Chapter 293

His unwavering defense of Cassandra Delacroix was a brutal slap to her face. Isabella Lockhart felt nothing but disgust for ever loving such a man.

"I'll leave you two to it. I have urgent matters to attend to."

She couldn't stand another second in that room. Nathan Prescott needed her now more than ever.

Turning at the doorway, she shot Nathaniel Blackwood a lethal glare. "Hide her well, Mr. Blackwood. If I find her, that death certificate might just become reality. The law can't punish me for making a ghost disappear."

The threat was empty - Isabella only wanted Cassandra kept on a tight leash. As long as the woman stayed out of trouble, she'd let sleeping dogs lie.

But her warning would backfire spectacularly...

The moment Isabella left, Eleanor Whitmore snapped out of her daze.

"Cassandra's alive?"

Nathaniel gave a terse nod, his expression stormy. That vicious threat kept replaying in his mind.

Why did Isabella harbor such hatred for Cassandra?

"Praise the heavens! My grandchild survives - the Blackwood lineage continues!" Eleanor clasped her hands in prayer, beaming with relief.

Nathaniel scowled. "I'm still very much alive!"

"And what good is that?" Eleanor scoffed. "You might as well take vows of celibacy. That Cassandra got pregnant was a miracle. If she loses this baby, our family line ends with you!"

She knew her son too well.

Ice ran through his veins. No woman had ever stirred his passions - not even during his marriage to Isabella.

Cassandra's pregnancy was a freak accident. It would never happen again.

Eleanor wasn't blind. She saw Nathaniel's indifference toward Cassandra.

But his reaction to Isabella tonight... That was a man consumed by raw, primal desire.

An audacious plan took shape.

Grabbing Nathaniel's arm, Eleanor declared, "Cassandra's too manipulative for you. Now that she's legally dead, I won't push this farce further. Pay her off after the birth and send her away."

Nathaniel's face darkened.

He'd considered the same, but his brother's dying wish held him back.

Eleanor pressed on, "I'm done with Cassandra, but the Blackwoods need a matriarch. That child deserves a mother. And there's only one suitable candidate - Isabella Lockhart!"

"Have you lost your mind?" Nathaniel gaped at her. "You spent four years convincing me to divorce her!"