บททั้งหมดของ Four Babies and a Billion Dollar Lie: บทที่ 131 - บทที่ 140

The ManThe church was no longer sacred.It was loud, trembling with whispers, fear, and confusion. The priest had stepped back from the altar, clutching his Bible like a shield, and every head in the room was turned toward Tessa and the stranger standing at the door.Richard stood tall, angry but not wild. His eyes were fixed on Tessa, steady, accusing, filled with years of something that looked like pain and rage knotted together.Tessa looked like she could barely breathe. Her lips trembled as the silence settled again, heavy and choking.Ares scoffed.“What is he talking about?”Tessa swallowed hard, her knees almost buckling. “Ares… please… I don’t…I don’t even know…”Richard cut in sharply. “Don’t lie to him, Tessa. Not here. Not today. Not in front of everyone.”Julian stepped forward again, placing himself between them. “You can’t just walk into a wedding and…”“Julian, let him talk,” Ares said, his eyes never leaving Tessa. His tone made Julian stop immediately.Tessa turned

The Quiet HurtThe curtains were half-drawn, the television silent, the only sound coming from the soft click of plastic beads sliding through Tessa’s fingers as she braided Pretty’s hair.The little girl sat on the floor between her mother’s knees, humming a tune under her breath. Beside them, Beauty was already half done, her small head glistening with neat cornrows.“Mommy, can I get pink beads too?” Pretty asked, turning her head a little.Tessa smiled faintly. “Yes, baby. Same as your sister.”Beauty grinned. “I told you, Pretty. Pink is the best.”The twins giggled together, the kind of innocent laughter that made everything around them seem less broken for a moment. Tessa smiled, even though it hurt to. Her fingers moved automatically, part mother’s touch, part muscle memory. She had done this countless times before, but today, it felt like she was holding her breath between every twist.Outside the open glass doors, she could see Julian in the yard with Kamal and Jamal. The b

The DecisionThe mansion in Tokyo sat quiet that evening, holding its breath like it already knew something was about to break. The air inside was heavy, thick with the weight of what Ares Langford had carried home from the city.It was almost 8 p.m. when the sound of his car rolled into the driveway. Kamal and Jamal, heard it first from the backyard where they were still kicking the football. Their laughter stopped midair. Julian, who was helping them set the ball on the grass, looked up as headlights sliced across the wet pavement.Inside, Tessa was in the living room with Pretty and Beauty, combing through the last of their braids while Chloe and Ayisha scrolled through something on Ayisha’s phone. The mood was light, casual until the front door opened.Ares stepped in.His presence filled the room instantly. Even without saying a word, everyone knew the tone had shifted. He wasn’t wearing his usual calm expression. His jaw was tight, his steps deliberate. Rainwater still clung to

The DepartureThe sky was gray that morning, the kind of dull color that made everything look lifeless. The rain hadn’t fallen yet, but the wind carried that faint dampness that always came before a storm. Tessa stood in the living room, her hands trembling slightly as she folded one last stack of the kid’s clothes into a box. The air was heavy and silent as if the mansion itself was holding its breath.Her face was swollen from crying all night, her eyes rimmed in red. Pretty and Beauty sat on the couch beside Dorcas, their small backpacks beside them, clutching their favorite stuffed animals. Kamal and Jamal were outside with Julian, waiting by the gate, pretending to kick a football around. They didn’t understand fully, but they knew something was wrong. Their mother’s silence said it all.Ayisha came down the stairs with two suitcases. “That’s the last of it,” she said, dropping them beside the door. “I told the cab guys to park by the side gate. Less drama that way.”Tessa nodded

Wolf GangThe music under the mansion was violent, the kind that rattled the bones of the walls, the kind that swallowed voices whole and made the air throb like a heartbeat gone wild.The basement club of Ares Langford’s Tokyo mansion was lit in deep neon blues and reds, lights slicing through smoke and laughter. It wasn’t a room, it was a world — underground, private, lawless, loud. A space he’d built years ago but rarely used anymore. At least not until Lila came back into his life and reminded him what reckless youth felt like.Tonight, he let himself drown in it.Ares moved through the space, a bottle in his hand, shirt unbuttoned halfway, the music vibrating against his ribs. His face was flushed with alcohol and exhaustion, but he was smiling, the lazy, untethered smile of a man pretending nothing in his life had fallen apart.Lila danced in the center of the room, her mini dress glowing under the strobe lights, hair flipping over her shoulders like a golden curtain. She held a