The Killer Queen (Noella Briony)

Noella and Palmer had barely left the hospital when Lucian made his appearance.

Seeing his grandson lying in bed with his leg encased in a cast, Lucian paced back and forth in frustration.

"What on earth have you been doing, Lorne? How did I raise you to get into such messes? Did I ever encourage you to get involved in such reckless escapades?"

Lorne had been brought up under Lucian's watchful eye, leaving for studies abroad at the tender age of eight. Lucian had always felt instrumental in molding Lorne from his earliest years. Yet now, his grandson seemed like a stranger.

Lorne kept his eyes shut, offering no words in his defense.

Lucian's face flushed with a mix of anger and embarrassment.

"Think about your actions, Lorne. You're old enough to understand right from wrong. You've deeply disappointed me!"

Already advanced in years, Lucian found himself apologizing to Tristan, a younger member of another family.

After a series of calls, including a rather sarcastic berating from Marcel, Lucian found himself, for the first time, unable to retort.

Raising a grandson who brought shame upon the family was beyond embarrassing for Lucian.

Marcel was furious, and even Merrick joined in to scold Lorne over the phone.

"Your grandson must apologize to my granddaughter! Lucian, I'm telling you, I can't be at ease letting Elara return to the Richardson family under these circumstances."

Perhaps feeling a bit sympathetic towards Lucian after the rant, Merrick offered some consolation.

"Let it go, Lucian. Kids have their own journeys. Don't overthink it. But your grandson must make it right for my granddaughter. Even a beating would be too lenient for him!"

Lucian felt as though he was the one in need of forgiveness.

After making amends with Noella and Palmer, thanks to Elara, they agreed to let Lorne off the hook this time.

Feeling exhausted, Lucian sat down and advised, "Ah, Lorne, I'm getting too old for this. I can't keep cleaning up after you. I've swallowed my pride this time, but you need to start behaving."

Hearing Lucian's voice, aged significantly from stress, Lorne hesitated.

Lucian sighed deeply.

"I'll call your brother back. You and he will have to sort out the family business mess together."

The Richardson family's businesses were under scrutiny, and Lucian had no choice but to summon Lorne's brother back home to prevent Lorne from facing legal troubles. The thought of his grandson possibly ending up in a dire situation pained Lucian profoundly. This is from NôvelDrama.Org.

Opening his eyes and seeing Lucian's visibly aged appearance, Lorne felt a pang of guilt. But then, he reflected on his actions. He had done everything for the sake of the Richardson family, so why should Bowie Richardson be called back? Lorne had always felt overshadowed by Bowie in every aspect of his life.

Clutching his fists, Lorne adopted a remorseful expression.

Lucian spoke sternly, reprimanding Lorne. "Ah, Lorne, I'm only covering for you this one time. If you don't learn from this, I won't be there to save you next time. Do you understand?"

"Grandpa, I... I want to call Grandpa Sexton and apologize." Lorne's voice was hoarse. "Grandpa, it's all my fault. I've wronged Noella and Elara."

Seeing Lorne in this state, Lucian didn't stop him.

"Alright, I'll go check on your aunt. She's still here for her medical examination."

Lucian walked out of the room, his figure stooped, clearly weighed down by the ordeal. This incident had tarnished his reputation among old friends, but Lorne was his flesh and blood; Lucian couldn't abandon him.

The doctor informed Lorne, "Your condition isn't suitable for surgery right now. We'll schedule it as soon as possible."

"Okay. You can leave now."

Looking at his injured leg, Lorne was filled with rage!

Palmer had caused a compound fracture, and due to his already frail health, compounded by Noella's unexpected assault, he wasn't even fit for surgery. If his leg ended up permanently damaged...

Lorne clenched his fists, waited for the medical staff to leave, and coldly dialed Sexton's number.

"Grandpa Sexton, it's Lorne. Mr. Pollack has caused me a compound fracture. Doesn’t the Pollack family owe me an explanation?"

Sexton was having dinner with his wife, Helen. With his advanced age, Sexton had the call on speaker, volume at its highest, allowing everyone at the table to hear Lorne's words.

Sexton replied leisurely, "Palmer hurt you? Then take it up with Palmer. I don't handle his affairs."

"Grandpa Sexton, I'm still Elara's cousin. If the Pollack family treats me this way, what would my aunt say about your family?"

Helen scoffed, "What would she say? She'd look with her eyes! Who knows if you're even a legitimate member of the family. Marcel could mix up wives and granddaughters, and who knows about Lucian."

Sipping her soup leisurely, she continued with a mocking tone, "With your scheming, you're more like Arthur's grandson. Your real grandfather is on the verge of a dire fate, and yet you, his dutiful grandson, don't bother visiting? Perhaps you'll share his fate soon enough. Might as well get acquainted with the place now."

Helen, known for her sharp tongue and living in a nursing home, had rarely interacted with Lorne, but her reputation for being acerbic was well-known throughout the Pollack family.

Lorne's face twisted with irritation at the old woman's snide remarks.

Helen continued her tirade, unfazed. "I heard you used to be quite dutiful to Arthur, visiting him on special occasions. One might mistake you for a Gruber with such dedication."

The shady dealings Lorne was involved in were all orchestrated by Arthur, and somehow, the Pollack family was in the know, while the Richardsons were left in the dark.

Lorne, red-faced and furious, shot back. “If the Pollacks won’t give me an explanation, I'll spill everything to Elara.”

Helen scoffed, “As if Elara would take your word over ours.”

“Madam, I have my ways of making Elara believe me,” Lorne retorted, his voice dripped with thinly veiled threats.

Helen bristled at the challenge. “You dare to threaten me? Lay a finger on my granddaughter, and I'll have the Richardsons' family plot turned upside down! You think you can strut around making threats, you little punk?”

Jacob intervened, trying to calm his mother, “Mom, don’t get worked up. Elara’s got a whole team of special forces from Harmonia Country watching over her. She’ll be fine.”

Lorne clenched his teeth, resorting to his last play.

“Old Mrs. Pollack, I'll have no choice but to tell my aunt, who’s currently in the hospital unaware of Elara’s existence. Just imagine how thrilled she’d be to know she has a daughter. But given her frail health, who knows if the shock might... well, I wouldn’t want to speculate.”