CHAPTER 214

The bodyguard nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I'll get to it right away."

Amelia watched her bodyguard leave, and she cheered up considerably now that she could finally throw Angie out of the Colt household. She detested the girl, who had been a thorn in her side, ever since the Wendels dropped her off here. There were plenty of occasions where Amelia thought about sending Angie away, but the Wendels had told her to take good care of the wench, and she was not stupid enough to go against their word. She dared not so much as lay a finger on Angie either.

It was only after she had seen the cold shoulder Michael and Crystal had given Angie the other day outside the prison that she started showing contempt for the girl.

Furthermore, the confrontational phone call from Crystal today gave Amelia a good reason to throw Angie out of the house. Nothing tops the feeling of being able to get rid of a parasitic intruder, she thought happily.

Meanwhile, Amelia's bodyguard carried out his orders impeccably. Having packed up Angie's things, he went over to the hospital and found her room, then dropped her things off at the foot of her bed as he said curtly, "Miss Wendel, Madam Colt has asked that I leave your things here, and she also said that you should return to your biological mother, given how you have inherited her despicable ways. The Colts will no longer have anything to do with you, so please refrain from associating yourself with their good name from now on."

Angie lay astonished in bed as she snapped, "How dare you come in here and spew such nonsense!"

"I'm not spewing nonsense," the bodyguard replied stoically. "I'm merely conveying Madam Colt's intentions. All your things have been packed up into these bags here, and your access to the

neighborhood has officially been withdrawn. Save yourself the humiliation and don't return to the Colt Residence."

He did not bother to spare her a second glance before walking out of the room.

"Hey! Stop right there! I said, stop!" Angie shrieked.

The bodyguard ignored her and hurried out of the room.

In the midst of her shouting, she accidentally tore her wounds, and the searing pain made her break out in cold sweat as she forced herself to lie still on the bed. She was trembling from the anger that coursed through her, and she thought she might go crazy.

She couldn't believe the Colts actually threw her out of the house. What am I going to do?

While living with the Colts hadn't exactly been all rainbows and sunshine, their home was in a reputable neighborhood, and they had bodyguards and maids as well. Being Xander's daughter meant Angie would still be part of high society as the young lady of the Colt Family, but it seemed like that identity of hers was taken away as well. She would have nowhere to go once the hospital released her. The bodyguard nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I'll get to it right away."

She had neither fortune nor property under her name. She would have to rent a place somewhere dodgy and kiss the glamor that came with being a young lady of nobility goodbye. I'll be homeless, she thought, mortified. How did I end up like this? content.

She lay in bed and let the agony and hopelessness wash over her. She would rather die than live a

penniless life, but the idea of death scared her, and she could not bring herself to die in such a miserable state.

Where did I go wrong? Angie couldn't understand why her life was in shambles while Madeline's was only getting better with time. She stole everything from me! My life, my happiness—I'll destroy her and take back what is rightfully mine!

…

Meanwhile, over at Mansion, Luke was holding his phone up in front of Madeline to show her the video he had taken of Cedric and Angie in the hospital. "See, Maddie, the only sister Cedric cares about is Angie. You should stay away from him for your own good. When will you realize that Logan and I are the only ones who truly care about you?"

Madeline gave him a withering look. "Should I be concerned that you're seemingly obsessed with Angie? Are you okay?"

"I'm perfectly fine," Luke said lightheartedly as he stretched out on the couch like a cat that just had a full lunch. "Why wouldn't I be when I can freeload off my brother? I can do whatever I like whenever I want, even if it's nothing. You know what, doing nothing is officially my goal in life. I strive to do nothing! I shall survive on my vast family fortune, which will last me a lifetime if I don't gamble it away."

Upon hearing this, Madeline rolled her eyes in exasperation and said, "Okay, whatever. As long as you're happy."

"I'll be happy if you promise you won't have any brothers except for Logan and me," Luke countered.

She gaped at him. "What are you, four? Because that's exactly what you sound like—a four-year-old kid."

"What's wrong with that?" he asked, challenging her. "Kids have all the fun anyway. Not to mention, they aren't as pretentious as adults are."

Hearing his words, Madeline made no response. More accurately, she couldn't find the words to argue with him.

"Remember, Maddie, sometimes blood doesn't run thicker than water. None of those biological brothers of yours are as reliable as Logan and me. We're the best siblings you could ever ask for, got that? Just to prove it to you, I even brought you gifts!" Luke sat up and produced a small box before tipping it forward as all its content slowly poured onto the coffee table.

The box was an ornate jewelry box that contained multitudes of accessories studded with rubies, sapphires, diamonds, emeralds, and crystals. Some of these jewelry even had price tags on them, and despite the shocking number of zeroes on those tags, Luke was treating these jewelry like toys by scattering the pile with his fingers, spreading them out on the table as he said proudly, "Look at what I got you, Maddie! These are just half of what I actually bought; the rest of them are still in a safe in Capitol, but I'll bring them over the next time I visit."

Ever since he and his brother had taken back the family fortune and started honing careers for themselves, they were practically rolling in money. With his newfound money, Luke couldn't resist buying fancy jewelry and other odds and bobs that were favored by women for Madeline, and he kept them in the safe. While he and Madeline had not been on talking terms when he bought those gifts, he knew that they were meant for them, and he would rather keep them in a safe than give them away to others.

Fortunately for him, it all panned out quite well, and he could now openly buy whatever he wanted for her.

Madeline, on the other hand, was largely unimpressed by the jewelry when she first saw them, but when she heard that Luke had more of them in Capitol, her heart warmed, and she was almost moved to tears.

She was like a sister to Luke, and knowing him, he did not have any girlfriends either to splurge on. As such, the jewelry could be meant for no one other than Madeline, even though they had stopped talking for a time. It was testimony that he still cared for her and thought about her every now and then.

Madeline was admittedly touched to know how much she meant to Luke. For a huge part of her life, she was deprived of familial affection. "Luke," she called out softly, her voice sweet. "You shouldn't have gotten me all this. You know I hardly use jewelry, and you really ought to consider budgeting even if you have money to spare. You can always buy property or something. Wouldn't want the volatile market to catch you off-guard and leave you floundering, would you?"

"Pfft, you worry too much. My strategic mind is unaffected by market volatility." He tapped his temple as if to make a point. "As long as the wheels in my head keep turning, I'll always find a way to make money. Besides, if there comes a day when I am rendered a fool, having money won't be of much help to me, will it?"

A grim look passed over Madeline's face. "You think you're so clever with your witty humor and your nonchalance, right? You just won't listen to sense even if it's good for you!"

Luke panicked when he saw that he had truly gotten on her nerves and quickly said, "Okay, okay!

Whatever you say goes. I'll buy property as you asked me to, but only if you allow me to keep buying jewelry for you too. You know I can't help myself. How about it?"