You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 810

The way the media worked in Riverdale was always subtle, sometimes even poetic. But here, everything was out in the open, loud and wild. Headlines screamed instead of whispered. Who knew how angry Mr. Padilla would be when he saw those stories? The Padilla family was being set up and out of everyone they could have chosen, they targeted his wife. And she was pregnant, her condition shaky. How could she handle this kind of pressure?

Lincoln was about to leave when Jackson called after him. “I just have to ask, is all this because of something personal with Mr. Padilla, or is it a family feud?”

Lincoln’s response was measured and formal. “Mr. Padilla carries the family name, and the Padilla family is his home. Personal or family, it’s all intertwined for them.”

Jackson nodded, seeming to get it. He leaned against the hallway wall, pulled out his phone, and tried to find news about Golden Bay. Oddly, the stories he’d seen that morning were gone. He searched for Jaxon instead and noticed the word “deputy” in front of his title. Suddenly, it all made sense.

…

Inside the Cloud Peak tea room, Jaxon faced Oliver, who sat across from him. Jaxon’s voice was soft, apologetic. “This started because of me, and your wife got dragged into it. I’m really sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.” Oliver’s tone was stiff. He rested his forehead on his hand. The tea in front of him had long gone cold, but he hadn’t touched it.

He opened a drawer in the tea table, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and took one out, but didn’t light it. Patricia was in her first trimester and couldn’t handle strong smells. If he smoked and she noticed, she’d either get upset or end up sick again. He rolled the cigarette between his fingers, sighing deeply.

“What do Mom and Dad say?” he finally asked.

“They think we should let the rumors go for now, just focus on getting things settled first.”

“Let them go?” Oliver’s head shot up, anger flashing in his eyes as he looked at Jaxon. “So we just let the tabloids trash Patricia’s name?”

Jaxon didn’t answer. Realistically, if their enemies were distracted, they could use that to their advantage and get what they wanted. But somehow, Patricia had become the target.

Whether he loved Patricia or not wasn’t the point. She was pregnant. She shouldn’t have to deal with any of this. The old man’s health was failing, other families were circling for a chance to strike, and their first priority had to be getting Jaxon into the right position. If it was just Oliver’s problem, he could handle it. But he couldn’t ask Patricia to take the hit. She shouldn’t have to stand in the middle of a storm like this.

“Don’t worry about that now. Let’s get you some food first.” Oliver guided her to the dining room, asking Marian to bring breakfast.

It was a simple bowl of noodles, just an egg and a few cabbage leaves, nothing fancy.

Patricia picked up her chopsticks but kept her eyes on Oliver, waiting.

He spoke in a gentle, steady voice. “My brother and a few other families in Golden Bay are fighting for the same spot. The other side made their move.”

“If it’s your brother’s fight, why am I getting dragged in?” Patricia asked, honestly confused.

“They’re not after you,” Oliver said quietly. “They’re after me…”