Chapter 25
“He told Arthur that if I agree to marry him, he’ll do business with the Leroix family and guarantee we’ll be set for life,” Sophie
said smugly.
Rachel glanced at her phone-still no reply from Nicolas. She couldn’t believe he’d actually make such a condition.
“You heard him say this yourself?”
Sophie scoffed. “Do I need to? Arthur was right there during their meeting. What, you don’t trust your own brother?”
Rachel studied Sophie’s self-satisfied expression. “Have you even met Nicolas?”
“Well, no… but so what! Maybe it was love at first sight. God, this is such a dilemma-should I marry Jaxon or Nicolas?” Sophie pretended to agonize over her options.
Rachel realized how clueless Sophie was being played. “You might want to get a reality check. Maybe Arthur heard wrong. Don’t gift-wrap yourself just to get sent back for false advertising.”
“You’re full of shit!” Sophie’s voice went shrill. “Maybe he really is into me! And anyway, Jaxon’s been super sweet to me too.”
Rachel’s phone buzzed: Will explain later. – Nicolas
She ignored it, sick of his runaround.
“Sister!” Sophie suddenly grabbed her arm. “Look, I don’t get Nicolas’s deal, but guys like him have women throwing themselves at them constantly. Maybe he’s just testing how serious we are.”
Rachel yanked her arm away in disgust. “And your point is?”
“My point is I’m still marrying Jaxon. You’re just his ex who got tossed aside. The Leroix-Rothschild engagement is happening, but I’ll be the bride!”
Before Rachel could respond, Sophie let out a bloodcurdling scream and both women plunged into the koi pond.
As they hit the freezing water, Sophie whispered in Rachel’s ear: “Since you won’t give up on Jaxon, I’ll make you.”
Rachel instantly understood the setup-Sophie was going to frame her and destroy her reputation completely.
Jaxon and Arthur both dove in, but they swam straight past Rachel to rescue Sophie, completely ignoring her struggling nearby.
Rachel managed to haul herself out, dripping wet and shaking with rage. She watched Jaxon tenderly carry Sophie to safety
while Arthur fussed over her.
“What the hell happened?” Jaxon demanded, staring accusingly at Rachel.
“I slipped.”
“Bullshit! You were both just standing there when I got here!”
Rachel felt that familiar crushing weight of their automatic disbelief. “Jaxon, we’ve known each other for over twenty years. Do you really think I’m just some pathological liar?”
“This isn’t the time for this, Rachel. Sophie’s traumatized and needs medical attention.”
“Traumatized? I almost fucking drowned and none of you even looked at me!”
“You can swim, Rachel. Sophie can’t. You were never in any real danger.”
“I can swim?” Rachel stared at him in disbelief. “When have you ever seen me swim? I’ve been terrified of water since I was a
kid!”
Jaxon’s certainty wavered for a moment, doubt flickering across his face.
Arthur stepped forward, clearly done with the situation. “Rachel, how long are you gonna keep this tantrum up? I know exactly what you did. Anita told me everything-you orchestrated this whole thing!”
“What are you talking about?”
“Cut the act! You brought Anita here to cause drama, then staged this accident to frame Sophie!”
The crowd murmured, some people clearly uncomfortable with what they were witnessing.
“Three years ago you betrayed me, and nothing’s changed,” Rachel said quietly. “How pathetic.”
Sophie quickly interjected, “Sister, let’s not bring up the past. Can’t we just be a happy family?”
She reached for Rachel’s hand with fake sisterly affection. .
“Family?” Rachel jerked away like Sophie had burned her. “The moment you sent me to prison, this stopped being my home.”
Sophie deliberately stumbled backward from the force, letting Jaxon catch her in a perfect damsel-in-distress moment.
“Sister, this is all my fault! I know you think I stole your place in the family, but I swear I never meant to compete with you! I’ve always seen you as my real sister!”
She sobbed convincingly while Arthur rushed to comfort her.
“Sophie will always be part of this family,” Arthur declared, glaring at Rachel. “She’s sweet and grateful, unlike some ungrateful people who bite the hand that feeds them!”
Rachel turned to leave, but Arthur’s voice stopped her.
“Don’t you dare walk away from me!”
Before she could react, Arthur shoved her hard. Rachel lost her balance and crashed back into the pond with a massive splash.
This time the icy water was a complete shock. She surfaced, gasping and coughing.
“If you’re gonna disown your family, then stay the hell away from the Leroix house! You’re not welcome there anymore!”
Some bystanders finally spoke up:
“This seems way too much…”
“She’s still your sister…”
But Arthur ignored them, waiting for Rachel to apologize. When she managed to stand in the chest-deep water, she looked up at him with pure defiance.
“1. Did. Nothing. Wrong.”
Her voice carried across the water, crystal clear and absolutely unrepentant.
“You’d rather believe strangers than your own sister. You don’t deserve to be my brother! My brother would be a hero who fights for justice-not this blind, deaf fool!”
Arthur kicked her back into the water. “Then stay in there until you admit your mistakes!”
The cycle repeated-Rachel struggling toward shore, Arthur kicking her back in. Each time, she refused to break.
Finally, exhausted, Arthur demanded: “Do you admit you were wrong or not?”
Rachel’s eyes had lost focus, but when she looked at his familiar face, she barely recognized him.
“Hahahahaha…” She burst into wild laughter that echoed across the courtyard.
When she finally stopped, her voice was ice-cold: “Hey Arthur, funny thing-you’ve got your facts mixed up. That necklace you flew halfway around the world to buy at auction? That was for Sophie, not me. My ‘gift’ was just a fucking candy apple you grabbed from some street vendor!”
She pointed at the expensive necklace glittering around Sophie’s neck. “It’s right there if you want to refresh your memory!”
Arthur’s gaze followed her gesture, and for the first time, real doubt crept across his face as suppressed memories came flooding back.
“Thanks for the education,” Rachel continued, her voice cutting through the stunned silence. “Really opened my eyes about how much family loyalty is worth. Spoiler alert: absolutely nothing.”
The finality in her tone made Arthur’s blood run cold.
Just then, a new voice sliced through the tension:
The the thy sy by y
“Well, well. Mr. Leroix publicly beating up his own sister-real classy. This how elite families handle their business?”
