Ariella, finally finding her voice, says, "Stop it, both of you! This isn't helping anything."
Duncan stands his ground, "I mean exactly what you think. You're here with Scarlett, playing couples while your pregnant wife is at home worried sick about you. If you think this looks good on you or the family, you're mistaken."
The room falls silent again, the tensions high. Scarlett glares at Ariella, while Stephen and Devon look between the brothers, unsure of what to do next.
Ariella steps forward, her voice trembling with emotion. "Asher, all I wanted was to talk to you, to understand what's happening. But you're here, with Scarlett, ignoring me and our children. How am I supposed to feel?"
Asher looks conflicted, glancing between Scarlett, his friends, and Ariella. "Ariella, it's not what you think. We were just—"
Ariella takes a deep breath.
"I don't care what you were just doing," Ariella interrupts. "I care about our marriage, our family. Asher, I came here because I wanted to talk to you, to understand what's happening. But if you can't even respect me enough to have a conversation without violence, then maybe we have a bigger problem than Scarlett being back."
Asher's face softens slightly, but the anger is still evident. "Ariella, I—"
With that, she turns and walks out of the room, leaving the stunned group behind. Duncan, after a moment, follows her out, casting one last glare at Asher.
Duncan runs towards Ariella as the two leave the lounge together and head to the car. The whole way, both of them are silent until they reach the Blackwells' family home. When she gets out of the car, she can't stop the tears from falling and Ariella starts crying. Duncan looks at her with pity and pats her on the back, bringing her to his chest and trying to calm her through her ordeal. After she has calmed down, he puts his hand behind Ariella's back and guides her inside the house. After they close the door, Duncan turns towards Ariella.
"Ariella, you should get some sleep. Don't stress yourself. Take care of yourself, okay?" Ariella breathes hard before she nods her head and says,
"You're right. I just never knew that Asher would ever hurt me like this."
"It's okay. Just don't... I realize I really don't know what to say to you. This is new to me. I mean, I thought that my brother..." But before Duncan could finish his sentence, the door suddenly burst open as Asher stormed in and looked at them. Seeing how close they were standing to each other, his brows furrowed and he sneered disgustedly.
"So this is what has been going on inside this house. You have been seducing my wife. Are you trying to take my place, Duncan? You want to be the father to my unborn children?" Asher accused.
Duncan, surprised and insulted, took a step away from Ariella and looked at his brother. "Asher, what are you talking about?"
"I knew it, I knew you were planning something. Why are you even here right now? You don't live here but ever since you found out Ariella was here, it's like you moved ...." Asher said, his voice filled with bitterness.
But before Asher could finish his sentence, Duncan said, "Asher, I know you are arrogant, stubborn, and an asshole who thinks you are the only thing in the world, but I never knew you were also foolish. Ariella is your wife, why would I do that?"
Asher laughed mockingly and said, "You have always wanted what I had ever since we were children, so why wouldn't you want my wife right now?"
Duncan gestured towards Ariella. "She is pregnant with your child, you do see that, don't you?"
"Of course, I can see her. Do you think that I am also blind? I can see through you." Asher retorted.
"When you got married, everybody knew that you got married to please our grandparents, but you were treating her so well that I really got jealous. But I don't feel so jealous of you right now," Duncan said. "I honestly feel sorry for you."
Asher laughed as he walked towards Duncan. "You feel sorry for me?" he said, laughing. "That's funny."
"Do you think it's funny that your Pregnant wife went to a nightclub in the middle of the night to find you and your mistress, publicizing yourself in public? What's so funny about that?" Duncan shot back.
Asher stopped and stared at Duncan. "Did you just call Scarlett a mistress?"
"You're a married man, so if you two are engaged in a relationship together, she is a mistress, isn't she?"
Before anyone could react, Asher struck Duncan, but this time Duncan struck back, and the two of them started fighting. Ariella screamed for them to stop. Within minutes, the noise had woken the household, and security had separated the two brothers, each throwing insults at the other.
