Chapter 117
With that final declaration, the energy Zoe had been using to keep herself upright seemingly vanished, and her body went limp as she swooned backward.
The entire room gasped in alarm.
Zoe was heavily pregnant; a fall like that could be catastrophic.
“Zoe p>
Frederick lunged forward, catching her fragile frame just before she hit the ground.
Leaning weakly against Frederick’s chest, Zoe’s face was chalk-white.
“Frederick, I… I’m fine. As a mother, I had to stand up for my son p>
Frederick gently rubbed her shoulder in comfort. Then, he slowly turned his head toward Maeve. He didn’t say a single word, but the deep disappointment swimming in his eyes spoke volumes.
Maeve’s chest seized with a sharp, swelling pain. A freezing wave of pure sorrow washed through her veins, suffocating her.
They had dated for two years.
They had been married for three.
She genuinely believed that no one in the world understood her better than Frederick.
Even when she accepted that he didn’t love her anymore—even when she forced herself to swallow the bitter pill that he had fallen for someone else—she had endured it.
But how… how could he not have even a shred of baseline trust in her character?
*Bang p>
Arthur slammed his palm violently against the table, his furious glare locking onto Maeve.
“Maeve! It’s bad enough you’re barren and can’t give this family an heir, but to violently attack your sister-in-law’s child? It is a stain on this family that you ever joined us p>
His anger escalated with every word, his face turning an alarming shade of purple as his chest heaved.
“Stand right there and confess what you did! If you don’t explain yourself this instant, I will make you regret it p>
Maeve stared numbly back at Arthur for a long, silent moment.
Then, she turned her head, looking squarely at Charlie, who was hiding behind Zoe.
“Charlie, look at everyone and tell them the truth. Did I pinch you? If I did, tell them exactly where in the house I did it, and exactly what I said to threaten you p>
Charlie’s little face flushed a brilliant red, his hands twisting nervously together.
“I… Aunt… Aunt Maeve p>
Zoe immediately yanked Charlie tighter against her, burying his face in her stomach with a look of overwhelming maternal anguish.
“Maeve! You already traumatized the boy! How is he supposed to remember the details? Are you not going to stop until you drive him into a mental breakdown p>
Maeve’s gaze snapped to Zoe, her clear eyes cutting through the act like sharpened glass.
“Didn’t you just say he gave you a clear, detailed account of exactly what I did to him at Wisteria Cove? Why is his memory suddenly failing now p>
Zoe flinched under the intense scrutiny but quickly recovered.
“I’m his mother! When I push him, he knows it’s because I love him. But you were his abuser! Forcing him to relive it with you is just torturing him all over again p>
Maeve let out a cold laugh. “So what you’re saying is, you get to completely fabricate a story, and I’m not even allowed the opportunity to defend myself p>
Zoe looked deeply offended, her voice trembling with righteous indignation.
“Charlie and I don’t lie p>
She turned her red, tear-filled eyes toward Frederick.
“Frederick knows that better than anyone. Isn’t that right, Frederick p>
Maeve slowly shifted her gaze to her husband.
Frederick wasn’t looking at her. His eyes were entirely focused on Zoe, and he spoke in a calm, steady voice.
“I believe Zoe p>
Those three simple words slammed into Maeve’s chest like a sledgehammer.
They shattered her heart, tearing it into a bloody, irreparable mess.
Their five years together were utterly shattered by those three simple words.
Maeve stared directly at Frederick, the last flickering light of hope in her eyes shattering, fading, and plunging into an abyss of dead, stagnant silence.
Frederick inadvertently glanced her way and met that chilling, lifeless stare. A sudden, violent spike of pain pierced his chest, hurting so badly that his fingers twitched at his sides.
But he had already wrongfully doubted Zoe once today.
He couldn’t do it a second time.
Steeling his resolve, Frederick looked away.
“Well, knowing Maeve’s character, I am absolutely certain she would never do such a thing!” Beatrice Falrchild’s commanding voice echoed from the adjacent hallway.