A Widow's Poison, A Wife's Rebellion novel Chapter 8

The memory of the months she’d spent pouring her soul into the Draken Haven design fueled the mocking glint in her eyes. The world seemed to fall silent, the only sound the drumming of rain against the windows.

After a long moment, Fairfax finally spoke, his voice tight with suppressed emotion. “What are you talking about? What are you suing her for?”

“What do you think?” she taunted. “Fairfax, you were the one who told me my design for the Draken Haven project was rejected, weren’t you? Was my design rejected, or was I betrayed by you?”

The silence that followed was absolute, thick with unspoken accusations.

“Can you let go of the door now?” Starla asked, her voice flat.

Fairfax’s face was a rigid mask. “It’s not what you think,” he said, his voice strained.

“Don’t bother explaining. Save it for the judge.”

“Starla!”

“Let go.”

“Do you really have to tear our family apart like this?”

The question was so outrageously manipulative it took her breath away. “Family?” she repeated, the word tasting like poison. So, no explanation. Perhaps because there was no explanation to give. But to use the word ‘family’ at a time like this… it was disgusting.

She shoved the door again, and he held it fast. “You can’t sue her. She just gave birth.”

"Starla? Starla, wake up."

She surfaced from a feverish dream, her body aching. She blinked her eyes open to see Tanya leaning over her. “Tanya?”

“You’re burning up,” Tanya said, her voice laced with panic. “I’m taking you to the hospital.”

She had felt uneasy leaving Starla alone and had come back with her own housekeeper in tow. It was a good thing she had. If Starla had been left like this until morning, who knows what would have happened.

Tanya’s phone was buzzing incessantly. It was Fairfax. She ignored it, her frustration mounting. After she got Starla settled in the car, she finally answered. “What do you want?”

“Give Starla a message for me. Tell her that no matter how angry she is with Brinley, she needs to wait until after Brinley has recovered from childbirth before she does anything.”