A Widow's Poison, A Wife's Rebellion novel Chapter 33

As soon as he ended the call, Gabriel stepped forward. "Sir, Darleen just called. She's asking why the posts haven't been taken down and says Brinley hasn't eaten a thing all day."

Fairfax’s frustration mounted.

"Tell her to keep Brinley away from the news for now," he ordered, his voice sharp.

"Darleen says that's impossible. She said if we can't get this under control, Brinley won't be able to handle the stress."

The scandal, which had started as a single trending topic that morning, had now completely saturated the internet. Brinley was being publicly branded as a homewrecker. Gabriel knew this was Starla's doing, but Darleen's message over the phone had been clear: if the situation didn't improve, Brinley was headed for another breakdown.

Just then, Darleen's call came through to Fairfax's phone. He answered, only to be met with her furious shouting. "You! You need to freeze all her cards! She must have spent a fortune getting this story to trend!"

While the Yelchin family was always under public scrutiny, the intensity of today's media storm was unnatural. Darleen was certain Starla had paid for it. That girl was unbelievable! After everything the Yelchins had given her, she was using Fairfax's money to destroy their family.

Her words struck a nerve, and Fairfax's brow furrowed deeply.

"Did you hear me?" Darleen pressed. "Cut off her finances first. Stop her from pouring more money into this!"

Fairfax closed his eyes. "I know."

He hung up and took a long, hard drag from the cigar he'd lit. Gabriel stood by, waiting respectfully.

He was sick of her disappearing act. If they were fighting, they should talk it out and resolve their issues. What was the point of vanishing and pulling stunts from the shadows?

Gabriel saw the logic in it. He'd been trying to find out which hotel she was in, and freezing her cards would certainly expedite things. By tomorrow, she'd likely have no choice but to return. "But, sir… that will only make her angrier."

From what Gabriel had observed over the past two days, Starla was already going to be incredibly difficult to win back. Freezing her accounts would only make it worse.

"Angry?" Fairfax shot back. "How am I supposed to win her back when I can't even find her?" This was the only way to force her home so they could actually talk.

Gabriel said no more, simply nodding. "I'll call the bank immediately."