CHAPTER 248

Sam blanched, and he was at a loss for words. It was a reasonable request, indeed. He was the one who failed here. All he cared about was keeping Isabel snug and comfortable, but he forgot to turn her attitude around.

Sebastian was the one who exposed Phoebe's plan, and he did it for Madeline, so Isabel pinned the blame on her.

He had tried talking to her. He told her it was not Madeline's fault that Sebastian uncovered the truth. He did not slander her mother. Isabel pretended to accept that explanation, but she spread untrue gossip to Queenie and called Madeline and her boys names behind his back. She still hates Maddie. She still thinks it's Maddie's fault her mother was jailed, but Maddie did nothing wrong. She did nothing wrong at all. Still, she was hurt the most in this case.

He knew that, but he had no choice. Isabel was her sister and a lady of the Taylors. He could never cut ties with her and leave her for dead like Dan and his father did. She grew up in luxury and had no idea how to do any chore. She had a rotten personality as well, and she offended everyone she met. Her enemies would have taken her down if he hadn't helped her. He had to care for her.

"Why the silence, Mr. Taylor?" Sebastian asked. "Well, we were talking about how and why this happened. We came to a conclusion. So how are you going to deal with it?"

Sam finally made the decision he always wanted to. "I'll send her abroad."

Sebastian asked, "Then buy her a villa, hire a bunch of servants, and support her lifestyle again?"

"No," Sam answered with some difficulty. "I'll enrol her into a militaristic boarding school. The school will

whip her into shape. She's an adult now. She needs to change, or her life will be ruined."

Isabel was so moronic, he wondered if she was actually a part of the Taylors. Her parents probably failed in raising her the right way, or her genes might have played a part. Sam would have to get married and raise his own family one day. He could not take care of her forever.

Isabel's grandfather had hired someone to crash into Dan just so he could save him and force their father into marrying Phoebe. That driver hurt Dan so badly, he could not overextend his leg even until today. It would sting every time it rained. Dan despised Isabel's grandfather and transferred that fury onto Isabel. He would fly into a rage every time Isabel was mentioned.

His relationship with Dan might be strained if he took too much care of Isabel. He did care about Isabel, but Dan was more important than she was. He would never break Dan's heart just for Isabel.

Sebastian knew enrolling her into a militaristic boarding school overseas was the best Sam could do. Sam was famous for his kind and gentle demeanor, after all. Sebastian smiled silently and looked at Madeline. He wanted to know what she thought.

Madeline said, "I guess that's alright. I think it's fine."

"Sure. We'll go with that." Sebastian turned his gaze back to Sam. "We'll go with that plan. My brother's men made the reports, so the authorities are still going to investigate the Shrivers. They'll be fine if they're clean, but if they're not, then they have to be punished. I'll tell everyone that the investigation is unrelated to us. Just regular work."

He might have let this slide, but he knew the Shrivers would still be badly hit. His brother would never accuse someone without proof. He must have looked into the Shrivers and found all the crimes they

committed before he lodged that report. The Shrivers would be punished, and the only difference was the severity. They could go bankrupt, or they might get off with a slap on the wrist. It all depended on how serious their crimes were, but that was none of his business anymore.

"I see," Sam said. "I'll make sure Queenie and Jayden apologize to Madeline and the boys."

"No," Madeline said. "Queenie must be rotten to the core if she could say something so evil to the kids. She'd still insult us even if you got her to say sorry. I don't think it's necessary."

"Oh, but it is necessary," Sebastian said. "At least the boys will know the insults mean nothing. They'll know it's wrong." holds © this.

Madeline thought he had a point, so she nodded. "Fine. We'll be waiting for the apology."

Sam nodded. "It'll be good for Jay. A good lesson for him."

Madeline smiled silently. Jayden might have been the one who called her boys slurs, but she blamed Queenie and Isabel for that. She could forgive kids easily, but Isabel and Queenie were rotten to the core.

Sam went straight to the Shriver Residence after that, and they welcomed him warmly. He told Clive what Sebastian said. Clive thanked him profusely, and he promised, "Don't worry, Mr. Taylor. Queenie and Jayden will apologize to them straight away."

He knew the investigation would cost the company a lot once it took place, but it was better than losing everything. He knew they could weather this crisis as long as the Harts stayed out of it. Everyone in the family knew, though they also understood that they would lose a lot after this. They might fall down a

rung on the hierarchy of Dusktown, making them the bottom feeders of the aristocracy ladder.

Falling down the ladder was easy, but making it back up was nigh impossible. The Shrivers only managed to make a little improvement after generations, but that was all taken away because the ignorant Queenie insulted the Harts. Everyone hated her, including Clive.

Still, Damian loved her so much, he would die for her. On top of that, Queenie also gave them Jayden. Clive would never force the divorce, but his dislike for Queenie had turned into contempt. He had little patience when it came to Queenie now. "Did you hear that? Take Jay and apologize to the Harts' boys at once. You know what to say, don't you?"