Westin had gone to shower, leaving only mother and daughter in the living room.
"Mom, you're amazing. Dad really does whatever you say," Lillie said admiringly.
She used to envy Janelle intensely. Janelle had stolen her father. Though she was also his daughter, her life had been so difficult. And Janelle? She was Graham City's little princess, free to act outrageously without reproach. Back then, Lillie had been forced to pretend to be Janelle's friend. Every second spent near her had been torture. Thankfully, things were different now. The man Janelle loved was her fiancé. She was about to enter the Institute, becoming the object of everyone's envy. Dad was hers alone. Blue Whale would be hers in the future. Janelle would never steal what belonged to her.
"Lillie, you are my daughter, and you are inherently excellent. Learn to control your emotions, and you too will achieve great success," Amber advised. No matter the humiliations of the past, she was Mrs. Rovella now, wasn't she? While Madalyn rotted in a sanatorium, a despised lunatic.
"Yes, I know."
"Until your father gets her shares back, avoid direct confrontation with Janelle." Janelle was a madwoman, just like her mother. Her own gentle, delicate daughter was no match for her. "Once your father has the shares, we'll send Janelle to the asylum too." They wouldn't even need to kill her. Just send her there. In a place like that, even a sane person would go mad.
"Mom, I know what to do."
"Nelson is still useful. Go soothe him properly." And how to soothe him... her smart daughter surely knew.
"Okay."
Meanwhile, Nelson sat in his car parked outside the Grand Court Hotel, chain-smoking. How could Janelle go to a hotel room with that man? She belonged to him! How could she be with someone else?
His feelings for Janelle were complex. He waited for over an hour. Finally, he saw Janelle emerge from the hotel. He immediately crushed his cigarette, flung open the car door, and strode towards her.
"Janelle, we need to talk."
Nelson's arm was still in a sling. His teeth throbbed. When he spoke, his face contorted with pain.
Janelle hadn't expected to see Nelson here. Shouldn't he be lying in a hospital bed?
"What could we possibly have to talk about?"
"Janelle, I like you. I really still like you," Nelson blurted out, startlingly direct. Five years apart, he thought he'd forgotten everything. But her return brought all those buried memories crashing back. She was his first love, the most intense passion of his youth. How could he simply forget?
"Janelle, give us another chance. I'll treat you well." Nelson desperately wanted to pull her into his arms. But as he reached out, her icy glare stopped him cold.
"Nelson, stop disgusting me. Do you even know what liking someone means?" Janelle's voice dripped contempt. "What? Engaged to Lillie on one hand, spouting this nonsense to me on the other? Want me to be your mistress?" The thought that she'd once been with this man made her nauseous. Though back then, Nelson had treated her exceptionally well, perhaps too well.
"Why not?" Nelson's eyes burned with desperation. "If you just follow me obediently, who would dare say anything? Blue Whale is controlled by your father and Amber now. If you want it back, I can help you. Just... stay with me." He avoided the word 'mistress'; he didn't want to sully what he called his 'love'.
"Janelle, you know only I can help you in Graham City. Think about it, okay?" He pressed on. "And... you love me too, don't you? For our love, isn't enduring a little hardship worth it?" Weren't women all about love? Surely she could bear a little pain for theirs? "If you're worried about Lillie, we can hide it from her." Nelson warmed to his own idea; it seemed perfect.
"Hah."
Westin was disgusting enough. Now this young Nelson also wanted to have his cake and eat it too.
"Nelson, I truly was blind back then."
"Finished? Go dream on. You'll find everything you want in your dreams." Janelle hadn't planned to resort to violence yet, but Nelson pushed her too far. He'd said so much, yet she hadn't absorbed a single word?!
He lunged, grabbing for her arm with his uninjured hand.
"Looking to die?" Janelle's simmering rage finally boiled over.
"Janelle, you haven't listened to a word I've said, have you?!"
His answer was the sickening CRUNCH of his other wrist snapping. Immediately after, a vicious kick landed squarely between his legs. The man was utterly shameless.
"AGHHHHH!" Nelson screamed, unable to clutch either broken wrist or his agony.
"Don't come crawling to me seeking attention," Janelle hissed. "Or I'll beat you senseless every single time I see you." With that, she hailed a cab, got in, and drove off without a backward glance at the garbage heap writhing on the ground.
Nelson was in too much pain to function, nearly wetting himself. "Janelle! How dare you treat me like this?!" He wanted to kill her. He was offering her a chance! Helping her! How could she?!
His phone lay on the ground. He tried to reach for it – he'd call the police! Have her locked up! Make her beg him! Then he'd make her suffer!
But before his fingers touched it, a foot kicked the phone flying into the river.
"WHO THE FUCK DARE—?!" Nelson roared, looking up... straight into Erik's demonic face.
The sheer danger in those eyes made Nelson scramble backward instinctively. This man was genuinely terrifying.
"W-What do you want?!" Nelson stammered, trying to summon bravado. "I-I'm the Hills heir! If you hurt me, I swear you won't leave Graham City alive!"
Erik advanced step by deliberate step. "Nelson, is it?" A cigarette dangled from his lips. He'd just stepped out of the cold shower when Bryan returned and told him his woman was being harassed. He'd thrown on trousers and a shirt, his hair still dripping.
"Y-Y-You... what do you want?" Nelson tried to sound defiant, but fear made him stutter.
"Told you to stay away from Janelle. Don't understand human speech? Looks like the lesson wasn't harsh enough." Erik's foot came down, stomping squarely on Nelson's face.
Nelson thrashed, trying to break free. But that single foot held him pinned, immovable. "Y-Y-You..." Panic seized Nelson. They were alone. No one saw the violation happening.