novelxo Chapter 183
Caius could feel the hostility radiating from the four brothers' glares. But instead of being intimidated, he found it exhilarating. As a man, as a brother, being envied felt extremely exhilarating.
Why hadn't he felt this way in the twenty-odd years he'd been Hannah's brother? Maybe it was all about sisters.
Caius shot them a defiant look and then, asked Miranda purposely, "Sis, who are these guys? They seem like they know you pretty well."
Hannah was taken aback. Was this really her brother, acting all phoney? But she quickly caught on and played along.
"Yeah, what are they talking about? You don't know them that well, do you? Why are they pretending like you're all close?"
Dorian's eyes darkened. "The ones who have the least to do with her are probably you two."
His chilly voice seemed to drop the temperature around them.
The Lancaster family's faces turned sour at his words. Dorian's statement was hard to argue with, given the Hawkes' blood ties to Miranda.
Caius scoffed, "Well, sorry to disappoint you, but she's my sister."
He put extra emphasis on "my". "We're actually siblings. Who are you? If I recall correctly, my sister has never acknowledged any of you, right?"
That stung, and Caius knew it. He'd had a bone to pick with Dorian for a long time.
He remembered vividly how Dorian had treated Miranda when she auditioned, all because of Arabella.
And Alistair's bias against Miranda at the shooting range was blatant.
Lysander, too, had repeatedly clashed with Miranda on the reality show, often for Arabella's sake, even going so far as to threaten her.
None of these guys were fricking normal. Their favoritism was out of this world. They weren't fit to be Miranda's brothers; they simply didn't deserve it.
Caius's retort left the four Hawke brothers with grim, icy expressions.
Miranda's eyebrows arched slightly, but she stayed out of it, letting Caius and Hannah have their say. She knew they were fed up with this family.
A little verbal sparring was just what they needed to vent. So she remained silent.
Alden and Grace's expressions also hardened.
Mrs. Hawke spoke up, dissatisfied, "No matter what, Miranda is our biological daughter. She's part of the Hawke family, Dorian and the fest's younger sister. What you said was a bit much, don't you think?"
Mrs. Hawke, with her years of experience as a lady from the wealthy family, knew how to navigate such situations.
Her words were carefully chosen, aiming to closing the relation
Love
between herself, the Hawke family and Miranda; they were not easily disputed, and her tone was both disapproving and slightly conciliatory, making it hard for anyone to respond harshly.
Alden, seeing his wife had spoken, remained silent. Miranda's lips curled into a sarcastic smile, but she didn't speak, allowing the moment to linger.
Miranda's attitude left the Hawkes in a bit of a bind. They had approached Miranda to use the occasion as
a chance to mend their relationship with her. So the couple took the initiative to speak kindly.
One wasn't angry to the person in smiles, especially in such settings, so they assumed Miranda wouldn't be as harsh as before. They figured Miranda's previous attitude was likely a reaction to their own poor treatment of her, so if they were nieer, she'd come around
They wanted to reclaim their biological daughter, to have her part of the Hawke family. By now, the couple realized that an adopted daughter would never be the same as a biological one.
Even if they treated Arabella like a princess, she still carried different blood. Only their biological daughter truly bore their distinguished genes.
Moreover, they knew about how Miranda had been treated in the Zade family, suffering the torture that the foster daughter should have faced. This weighed heavily on their conscience.
They regretted their past choices. So now, they wanted to reconcile with Miranda.
Dorian and the other three brothers felt the same; they had been asked and wanted Miranda back, too.
At the sight of Alden and Grace's demeanor, Miranda's eyes only grew more cynical.
Where was all this concern when the old Miranda was alive? Now, in death, they pretended to care? Miranda was about to speak when Arabella's tearful voice interrupted abruptly.
"Don't ignore Mom and Dad. If you need to blame someone, blame me. I'm the one you should resent. I don't want you to take it out on our parents and brothers because of me."