Chapter 565:

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He laid all the blame squarely at her feet, making it clear whose side he was truly on.

Hayley laughed, a broken, almost unhinged sound. “Grandfather, is that what you really believe? Do you have any idea what happened four years ago? The person behind the wheel in that car accident was Emmalyn! Harold, Carole, and my three brothers, they all knew. To protect Emmalyn, their precious adopted daughter, they threw me, their own flesh and blood, under the bus. They made me take the fall for her.”

“No, Hayley, how can you say that?” Emmalyn’s voice shot up, laced with false panic. “You’re just making up lies to save yourself! You were the one who killed that person.”

A cold sneer touched Hayley’s lips. “Emmalyn, how long are you going to keep up this act?” She turned her icy gaze on her. “When I came back to this family, none of you would have anything to do with me. So tell me, how exactly was I supposed to get my hands on a luxury car and go kill someone?”

“Ha! You were jealous of her, so you took her car without permission. You crashed it, and now you’re trying to pin the blame on her!” Harold wrapped a protective arm around Emmalyn, his voice dripping with contempt. “After everything we gave you, food, clothes, a roof over your head, this is how you repay us? You ungrateful brat. You just can’t stand to see this family at peace.”

𝘞𝖾 u𝗽𝘥at𝖾 𝗲𝘷еr𝗒 w𝗲еk 𝘰n g𝗮𝗅𝗻о𝗏e𝗅𝘴.с𝗈𝘮

Hayley closed her eyes for a moment, no longer bothering to defend herself. Instead, she looked straight at Clinton. “Grandfather, you’re a shrewd man. Surely you can see the holes in their story. Can’t you?”

Clinton’s expression flickered. For a split second, a flash of guilt crossed his eyes before vanishing.

That tiny reaction was all Hayley needed. A bitter smile spread across her face. “There it is. You knew. You knew all along that I wasn’t the one driving that night. And yet you never said a single word in my defense.

“But of course you didn’t. Why would you? You only care about what’s useful. Back then, I was worthless in your eyes. Not even worth the breath it would take to defend me.

“When I got out of prison this time, I came back with power. I secured Kaden Evans’s backing. I partnered with Ms. Todd of Pioneer Group. That’s when you finally stepped up to support me, because you realized I still had value. I could still be of use to the Morgan family.

“And now, now that I’m caught in a media storm and being dragged through the mud, you’re doing exactly what you’ve always done. To protect the family’s precious reputation, you publicly disown me. You stand there, turning a blind eye, and push me away all over again.

“Fine.” Her voice dropped, hollow and final. “That settles it.” Her words hung in the air, heavy with anguish.

Kaden watched her, and even though he knew part of this was a performance, a dull ache spread through his chest.

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