Free Web NovelChapter 357: Chapter 358 An Eye for an Eye
Christina’s POV
When we arrived at Genevieve’s house, she looked like she’d swallowed something rotten when she saw Hudson with me in tow.
"Well, well," she said. "What brings you here? Our house isn’t open to women who can’t keep their hands to themselves."
Hudson’s face turned to granite. "Take that back, or you’ll regret it."
"Oh really? Can’t handle the truth?" Genevieve stepped closer to me.
"Weren’t you having dinner with another man tonight? Letting him hold your hand all cozy and intimate? Can you deny it?"
She took another step toward me. "Go ahead, Christina. Why don’t you tell him who you were with? Your ex-fiancé, Niall."
She turned back to Hudson. "Your wife is making a fool of you, and you don’t even realize it. How pathetic."
Hudson’s expression darkened further.
"Nothing to say?" Genevieve looked at him. "The woman you cherish so much doesn’t seem to care about you. She’s making you look like an idiot behind your back. Does it hurt?"
I watched Hudson’s stony expression, knowing he was furious.
Just then, Genevieve’s mother made her grand entrance.
"Well, look who it is. What are you doing here, you shameless little—"
"You will apologize to my wife," Hudson cut in.
"Hudson! You... you mustn’t be fooled by this woman!" she sputtered. "Don’t be taken in by that innocent act. She’s vicious underneath. She told you I hit her, but did she mention she pushed me back? She has no respect for her vows, and even less for her elders! Someone had to teach her a lesson. I was doing you a favor."
"Elder? Sorry, but do I know you? I don’t remember us being introduced," I snorted.
"Hudson, don’t let her deceive you!" Genevieve cried out. "She’s not what she seems, not innocent at all. She runs crying to you the moment my mother disciplines her, but doesn’t tell you what she did to provoke it!"
Hudson’s voice could have frozen lava. "I know exactly the kind of person she is. I don’t need you to tell me. Apologize, or the restaurant chain your company owns shuts down tomorrow."
Genevieve’s mother spluttered, "What? Why? You can’t—"
"Breach of fire safety regulations, substandard hygiene, passing off inferior ingredients as premium... take your pick. Any one reason is enough to shut you down for weeks, if not months."
"You can’t do that!"
"You know perfectly well I can make it happen with one phone call. And I will, unless you apologize."
"You... how dare you!" She was trembling with rage. "You ungrateful boy, Hudson! I never thought you’d turn out like this. How can you speak to me this way? Have you forgotten... have you forgotten what we did for you? You forget the debt you owe our family!"
"You said it yourself. I owe your family, not my wife. She owes you nothing. How you treat me is one thing. But targeting my wife is unacceptable."
Genevieve stamped her foot.
Hudson took out his phone, finger hovering over the screen.
"Don’t make the call!" Genevieve’s mother yelled. Finally, she spat out the words, "I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have hit you."
I shrugged. "Apology accepted." For now.
Walking out of their house, I couldn’t stop turning over her words.
What was this debt Hudson owed them? Was this why he kept protecting Genevieve, again and again?
Hudson remained silent on the drive home.
I kept waiting for him to ask about meeting Niall, but he didn’t say a word.
Was his silence because he trusted me? Or was it because he simply didn’t care?
We barely spoke for the rest of the evening.
Early the next morning, the sound of Hudson’s phone ringing jolted me awake from a deep sleep.
Hudson answered. "What is it?"
"What on earth have you done to Genevieve?" an angry voice shouted.
"How could you have people throw her into the lake?! She almost drowned! She’s in hospital now, still coughing up water! She can’t stop shaking! I—"
"If she can be cruel enough to do those things to Christina, why shouldn’t I return the favor?" Hudson’s voice was arctic cold, utterly unapologetic. "You can tell her this: she’s welcome to keep pushing her luck. Whatever she does to Christina, she’ll get it back tenfold."
He hung up.
I stared at him, mouth slightly open. "You had Genevieve thrown into the lake?"
He nodded once.
"Why?" I asked, completely stunned.
"An eye for an eye," he said simply.
I couldn’t find my voice for a moment. "But... I thought you didn’t want to punish her..."
"I didn’t want to punish her because I didn’t believe she was the one who pushed you." frёeweɓηovel.coɱ
I frowned, confusion settling in. "Then why...?"
"She’s hurt you in other ways. She’s tried to drive a wedge between us." His gaze locked with mine. "I’ve realized that sometimes the truth isn’t what’s most important."
Hudson leaned forward, his eyes intense. "I need you to believe that I would do anything for you. I would never take anyone’s side against you. Not Genevieve’s, not anyone’s."
"Holy shit," Akira whispered in my mind. "He actually did that for us."
My throat felt tight with emotion.
"You really don’t think she did it?"
Hudson shook his head. "I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but Genevieve was on the phone with me at the exact moment you were pushed."
I let that sink in. "Then who?"
Could it have been Franklin?
"My men are still investigating," Hudson said. "Without any security cameras near the lake, it’s taking time to find witnesses who might’ve seen something."
He took my hand. "But I need you to believe that I won’t let anyone get away with hurting you."
