A Widow's Poison, A Wife's Rebellion novel Chapter 364

Darleen's temper flared. "This is my own home! Are you telling me I can't even get something to eat?" she snapped at the guards.

One of them, a tall blonde woman with sharp eyes, gave her a cold look. "I'm sorry, but our lady is a light sleeper. The noise of you eating might wake her."

Darleen stared in disbelief. Starla, a light sleeper? That was the most ridiculous thing she had ever heard. Right now, Starla was probably the only person in the entire Yelchin family sleeping soundly.

"So what am I supposed to do if I'm hungry?" Darleen demanded, her voice tight with rage.

She never used to eat this late, but the stress of the day had left her famished and frayed.

The blonde woman disappeared into the kitchen and returned a moment later holding a piece of cold, hard bread.

Darleen's eyes widened when she saw it. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Eat it outside."

Darleen nearly fainted from rage. First, the maid gave her stale bread, and now she was telling her to eat it outside? Where exactly was 'outside'? On the lawn like an animal?

"How much noise could I possibly make?" she argued.

"If you continue to argue with us here, we will have to escort you outside to continue the discussion."

The threat was clear: if she kept making a scene, they would drag her out to avoid waking Starla.

Darleen had never felt so humiliated in her life. To be treated like this, to be restricted and ordered around in her own home, and now to be told to eat this garbage outside…

But just as she took the first bite, a car pulled up. Caden and Darian were helping a drunken Fairfax out of the back seat.

Seeing them, Darleen froze. She felt a hot flush of shame creep up her neck. In that moment, she wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole.

Caden and Darian stopped short, their eyes wide with disbelief as they took in the scene: Darleen Yelchin, matriarch of one of Marina City's most powerful families, huddled on her own doorstep in the cold, eating stale bread.

"You..." Caden began, lost for words.

Darleen forced a brittle laugh and quickly hiding the stale bread behind her back as she stood up. "What are you two doing here?" she asked, her voice strained and unnatural.

She couldn't bear the thought of them seeing her like this, so utterly defeated. In her heart, she cursed Starla again, blaming her for this unbearable humiliation.