Zeus entered the office barely a few seconds after Natalie left and from his expression, he was well aware of the conversation that had happened between the two women.
"Do you have anything to say?" Lucy asked, feigning ignorance even though she knew what her son was fuming about.
Zeus shut the door with more force than necessary before angrily confronting his mother. "It's one thing to try and teach me how to live my life. Why did you blame this on Natalie? It was my choice to like her and she has nothing to do with it!"
"I didn't blame your choices on anyone." She returned to working as though she couldn't see him anymore, upsetting the young man all the more.
"I have every right to know why I can't be with Natalie."
Lucy rubbed her temples. "Now Zeus, don't blame your inability to win a woman's heart on me."
"Are you implying that if I win her heart, you will let us be together? Do you promise to keep your distance and stop trying to separate us?"
Lucy took a deep breath, looking up at her son. "As your mother, I have to do my best to let you know what is wrong and what is right. If you want to listen to me, that will be for the best. But, if you want to yap about how controlling I am, go ahead. But you have hands, Zeus. And you have a computer. You can go searching for answers if you feel the need to."
"Why can't you tell me since you already know?" He asked stubbornly.
"Because there are things I just can't tell my child. It breaks my heart."
Zeus was done with his mother's mysterious responses. "I came here to ask if it's possible that grandfather has another granddaughter that we don't know about."
"Why would you ask that?" Asked Lucy, to which Zeus filled her in on what they had discovered about Erika.
"Who knows the ways of men?" Lucy shrugged indifferently.
"I'll take that as a yes." He suddenly couldn't get out of her office any faster, as though it was a ticking time bomb that could explode on him.
"What did she say?" Zaria asked when he got back to her office.
"It seems like we know practically nothing about our dear grandfather. Do you think we should pay him a haunting visit?" He suggested.
"Better not. We need concrete proof and the exact reason why Erika has never been known to be his granddaughter."
"Actually, that's not necessarily important." Desmond spoke for the first time in a while. He had been sitting at the side the entire time, deep in thought while the siblings schemed.
"What do you mean?" Asked Zaria.
"What the public wants is drama. Whether or not it's true. who really cares?" He shrugged.
"You have a point." Zaria agreed. "Even if the truth were to be revealed later, there is no redemption for a grandfather who did not take in his biological granddaughter after the death of her parents, letting her wander about in different foster homes."
Hence, explosive rumors filled the news articles the following day. It was unbelievable that the self-proclaimed epitome of kindness, Nathaniel Su, had such ugly skeletons in his closet.
It was ironic that while he participated in several charity organizations that were intended to better the lives of orphaned children, he disregarded his own kin. The news might have been exaggerated but the comments were worth it. Most tycoons didn't care about such news but everyone would want to avoid unnecessary scandals and hence, a ton of the Su family's deals were put on hold, causing them tremendous losses in just a day.
Zeus fanned the flames by using trolls to create more dramatic comments which made Zaria laugh when she read them.
Disgusted Sloth— [I can't believe any of you thought Nathaniel Su was a kind person. That man is the devil in disguise! He paid the hospital bill for my wife when she had postpartum complications from the birth of our son. At the time, I couldn't help but marvel at how kind one could be. I thought he was an angel from heaven.]
Mysterious— [@Disgusted Sloth isn't that an act of ultimate kindness?] Commented another user.
Disgusted Sloth—[Of course it was! He was saving the life of his mistress to ensure she took good care of their son. Their son, who I thought was mine for ten months!]
Zaria laughed aloud when she read the comment. "Really? I didn't know you had a wife and a son." She teased Zeus.
"Anything to get them talking."
She had to admit that he really did get them talking. There were private accounts revealing that the users had been servants of the Su household and had been harassed in more ways than anyone could imagine.
The post was taken down within twenty four hours, but that was after most of the damage was done. An unknown user revealed all the dirty deals that Nathaniel had made in the past, detailing all the evidence they could find. As if that was not enough, yet another headline made its way to the top two days later.
