Cross My Tigress Face the Wrath (Stella) novel Chapter 1030

Derek snorted and shot Dan a furious glare.

Dan laughed out loud—a sound sharp and mocking in the heavy air between them.

Watching Dan so blithely amused only made Derek's blood boil hotter. In a flash of anger, he hurled the lighter in his fist straight at Dan’s face.

“Oh, you think this is funny? You knew all about this, didn’t you?” Derek snapped.

The realization hit him—Dan had been the one pushing for the report, going to lengths to make sure no one could falsify the results. The truth was evident: Dan had known everything all along, down to the way he’d kept prodding Finch with that biting sarcasm.

“You little bastard,” Derek spat. The more his mind spun, the more his temper spiraled, his chest heaving as his rage threatened to choke him. How had he ended up with a son like this?

“I did know,” Dan said without a hint of guilt. “I’ve always known.”

That just about sent Derek over the edge.

Dan went on, “But even if I’d told you then, would you have believed me?”

Derek stared, lost for words as the silence pressed in—a thick hush that felt almost accusatory.

Of course Dan was right. All these years, anything Dan said, Derek had dismissed as pure jealousy—the resentment of a son who’d always thought Finch and the twins got all of his father’s love. That’s all it ever seemed to be: more of Dan’s sour moods and cutting remarks.

But even so...

“So you just kept your mouth shut?” Derek demanded, anger and bitter disappointment mingling in his voice.

That silence—Dan’s years of silence—gnawed at Derek even more deeply now, until the fury finally became too much. His vision swam as his heart hammered against his ribs, and he collapsed onto the sofa, gasping for air.

Having just returned from taking Adelle and Finch to the basement, Leroy walked in to see Derek collapsed and unresponsive.

“Sir! Sir!” Leroy called urgently, his face draining of color as he rushed to Derek’s side.

Within seconds, a doctor hurried in, frantically starting emergency treatment. Dan, meanwhile, stood up at his own unhurried pace and turned to Leroy. “Keep a sharp eye on Finch and Adelle. I don’t want anybody slipping away.”

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