"What is going on?" Mrs Blackwell asked, coming down the stairs, her husband next to her. "Asher? Duncan? What's going on? What is this? What type of behaviour is this?"
Asher shouted toward Duncan, "Ask him, ask him what he was doing with my wife!"
Mrs. Blackwell looked at Duncan with a questioning eye.
Duncan shouted back at Asher, "Ask the golden grandson what he was doing with his mistress at the lounge tonight."
The two started running toward each other again, but the guards stopped them. Mr. Blackwell shouted, "Stop, both of you! I want everyone in the living room, and I'm going to get to the bottom of this. Everyone else, leave us."
The staff left, each returning to their own rooms, work posts, or beds, as Ariella, Duncan, Asher, and Mr. and Mrs. Blackwell moved toward the living room. Asher sat on one side of the room, Duncan on the other, and Ariella next to Asher. Mr. and Mrs. Blackwell looked at them with disappointment.
Mr Blackwell began speaking, "I am so disappointed in you and the behaviour you showed today. Duncan, you are a grown man. You know that Ariella is Asher's wife. What were you even doing with her?"
Duncan started, "Grandfather, I can explain….."
"Shut up," Mr. Blackwell interrupted, then turned toward Asher. "Asher, you represent the Blackwell name. You represent this family. What type of behaviour is this? How could you fight with your brother, in this house? What does it show to the world? I trust you to take care not only of the business and yourself but our name too. This is beneath you. I am so disappointed in you."
The room goes silent, with Asher Duncan and Ariella looking down in embarrassment.
Mr. Blackwell took a deep breath. "Now tell me what happened. Duncan, you start, and Asher, do not interrupt him. When he's done, your time will come."
Mr Blackwell took a seat and looked at Duncan. Duncan gave his side of the story, and after he was done, Asher also gave his side of the story.
"Okay, this all seems to be a misunderstanding," Mr. Blackwell said as he stood up. "You two are brothers. I don't want you fighting, you talk things through like adults."
Asher lowered his head, avoiding his grandfather's stern gaze, while Duncan sat quietly, his frustration evident. Ariella watched silently, feeling the weight of the family's disapproval. Mrs. Blackwell, her expression a mix of worry and anger, added,
"This family cannot afford such scandals. You all need to start acting with the dignity and respect that our name demands."
Mr. Blackwell continued, "Asher, you need to sort out whatever is going on with Scarlett and focus on your marriage. And Duncan, stay away from Ariella. I don't want to hear about any more incidents like this. Am I clear?"
Both brothers nodded, the tension in the room still high.
"And Ariella," Mr. Blackwell said, his tone softening slightly, "I know this is difficult for you, but you need to stay strong and think about the children you're carrying. This stress is not good for you or for them."
Ariella nodded, tears welling up in her eyes. She glanced at Asher, hoping for some sign of remorse or understanding, but he remained silent.
"Now, everyone go to your rooms and get some rest," Mrs. Blackwell said. "We'll talk more about this in the morning."
The family dispersed, each member retreating to their own thoughts and worries as the house settled back into an uneasy silence.
When Asher and Ariella got into their bedroom, Ariella went towards him and said, "I'm sorry, Asher. I didn't mean tonight to turn out like this," she said as she looked at Asher's face which had a few bruises.
She was surprised when Asher caught her hand in his grip, staring right at her face.
"This is what you wanted, isn't it? You want to get into my family, disrupt us, divide us, and have me all to yourself. You don't want me to help Scarlett. You don't want my grandparents to think so well of me. You are an infestation brought here to destroy my life, aren't you?."
Ariella tried to get her hand out of Asher's grip, confusion and alarm rising as Asher's eyes looked scary and almost blank with anger, hurting her hand.
"What are you talking about, Asher? What do you mean? Please let me go. You're hurting me."
"I'm going to do a lot worse than that," he said, holding her tighter.