Chapter 89
‘Keeping my distance from Bowen shouldn’t cause any problems.’”
The rented apartment was a fully furnished luxury unit, move-in ready.
The issue with Carmen was basically resolved. When the tournament officials sensed something was off, they promptly issued a statement confirming that, after investigation, God’s Fury had not violated any rules during the Autumn Championship.
Furious, Carmen trashed her room in a fit of rage.
That evening, the Wilson family dinner table was devoid of its usual cheerful harmony. A heavy silence fell over the table. Daxton and Ronald had all gathered for the family dinner.
Trevor kept his head down, fidgeting with his phone. He thought, ‘What a miscalculation. Never expected Aubree to actually have some real chops. The online backlash doesn’t worry me much. It’s a bit annoying but hardly a real threat. What really surprises me is discovering that Aubree has become rather intriguing. There’s clearly more to her than I realized.’
Bryan was working late at the office when he got dragged back home. Emery was still on his way home.
Alice was the first to break the heavy silence, directing her anger at Bryan. “You really are such a wonderful big brother to Carmen, aren’t you? This is how you handle things? Now the whole internet’s bashing her, how’s she supposed to show her face at school after this?”
In the past, Bryan would have blamed himself for his mistakes, but now all he felt was annoyance. The only reason he was still cleaning up her mess was out of lingering sibling loyalty after all these years.
He thought, ‘Nothing is ever absolute. Once you’ve acted, you must be ready for your mistakes to be held against you. Does the whole world have to revolve around Carmen?’
Not only was Alice upset, but Daxton was also seething with resentment toward Bryan. He’d just pulled two all-nighters finishing critical lab work and hadn’t even caught his breath when he saw the online backlash. He could scarcely believe this disaster was what Bryan called “damage control.”
Daxton glared at Bryan. “Did you do this on purpose? I’ve thought this through. When Aubree refused to come home, you hired someone unreliable, and their betrayal set off everything that followed. The real problem was your poor choice. Bryan, Aubree used to be terrified of you. She obeyed you more than anyone else in this family, even more than Mom and Dad.”
With their parents often busy or away from home, the other three brothers mostly took a hands-off approach toward Aubree. As long as she stayed out of trouble, they wouldn’t bother with her. Bryan, however, was always the one who disciplined her the most.
“Honestly, if you’d really put your foot down the first time you went to see Aubree, do you seriously think you couldn’t have brought her back? Let alone all those other times after that!” Daxton’s implication wasn’t lost on Bryan, and his mood darkened even further.
Bryan thought angrily, ‘What does Daxton even mean by that? Does he seriously think I deliberately didn’t bring Aubree back, and then just carelessly found someone to be a stand-in for Carmen? Like I have nothing better to do?’
What Bryan found even more unbelievable was that everyone else actually bought it. His father fixed him with a skeptical glare and demanded, “Bryan, is it because you still feel guilty about what happened back then that you keep defending Aubree? You haven’t been treating Carmen very well lately.”
Bryan snapped, “These are two completely different matters!”
Bryan was fuming. I’ve just seen through Carmen’s true nature, that’s all, he thought.
“Isn’t it only natural for me to feel guilty about Aubree?” he blurted out. The disapproving stares around the table intensified.
Bryan thought, ‘I’m exhausted, by who I was then, and by what I’m facing now.’
He didn’t feel like explaining anymore. Suddenly, it dawned on him, maybe this was exactly how Aubree used to feel at home. She always did what the family asked, looked after Carmen as best she could, did everything she could to help. But when things didn’t work out, even when it was clearly Carmen’s fault, Aubree was always the one who got blamed.
“Fine, think whatever you want. Since you’re all dissatisfied with how I handled things, don’t come to me about Carmen ever again.” With that final remark, Bryan angrily slammed his chopsticks down and stormed out of the dining room.
As Bryan shoved the door open and came face-to-face with Emery, he shot him a look that screamed, “You’re on your own,” then brushed past him and disappeared into the night.