["My 'beloved' father tried to kill me by drowning." Nathaniel Su's daughter, Lucinda speaks up.]
Zaria was at home when she saw the explosive headline and the article below it, detailing the ordeal that one of Nathaniel's long-lost daughters had to face. Apparently, she rejected the suitor that her father wanted her to marry, which enraged him into trying to kill her.
She looked up at Theodore who had just left the kitchen. "Dad, could you come for a moment?"
He was worried when he leaned over to check out what she was showing him. "Is everything okay, princess?"
"This is mother's story, right?" She asked. "She is Lucinda, isn't she?"
Theodore was stumped. He didn't know that Lucy had been through such a thing. It was certain, however, that Lucinda was Lucy and that was something Nathaniel was capable of doing.
"Why would she say it out in a forum?" She was still confused.
"She must have been fed up by all the trouble she has caused you." He pulled her into his arms, feeling enraged himself. If he had evidence to prove it, he would let the whole world know what a scumbag Nathaniel really was.
"I didn't know the two of you suffered so much." She rubbed his back to soothe him, which made him want to laugh at her antics.
"We are over it."
Although that was what he said, she noticed the gloom in his eyes. He missed Lucy and hated Nathaniel for tearing them apart.
"If you had a chance, would you…" She peeked at him. "Would you and mother get back together?"
It was as though something had snapped in him. He waved her off. "That's enough curiosity for the day. Get to the dining room for dinner.
___
Lucy had not intended to handle things in this manner but ever since she released the tidbit about Nathaniel's murder attempt on her, she had received innumerable phone calls from media agencies wanting to interview her and get the truth about what really happened.
She didn't mind this outcome either. However, Zeus had other thoughts about it.
"Mother, you can't forget that you have skeletons in your closet too! If you want to unveil his, what would happen if he retaliated and uncovered yours?" He was worried.
She didn't think there was anything to worry about. "If he wants to uncover the skeletons in my closet, we can go on a skeleton contest and see who wins. I'm pretty sure he has a thousand more skeletons than I do."
"Just so you know, I am not supportive of this idea." Zeus raised his hands in surrender and let her go nonetheless. He would never be able to stop her if she wanted something anyway.
Lucy checked herself out in the mirror before spraying a tiny bit of floral perfume onto her neck. She had done her hair earlier and loved its volume. It felt good to look younger and she couldn't help being in a better mood.
She figured that Theodore would be out of F&P Media so she didn't bother to go to the agency. Instead, she grabbed the cookies she had baked and went to his home, realizing upon her arrival that it was already a half past nine. What awkward timing. Yikes.
Zaria opened the door in her pajamas and indoor sandals.
"Mom?" She was pleasantly surprised to see her.
She hugged her daughter and rubbed a hand on her back. "How are you feeling?"
"Are you worried that the news will affect me? Don't worry about it. I'm fine." She continued holding onto Lucy's hand. "Come in. It's cold outside."
Lucy let her take the cookies from her hands and awkwardly walked in. Would Theodore be asleep?
She didn't need to ask. Slow footsteps announced his arrival from upstairs.
"Lucy? What are you doing here?" Theodore was just as puzzled.
"I just wanted to check on Zaria. The news must have taken a toll on her." She lied before adding a wisp of the truth. "That, and I wanted to talk to you. About F&P Media."
"By 'you' I mean both of you." She added, shifting her gaze between the two of them.
"Uhm," Zaria laughed inwardly. Who would want to talk to her ex husband who still loved her at half past nine while dressed like she was going on a date?
"Unfortunately, I'm kind of sleepy. Maybe we can talk tomorrow?" She made an excuse to leave.
"Well, this has to be done tonight. It will be too late to discuss tomorrow." It was the truth but it sounded odd.
Zaria waved her fingers at them as she made a beeline for the staircase "Then I'll let the two of you discuss and dad can fill me in tomorrow."
She wasn't certain they heard her, and she looked over just in time to catch Theodore checking Lucy out. She coughed in embarrassment.. She wasn't needed here anymore.
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