From Ashes to Queen: Now I Call the Shots novel Chapter 146

Chapter 146 Crimson Threads

18 Fear

Even though she had solved design problems for Jude Group and written outstanding proposals for the company, Connor still believed Scarlett had done it all to atone for her supposed sins.

But if Rebecca had been orchestrating everything from the beginning…

He couldn’t even imagine how deeply he had wronged Scarlett.

“Dad…” Oliver’s voice trembled as he finally looked away from the screen. His voice was the first to break the suffocating silence that had blanketed the room.

Almost simultaneously, the sound of several sharp intakes of breath echoed through the space, as if the men had suddenly returned to life. But Oliver’s next words only dragged them deeper into hell.

“I always thought that fire wasn’t real,” he admitted. “Even after reading the news, I assured Scarlett had staged it just to get attention from the Joyner family.”

“I believed that because she always made a fuss over the smallest things. Why wouldn’t she scream for help then?”

He gave a hollow, bitter laugh.

“It turns out… what she said at the police station wasn’t out of spite. It was the truth.”

“She must have seen the arsonist. Maybe even saw Rebecca that day.”

“I can’t even begin to imagine how hopeless she must have felt.”

In the fractured reflection of broken glass, Eugene saw his own shadow, the hem of his suit pants still damp with tea from the shattered cup.

“For the past two years, she’s done everything she could to treat Rebecca.”

“And in the end, it was the person she poured her heart and soul into saving… who stabbed her in the back.”

He had been stunned to learn Scarlett was the one treating Rebecca, which led him to investigate the matter from multiple angles. It wasn’t until he confirmed the truth that he spoke up at the police station.

But it was too late.

“She has every right not to trust anyone in the Joyner family anymore.”

The words hit like an earthquake, opening up a chasm beneath their feet and dragging them down into darkness. The pressure in their chests, the suffocating weight, made it impossible to breathe.

Connor pulled out his phone. At the top of his gallery was a recent selfie Rebecca had sent–taken in the Joyner family’s garden. But his fingers instinctively scrolled all the way down, to photos taken three years

ago.

Scarlett stood in a daisy field, smiling at him in the white dress he had bought for her. The wind lifted the hem of her skirt, making her look ethereal.

The chandelier overhead felt unbearably bright. Franklin pressed a hand to his pounding temple.

For a brief moment, it felt like he was being swept away by a tidal wave.

15:56 Sun, 10 Aug

Chapter 146 Crimson Threads

“I didn’t expect Rebecca to be blackmailed by that thug,” he muttered. “That foolish child. Why didn’t she come to us? Why take everything on alone?”

“From the look of these photos, she must’ve tried to stop him–just got there too late.”

He sighed heavily.

“A senseless tragedy.”

Tap, tap.

He knocked his fingers against the table and glanced around, completely ignoring the others‘ pale, lifeless expressions.

“We’ll explain everything clearly to the Lane family tomorrow,” he said firmly. “We don’t want them thinking the Joyner family is trying to cover anything up.”

“As for Scarlett’s decision to cut ties after the fire… she must’ve been in shock. I can overlook it.”

“If we see her tomorrow,” he added, “tell her–if she reveals the truth about the fire and gets Rebecca out of prison, the Joyner family will always be her home.”

Everyone froze.

They looked at him, stunned, confused.

But perhaps each of them still clung to a thread of hope.

What if the arsonist really was a monster? What if Rebecca had tried to stop the fire? What if she hadn’t known Scarlett was still inside the building when she returned to prepare for her birthday party?

They had refused to hear Scarlett’s explanations so many times, misunderstood her so deeply. They couldn’t afford to make the same mistake again.

Not without hearing Rebecca’s side of the story.

The door knocked softly, then swung open.

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