Chapter 9: She's not Just Any woman

Alexander nodded, his gaze fixed on his plate. "It changes you. It hardens you, in ways you don't realize until it's too late."

They fell into a comfortable silence after that, each lost in their own memories, their own thoughts. The meal went on in silence as Alexander was enjoying his meal and Sophia didn't know what to say. She ate quietly watching him from the side.

 When they were done, Alexander stood up glancing at her, his usual guarded expression softened. "Thank you… for the dinner."

She looked up, surprised, "It's nothing."

She watched as he turned around heading to his study. A soft smile formed on her lips as she cleaned up the table.

Back at the Hawthorne estate, Marcus pulled up to the family mansion, an imposing structure with high stone walls and ivy snaking along its aging facade. Though grand, its muted elegance couldn't rival the timeless opulence of Alexander's Valmere. It was a place rooted in tradition, every corner laden with Hawthorne pride and a rigid sense of family duty. The mansion seemed to embody his family's expectations for him.

He hadn't answered his mother's summons earlier because he was with Lila, but he knew he couldn't put off facing her wrath forever. As he looked at the dimly lit windows, a sense of resignation settled over him. He'd been through countless confrontations with her before, each one just as biting, if not more so.

With a deep breath, Marcus pushed through the heavy oak doors, greeted immediately by the smell of roast beef and lavender. It was his mother's preferred way of masking the stale air in the mansion. The combination was oddly jarring as if she wanted to impose an artificial warmth onto a house that held none.

It seemed dinner had already been served; muffled voices drifted from the dining room. When Marcus walked in, his mother, Evelyn, was seated at the head of the table, her eyes sparking with a restrained fury. Across from her sat his sister Lauren, wearing a smirk that radiated her enjoyment of the unfolding drama.

"Well, it's nice of you to finally join us," Evelyn remarked, her voice cold and clipped. She placed her fork down with a deliberate precision that only heightened the tension. "I summoned you early in the day, Marcus. Yet here you are, finally gracing us with your presence. Care to explain?"

Dropping his keys on the entryway table, Marcus tried to sound nonchalant. "I was busy, Mom."

Evelyn's eyes narrowed her gaze like a scalpel. "Busy? I suppose with women, right?" she questioned, her tone biting and merciless.

Before Marcus could answer, Lauren chimed in, her voice dripping with mockery. "At least he got rid of that pathetic woman, Sophia? Is it true that you've divorced her, Marcus?" She raised an eyebrow, her gaze challenging him.

Marcus wanted to avoid the topic, but he knew it would only fester if he didn't confront it now. Lowering himself into a chair, he sighed. "Yes. We signed the papers."

The room fell silent, but only for a heartbeat. Evelyn scoffed, crossing her arms in a gesture of personal betrayal. "That girl threw a tantrum, didn't she? What did she think? That we'd be weak enough to crumble under her little show of defiance?"

Marcus forced a smile, trying to deflect their derision. "Sophia… has her issues. She even had something on me, something she could use to manipulate me, make it public if I didn't give in."

At this, Evelyn laughed, a bitter, mirthless sound. "So, she tried to blackmail you. Just as I suspected. You should never have married her in the first place."

"How much did she get from her blackmail? Maybe she was just greedy for the money." Evelyn asked, barely hiding her disdain.

"Nothing, I made it clear she wouldn't get a cent from me," Marcus replied nonchalantly as if he was the one in control.

Lauren's smirk deepened, a sneer tugging at her lips. "She thought she could control you? How pathetic."

A flicker of pride rose in Marcus, though he kept his voice casual. "Sophia will come back. She needs me more than she wants to admit." He leaned back, his confidence underpinned by the notion that Sophia's independence was a facade.

Lauren scoffed, an eyebrow raised mockingly. "Oh, did you miss her last words, then? She told us we're worse than strangers to her now. And she said she's done with all of us, including you."

For a brief moment, Marcus felt a strange pang. But he pushed it aside. "Have you forgotten her mother's surgery?" he replied coolly. "Catherine needs money, and it's only a matter of time before Sophia realizes she has no one else to turn to."

Evelyn exchanged a knowing glance with Lauren, and Lauren's gaze softened with a hint of pity. "You don't know, do you?" she asked.

A frown creased Marcus's brow. "Know what? Did something happen to her mother?"

Evelyn shook her head, placing her knife down with a measured calm. "You're wrong, Marcus." Her voice was soft but carried a razor's edge. "Sophia's mother already had the surgery."

The words echoed in Marcus's mind, sinking slowly, painfully, like a stone in water. "What?" he managed, barely above a whisper. "How…?"

"Catherine's medical bills have been taken care of," Evelyn continued, her tone colder than before.

He looked at his mother, confusion, and disbelief etched across his face. "How could that be possible? Sophia doesn't have that kind of money. She's… struggling."

The three of them sat in silence, grappling with the implications. Lauren was the first to break it, her lips curling into a cruel smile. "Maybe she got desperate," she said snidely. "Slept with some random man just to get the money."

Marcus's face darkened, his anger flaring. "No," he said sharply, his jaw clenching. "I know her too well. Even if she was desperate, she wouldn't stoop to that."

A voice called from the hallway, old yet unwavering. "Marcus. Come to my study."

The familiar voice sent a chill down his spine. It was his grandfather, Raphael Hawthorne, the family's shadowy patriarch, a man whose presence loomed large and foreboding. Raphael seldom made appearances unless they were absolutely necessary. His summons carried a gravity that Marcus couldn't ignore.

With a nod to his mother and sister, Marcus left the dining room and made his way toward the study, his steps heavy. The closer he came, the more memories of childhood lectures and reprimands flooded back to him, each one punctuated by Raphael's cold, calculating gaze.

The study was dimly lit, its walls lined with towering bookshelves filled with leather-bound tomes and family heirlooms. Raphael sat behind his grand desk, his steely gaze fixed on Marcus as he entered. Though age had turned his hair silver, his eyes retained the same piercing intensity they'd had when Marcus was a boy.

"Sit down, Marcus," Raphael commanded in a low rumble voice that brooked no argument.

Marcus obeyed, feeling a familiar sense of trepidation as he lowered himself into the leather chair. Silence enveloped them, thick and suffocating.

"I heard about your divorce from Sophia," Raphael began, his tone icy. "Do you have any idea how disappointed I am?"

Marcus looked down, the weight of shame pressing on him. "Grandfather, I…"

"Save your excuses," Raphael cut him off, leaning forward. "You had one job, Marcus: to secure a family line. Sophia was the woman I chose for you, and you failed."

Marcus hesitated, trying to find the words. "Grandfather, it was complicated. She wasn't the woman I thought she was."

Raphael's gaze was unforgiving. "Do you think I don't know what kind of woman she is? I had reasons for wanting her in this family, reasons beyond what you can comprehend. Sophia was never just any woman, Marcus. She would have been an asset to this family, for our future."

A chill ran through Marcus. He had always known his grandfather was a calculating man, but hearing him speak of Sophia in such terms made him realize that his marriage had been more than a union of convenience. It had been a chess piece in a game he couldn't see, much less understand. Regret and anger tangled within him, but he kept his voice steady.

"What could she possibly offer us that's worth this much trouble?"