Outcast Queen: Her Return from Hell novel Chapter 18

"Phoenix!" Phoebe chimed in perfectly, her voice small and timid, though she couldn't hide the calculation in her eyes. "Dad is doing this for your own good. He just wants you to understand the rules... But you... what you did to Dad... if word gets out, people will only laugh at the Prescotts for having a dysfunctional family. How will any of us be able to hold our heads high?" She flawlessly aimed her words at the 'family reputation' Alistair cared about most.

"Exactly!" Vanessa immediately agreed, affectionately wrapping an arm around Phoebe's shoulders. She glared at Phoenix with undisguised contempt. "Look at our Phoebe—educated, reasonable, and always putting the family first! This is how a true Prescott daughter should act! And you, a..."

"What truly shames the Prescott family," Phoenix interrupted lightly, her gaze sweeping over Vanessa and Phoebe like thin ice, sending a shudder through them, "is parading an imposter around like a treasure while trampling your own flesh and blood into the dirt. If outsiders found out that the Prescotts couldn't tell the difference between strangers and family, treating their own blood like trash, that would be the real joke."

"Phoenix Prescott!" Warren's eyes widened in sheer fury. "If you weren't so inherently wild, constantly bullying and framing Phoebe, and too vicious to fit into high society, we never would have..."

"Enough!"

Alistair slammed his palm onto the mahogany tea table.

A heavy thud echoed through the room. The teacup lids rattled, and hot tea spilled over. A terrifying light erupted in the old man's eyes, like a sleeping lion fully awakened.

"I'd say the real disgrace to the Prescott family is your utter blindness!" His voice boomed like thunder, draining the color from Warren and Vanessa's faces.

"What I just said wasn't a discussion!" Every word hammered against Warren's chest. "It was an order! Phoenix is the only legitimate daughter of the Prescott family!"

When he turned to Phoenix, the sharpness in his eyes instantly faded, replaced by unquestionable protective warmth. "Phoenix, from now on, this is your home. If anyone dares give you the slightest grief—"

His gaze slowly dragged back to the shocked, disbelieving faces of the other three, his words thick with pressure.

"Tell me."

"And Grandpa will clean house for you."

"Yes, Grandpa," Phoenix said, standing up. With the elegant yet lethal grace of someone returning from a battlefield, she bowed slightly to Alistair, her voice clear.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught the frozen, livid expressions of the trio. Her heart felt nothing but cold desolation. Do you hate me? Are you angry? Can't handle it?

She scoffed internally.

A blade-like smirk spread silently in the depths of her eyes.

This was nothing.

Just the appetizer.

"Grandpa, I'm meeting a friend to wash off some of this bad luck," Phoenix said.

"I'll be leaving now."

Like a crane returning to the forest, she turned away with elegant composure, leaving their scorching resentment entirely behind her.

"...Grandpa is spoiling her rotten!" The moment Phoenix vanished, Phoebe's voice uncontrollably spiked in pitch.

"Keep it down!" Warren scolded quietly, a vein pulsing on his forehead as he suppressed his rage. "Have you heard from Julian?"

At the mention of her brother, a glimmer of light returned to Phoebe's eyes. "Julian said he's having dinner with Ms. Monroe from Ignis Global tonight. It's a huge project!"

"Ignis Global?!" Warren gasped. "The same Ignis Global that broke a ten-billion valuation in three years and has a completely mysterious background?!"

"If Julian can secure this connection..." He looked at his daughter. "The future glory of the Prescott family will definitely rest in his hands!"

Phoebe's nails dug deep into her palms, the pain unable to mask her burning ambition.

Julian doted on her unconditionally. Once he took full power, what did it matter how arrogant Phoenix acted?