But this time, Mabel Quinn dodged, allowing Evelina’s slap to hit nothing but air.
"Mom, if Dad were still alive, what do you think he would do?" Mabel asked.
Evelina paused for a moment, a complex look flashing in her eyes. "You don’t deserve to mention your father! If I had known today would come, I wish I never had you as a daughter!" After speaking, she pulled her son away.
Cecil Quinn was also full of resentment. Originally, this apartment was meant for him to use as a marital home. Now, the marital home was gone, and it was going to be more difficult for him to find a girlfriend with good conditions.
"Mabel, you don’t know what family means. If you don’t apologize properly to Miss Grant over this matter, then don’t consider me your brother!" Cecil said this before leaving.
Mabel wanted to retort, does my brother know what family means? But she knew that even asking would be pointless. If her brother knew, he wouldn’t have come with their mother today to stage such a farce.
Supervisor Lavender Foster asked everyone who wasn’t part of the screenwriting department to leave, then told the writers to return to their seats and get back to work—in other words, the farce was over.
The chief editor came to Mabel’s side, gently patted her shoulder, and said, "Focus on your work; don’t let this affect you."
"Yes, I will," Mabel replied.
The office gradually returned to its usual calm. Lilith leaned towards Mabel and clicked her tongue, "You were amazing just now, actually making Lyra Grant flee. But your mom and brother seemed really mad—what are you going to do when you go home?" It wasn’t until now that Lilith understood why Mabel had been in a bad mood after receiving phone calls from home a few times before.
Having such a family, anyone would be maddened, so how could her mood be good?
"Maybe after some time, they’ll figure it out, and it won’t matter," Mabel said, realizing that thinking this way might be a bit naive, but there was no other choice. Unless she admitted publicly to stealing Lyra Grant’s script draft, there would always be a stalemate between her and her mother and brother. With the current situation, she could only take it one step at a time.
"You guys are related by blood; eventually, they’ll understand. Like my mom says, there’s no lasting grudge between mother and daughter," Lilith comforted.
Mabel smiled faintly, but her heart still felt heavy. She didn’t have the satisfaction of defeating Lyra Grant, perhaps only the chill from her family and bitterness.
Throughout the day, Lyra Grant never returned to the Corporation. However, news of the morning’s farce had already spread throughout the company. According to Lilith, it was like a slap to Lyra Grant’s face—she brought it upon herself.
After work, Mabel went to work at the cake shop. By the time she returned to the Kinston Residence, it was already past 10 p.m.
But when she walked into the living room, she was startled to see Kyle Kinston sitting on the sofa, a book resting on his knees. Clearly, he had been reading before.
"You... why are you back?" she asked hesitantly, not yet mentally prepared for his return.