Chapter 3 Mrs. Clarke in Name Only

It took me an entire day to handle my grandmother's funeral arrangements.

At daybreak, I returned to pack my things before leaving for good. The moment I walked in, I ran straight into Gideon.

"There's a celebration banquet for me at the estate tomorrow night. You're coming."

As always, he gave the order while shrugging off his coat.

"I'm not."

The moment the words left my mouth, Gideon looked as if he had misheard me. He stared at me blankly before finally asking, "What did you say?"

For the first time, I looked him straight in the eye and let out a cold laugh.

"Isn't your precious adopted sister enough? Do you really need me there to keep up appearances? Aren't you worried I'll lose it and expose your relationship in front of everyone?"

Now that Grandma was gone, I had nothing left to protect.

Gideon's expression darkened, embarrassment and anger flashing across his face.

"Audrey, Chelsea has taken such good care of you. She keeps your days full. She never hits you or abuses you. What exactly are you so unhappy about?"

His face flushed red before he finally forced those words out.

I could not help laughing. I walked straight to the desk, grabbed the stack of schedules, and hurled them at him.

"Gideon, how could you possibly have the nerve to ask me that?"

He bent down, picked up the papers, and flipped through them one by one.

"Officially, I'm Mrs. Clarke. In reality, I'm nothing more than a maid. I cook, clean, and scrub. I even have to pull weeds in the yard by hand.

"Do you know what time I have to get up every day to wait on your family? Four in the morning. First, I have to make your breakfast. If you're tired of soup, then it's noodles, and they have to be hand-pulled. The herbs have to be picked fresh.

"I have to wake you at exactly the right time and serve the food only when it's at the perfect temperature. Then, I wait on your adopted sister, then your parents. After that, I clean room after room, the staircase, and the main hall. I even have to wash Chelsea's dog bed every single day, and it has to be done by hand."

Tears streamed silently down my face.

"Tell me, what kind of wife lives like this? Everyone says the Clarke family is one of the wealthiest families around. Are you telling me you can't afford housekeepers? Or is this just how you torture people?"

By the end, I rolled up my sleeves and held my hands out in front of him. They were covered with cigarette burns and countless tiny scars.

Gideon's brow slowly furrowed, as if he could not make sense of what he was seeing. "So, that's why you've been insisting on a divorce?"

Before I could answer, he pulled out a bank card and handed it to me.

"Here. Stop making a scene. Keep this card. Hire a housekeeper to help you, and use whatever's left for your grandmother's treatment."

I had wanted to open my mouth and say that she was already gone.

But Gideon turned back and casually added, "The PIN is Chelsea's birthday."

My hand froze in midair. Revulsion hit me like I had swallowed a thousand flies.

So, the world's youngest genius scientist could not even understand plain words. No wonder he could not manage the most basic human decency.

His arrogance was so absolute that he looked down on everyone around him. To him, I was nothing more than an ant.

I laughed bitterly. Then, I reached out and took the card.

Grandma's burial plot still had to be paid for. This money was owed to me.

When he saw me accept it, Gideon quietly let out a sigh of relief.

After watching me for a long moment, he spoke again, awkwardly this time. "Chelsea and I will only ever be brother and sister. I'll try to treat you better from now on, but stop asking for a divorce. If you keep this up, my parents will marry Chelsea off."

He lowered his voice, as if he were making some enormous concession. "I'll tell Chelsea to give you a little more authority."

From Gideon's complete indifference to this tiny bit of compromise, it had cost me five whole years and my grandmother's life.

And even this hard-won concession had nothing to do with me. He only made it because he was afraid Chelsea would be forced to marry someone else.

I waved him off. I did not want to look at him anymore, and I certainly did not want to hear another word he had to say.

I walked out first. The instant I stepped into the hallway, someone threw a cup of scalding hot water straight at me.

Chelsea glared at me with undisguised hatred. She grabbed me by the hair, slammed my head against the wall, and sneered. "Audrey, do you have a death wish? You actually tried to seduce Gideon right under my nose?"