy to secure a solid connection with the Alford family.
Everything had been fine between them just a moment ago, so Wendy had no idea why Valerie was leaving so suddenly.
She could already feel Wayne’s furious gaze burning into her back from the rows ahead.
Wendy couldn’t understand how things had changed so fast.
Wayne, who used to be gentle and caring toward her, now came home later and later every night. He never spoke softly anymore. He yelled at her constantly, calling her useless and stupid.
Some days he did not come home at all. On the rare nights he did return, Wendy could smell unfamiliar women’s perfume on his clothes.
Every time she asked about it, he brushed it off, saying it was picked up from work events. He was like a completely different person.
Wendy swallowed the words she wanted to say. Valerie and her daughter had already sat down in the fifth row.
“Anton…” Wendy looked toward her son helplessly, her eyes full of guilt.
Anton kept a blank expression and said nothing. He did not react at all to the Alfords’ departure.
The Knox family was in deep crisis lately. Wayne was desperate to save the family through marriage alliances.
As the eldest son, Yale’s marriage had to be carefully arranged and could not be rushed. Holden was still underage and could not get married yet.
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Chapter 262 No One Wants Their Sinking Ship
That left Anton as the only viable option for a marriage alliance.
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He had been forced to meet countless girls recently. Wayne even threatened to shut down his law firm if he refused.
Yale had only taken over the company for a few years and was helpless against the endless troubles the Knox Group faced. He could only silently accept Wayne’s arrangements.
Wendy never had her own opinions. She followed whatever Wayne said and arranged blind dates without hesitation.
Anton was thoroughly disappointed with his father and mother.
“Mom, they aren’t stupid.” Anton’s voice was flat. “Our family’s a sinking ship. No one’s foolish enough to jump in.”
His gaze drifted toward Zora in the front rows. He had no idea what the group was talking about, but she was laughing brightly, looking beautiful.
A hint of quiet envy flickered in his cold eyes.
She was so much better off after leaving this family.
“Anton, are you still mad at me?” Wendy looked hurt and helpless. “I never wanted to force you. Your dad insisted on this. I had no choice.”
She truly didn’t want to push Anton into a forced marriage. She had tried to talk Wayne out of it, but he would not listen.
It was all the Marlows’ fault for being too ruthless. If not for them, she would never have pressured her own son, and Anton would never have grown distant from her.
She was their biological daughter, yet the Marlows had turned against her just because of Zora.
Anger flared up in Wendy’s heart at the thought of the Marlow family. She could not believe how irrational her own parents were.
They’d abandoned their own daughter for a newly found person.
“It’s all because of Zo-”
“Mom, are you about to blame Zora again?”
Holden looked up from his phone, his tone cold and exhausted.
Everything had gone wrong for their family lately. Jolie’s mental health had gotten worse, and she locked herself in her room all day.
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Chapter 262 No One Wants Their Sinking Ship
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Wendy ranted and cursed at Zora and the Marlows every single day. Anton was being pushed into endless blind dates.
Holden had even been banned from racing and forced to attend social events to build connections.
Holden didn’t complain about the misfortunes falling on the family. He had enjoyed all the benefits of being a Knox, so he was willing to take on the responsibilities.
But he could not stand his mom blaming everything on Zora.
Zora had only lived with them for two months. Not once had she been treated well here. In the end, she was forced to leave.
All the mistakes were their family’s doing, yet Wendy refused to admit it and pinned every fault on Zora. No matter how much Holden tried to reason with her, she would not listen.
He was overwhelmed with helplessness.
They had never made up for the wrongs they’d done to Zora. How could they still have the nerve to blame her for everything?
“As if I shouldn’t blame her!” Wendy’s face flushed with anger. “Would our family be in this mess if not for her?”
Caught red-handed, she quickly regained her stubborn arrogance, red streaks spreading across her eyes.
“We brought all this on ourselves. We deserve every bit of it.” Holden stared at her twisted expression calmly.
He didn’t bother arguing further. She was completely fixated on blaming Zora. She was too stubborn to admit her own mistakes, almost delusional.
She had been in a terrible mental state these past few days, and fighting with her was completely pointless.
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