On the Ruins of His Regret I Soar novel Chapter 123

"That's a vile lie!" Jessica shot up, her eyes blazing with grief and fury. "You're worse than an animal. You know damn well how much my mother did for this family, how much she sacrificed. She died young because she worked herself to the bone for you! And now that you've got your new… no, your old flame back, you dare to slander her? Kevin Brown, are you even human? Do you have a conscience?"

"You insolent brat!" Kevin roared, his hand lashing out and striking her across the face.

Jessica instinctively raised her hand to retaliate, but Kevin leaned into it.

"Go on, hit me," he taunted. "I'm your father. Let's see if you're really so tough you'd strike your own dad."

Her raised hand clenched into a tight fist. She gritted her teeth, forcing herself to lower it.

Kevin sneered. "The only reason I never told you was to preserve the perfect image you had of your mother. Because no matter what she did, to you, she was the best mother in the world. But today, you've gone too far."

Jessica shook her head. "My mother would never do something like that. Someone framed her. I'm going to find out the truth and clear her name. I won't let her suffer this injustice. I won't let her be blamed for someone else's crimes after she's gone."

Kevin sank back into his chair, breathing heavily. He picked up his silver cup and took a sip of tea. "Believe what you want." After a pause, he added, "I will not approve your divorce from Lance. If you insist on it, I will disown you."

As Jessica left the Brown Estate, she ran into Melissa Gates walking her dog. The dog's head had a shaved patch, clearly from its last injury. Jessica clutched her box and tried to walk past without making eye contact, but Melissa wasn't about to let her go. She and her dog blocked Jessica's path.

The dog seemed to recognize Jessica, baring its teeth with a low growl. Jessica shot it a single, sharp look. The scrawny black poodle froze, apparently remembering its last beating, and tried to hide behind Melissa's legs with its tail tucked between them.

Melissa, holding the leash tightly, smirked. "I just saw your husband taking Catherine to the hospital. You can really stomach that, can't you, Jessica? Watching him be so attentive to another woman and still not divorcing him. You've got the patience of a saint."

Jessica tightened her grip on the box handle, her eyes hardening. "That day I fell off the cliff," she said in a low, dangerous voice, "was it you who poured water down on me?"