CHAPTER 213

Michael and Crystal were furious after they heard what had happened, but they couldn't bring themselves to stay mad at Cedric after his sincere apology, so they directed their rage at Angie instead.

At the same time, they were worried about Madeline. Crystal reached for the phone immediately as she said, "I have to call Maddie right now. Heaven knows what Luke had done to her!"

Crystal had been down with a cold for the last few days. Not wanting Madeline and the children to catch the virus, she called and told them not to visit until she was better, but she certainly did not expect Angie to make a move in this short span of time.

Presently, the other line picked up on the second beep, and Crystal quickly pressed, "Maddie, are you and the boys alright?"

"Hey, Mom. Yeah, we're fine," Madeline answered, a little confused. "Why'd you ask, Mom? Did something happen?"

"Cedric told us what happened with Luke," Crystal explained. "According to him, Luke only came to Dusktown to look for you after Angie got in touch with him. Did he hurt you?"

"There was a minor incident," Madeline confessed. "But it's over now."

Hearing this, Crystal bristled and probed anxiously, "What did he do to you? Did he hurt you or the boys?"

Had Crystal remained oblivious to the incident, Madeline would continue keeping it from her just so she wouldn't get upset or angry over it. However, now that Crystal had found out about it and was asking

for an explanation, she saw no point in lying to her. Besides, she did not plan on covering for Angie either—not when the girl was the one who started the whole thing.

As such, Madeline recounted the whole thing with brevity while Crystal listened grimly on the other end of the phone. When she heard that Luke had kidnapped Quincy and Joel, she practically burst into flames. Seething with rage, she exclaimed, "How could he do that to the kids? They're only so young! Oh, they must have been so scared!"

"Actually, they held up a lot better than I thought," Madeline said placatingly. "Mom, the boys are fine. Don't worry. Are you and Dad free this evening? If you are, I'll bring Aldo and Buddy over for dinner."

She could tell just by the way Crystal sounded that the latter was out of her mind with panic. Crystal would probably not be able to rest easy until she had examined Quincy and Joel personally and concluded that they were fine.

"No, don't trouble yourself," Crystal said wearily. "Your father and I have an errand to run, but I'll call you as soon as our schedule frees up. You can bring the kids over then."

She had run a fever just yesterday, and she would hate herself if the kids caught whatever bug she had. Children were more susceptible to viruses after all, so she figured it was safer for them to visit on the weekend. Michael and Crystal were furious after they heard what had happened, but they couldn't bring themselves to stay mad at Cedric after his sincere apology, so they directed their rage at Angie instead.

"Okay, got it," Madeline replied obligingly. Then, she reassured her mother, "Don't worry, the kids and I are just fine. Luke apologized to me as well. I'll introduce you to Luke and Logan sometime. You'll see

that they're good people. They helped me out a ton when I was a child, and I've always been grateful for them."

"I'm so sorry, Maddie..." Crystal's nose prickled as tears sprang to her eyes. She clapped a hand over her mouth as her voice cracked. "It's all my fault that I could not protect you. If only..." If only that witch Cameron had not taken you away from us, and if only you'd grown up by my side, then you'd never have hung around the likes of Luke. Subsequently, Aldo and Buddy would not have been kidnapped.

Granted, the incident was without any foul play, but she could imagine how terrified and anxious Madeline must have been when Luke kidnapped Quincy and Joel. She could relate to that fear, and her heart broke for her daughter.

"Mom, we're fine now, and everything's over. There's nothing for you to be worried about, okay?" Madeline went on to say soothingly. exclusive content.

They chatted on the phone for about half an hour more before Crystal reluctantly hung up. Having ended the call, she wasted no time in asking around for Amelia's contact, then called the woman.

As soon as the call got through, Crystal introduced herself, and Amelia lit up on the other line immediately. She was about to launch into a round of niceties when she heard Crystal bite out icily, "Mrs. Colt, now that Angie is living under your roof as your daughter, it is your duty to discipline her and guide her instead of letting her hurt and plot against others. If I hear about another incident like this, I swear I'll have all of you pay for it!"

With that, Crystal did not bother waiting for Amelia to speak before she hung up.

Amelia was admittedly stunned by this out-of-the-blue warning, not to mention affronted by it. But she

was in no position to trifle with the Wendels or the Taylors, and she wasn't bold enough to call Crystal back and hurl abuse her way either.

As a result, all her anger was centered on Angie, and she beckoned for her bodyguard. "Go and look into what Angie has done this time!"

The bodyguard did as he was told while Amelia took her rage out on the ornaments in the living room.

She was furious that Crystal could talk to her the way she had just because she had money and power, both of which Amelia was sorely lacking. Angie was raised by the Wendels, so it was really their fault that she ended up being so problematic. What right did Crystal have to call me and threaten me like that? I'm just a stepmom to that wench; I neither raised her nor birthed her, so why should I have to clean up her mess?

Unfortunately, she could not say such things to Crystal, not while Cameron was Xander's ex-wife.

The Wendels had Cameron locked up behind bars, and they probably hated Xander as well. If Amelia were to mess with Crystal or rub her wrong, then the Taylors and the Wendels might work together to destroy the Colts and the Evanstons as revenge.

Even with their assets combined, the Colts and the Evanstons were no match for the Wendels, let alone for the formidable Taylors.

The unspoken rules of high society forced Amelia to swallow this insult instead of confronting Crystal about it. She ended up simmering in her own fury and humiliation at home, though she only grew angrier with every passing second. She ended up breaking the teacups on the coffee table just to vent out her frustration.

Her bodyguard was efficient, and he soon returned with details of what Angie had been up to recently. According to the intel, Angie had been forced to leap off the second floor of a cafe by the second young master of Capitol's most prominent family, and Amelia grew extremely grim at this.

Capitol was one of the top few most developed cities in the country, and the most prominent family there could easily trample her family and the Colts into non-existence. If the second scion of that family had a bone to pick with Angie, there was no telling he wouldn't decide to turn his missiles on the Colts or the Evanstons next. That will be the end of our families. We'll be obliterated alongside Angie!

The thought of this scared Amelia, and she quickly ordered her bodyguard, "Go pack up all of Angie's things and drop them off at the hospital. Tell her that the Colts will no longer have anything to do with her. She's just as diabolical as her mother, and our home has no place for someone like her. From now onward, she is officially cut off from the Colt Family!"

"Yes, ma'am," the bodyguard said, then turned to walk out of the living room so that he could pack up Angie's things.

"Wait!" Amelia called out to him. "Tell the security guards at the neighborhood entrance that our family has nothing to do with Angie anymore. Hence, she is no longer a resident here. If they even let her step foot into the neighborhood, I'll be sure to have a word with them!"