Chapter 434
He had actually believed their sudden change in attitude was because they had finally accepted Camilla.
But it was all a lie. They had simply discovered Jasper’s true bloodline. The only person they cared about was the boy.
Elise was standing nearby, reeling from the bombshell. She stared at Lance, her voice trembling. “What is going on here? You’re Jasper’s father? Why didn’t you say anything? Why did you let Camilla suffer for so long p>
Elise didn’t understand the complex web of secrets. All she knew was that if the child had been Lance’s from the start, and Lance had loved Camilla so much, there was absolutely no reason Camilla should have ever been forced to marry Barnard and endure years of misery.
Lance was still shell-shocked. He had never imagined that one terrible misunderstanding of a night had resulted in Jasper.
But his silence was the final straw for Elise. Assuming he was dodging responsibility again, the usually meek woman surged forward and grabbed him by the sleeve. “Say something! What is this? Have you just been playing Camilla this whole time p>
“Elise, I p>
“Mom, stop. Let’s just go home,” Camilla intervened, her voice eerily calm.
Her mind was spinning out of control. With the entire Charles family standing there watching, she refused to let this devolve into a humiliating spectacle.
Without waiting for a response, she grabbed Jasper with one hand, hooked Elise’s arm with the other, and marched straight toward the exit of the estate.
Lance stepped into her path, his eyes pleading. “Camilla, please, listen to me. I didn’t know. I swear I p>
“Lance, I just want to be alone,” Camilla interrupted.
Her thoughts were a chaotic mess. She needed to process everything on her own.
And she absolutely refused to dissect her deepest, most painful secrets in front of an audience of Charles family elders.
“Let me drive you,” Lance insisted. He instinctively reached out to take Jasper’s hand, but this time, the boy stepped back, hiding behind Camilla.
Jasper’s wide eyes stared back at Lance with blatant distrust.
Even if he didn’t grasp the adult complexities of the situation, he was incredibly empathetic to the emotions of those around him, and he could feel Camilla’s suffocating distress.
In Jasper’s world, his mother was the only thing that mattered.
No matter how close he had grown to Lance, his loyalty to Camilla was absolute.
“No, Lance. I said I want to be alone,” Camilla repeated firmly.
Perhaps there was some grand, tragic misunderstanding.
But they had known each other for so long now. Lance had been given countless opportunities to confess that he was the man from that night.
Yet he had never breathed a word of it.
If he had just told her the truth, she wouldn’t have been manipulated and blackmailed by Barnard for years. She wouldn’t have spent countless nights drowning in anxiety over Jasper’s unknown father.
A suffocating sense of betrayal coiled tightly in her chest.
She knew she had to distance herself and cool down before she could even look at Lance again.
Seeing the unyielding resolve in her eyes, Lance didn’t push. He stood frozen, watching the taillights of her car fade into the darkness.
Back in the living room, Darwin slapped his thigh and glared at Carney. “Look at what you did! You couldn’t keep your mouth shut, and now look at the absolute mess you’ve made p>
Carney didn’t look remotely apologetic. “I was just speaking the truth. How was I supposed to know you guys were playing some twisted game of chess p>
Darwin didn’t have the energy to argue. He turned to Lance with a sheepish, defensive look. “Lance, what exactly is going on between you and Camilla?
How could you keep something this massive a secret? Look, you made your wife furious. What are you doing standing here? Go after her p>
Darwin was terrified of being blamed for hiding Jasper’s true identity, so he rapidly tried to shift the focus and push Lance out the door.
But Lance saw right through his grandfather’s pathetic deflection.
Camilla had said she wanted space, and as much as it killed him, Lance was going to give it to her.
As for right now p>
Lance’s gaze turned predatory as he locked eyes with Darwin. “So, you never accepted Camilla. All you wanted was the Charles bloodline.
What was the master plan, Grandpa? Coax us into solidifying the relationship, get Jasper’s last name legally changed to Charles, and then fight her for custody p>
He slowly sat down directly across from Darwin, his eyes dripping with disgust.
Darwin had known for a while, yet he had kept his mouth shut. In Lance’s mind, a custody trap was the only logical explanation.
Darwin looked genuinely horrified. “Lance, what are you saying? Do you really think I’m a monster p>
“Aren’t you? From what I remember, you absolutely despised Camilla. You went out of your way to make her life a living hell. Now you magically discover Jasper’s identity and stay completely silent? What other motive could you possibly have besides stealing my son?” Lance demanded.
Oscar stepped in, alarmed by the sheer venom in Lance’s voice. “Lance, watch your tone! How can you accuse your grandfather of something so vile p>
“Accuse? Am I wrong? None of you have ever cared about Camilla, and you certainly don’t care about me. The only thing you want in this house is that boy,” Lance fired back mercilessly.
Oscar didn’t yell back. Instead, a wave of profound shame washed over him, leaving him entirely speechless.
Was this really how Lance saw them after everything they had done?