The next morning, Penny sat at the grand dining table, her fingers lightly tapping against the polished wood as she savored the results of her careful scheming.
The maids, as instructed, had spread the news of Bae and Zanier's impending marriage like wildfire, the chain of whispers turning into a full-blown storm.
"These maids are far more capable than I expected," Penny thought, a smirk tugging at her lips as she watched the unfolding chaos.
Across the room, her mother, Sliva, was trembling with rage. Her voice cracked as she screamed at Zanier, who stood stoic in the face of her fury.
"Rethink this, Zanier! You can't be serious!" The rest of the family watched in silence, their expressions a mix of shock and disbelief.
"I'll make sure all your hopes are crushed, Bae," Penny thought darkly, her eyes narrowing as her mother seemed on the verge of breaking down.
Tears welled up in Sliva's eyes, but before they could fall, Penny's attention shifted to the staircase.
Cassia and Brag were descending slowly, their presence drawing all eyes in the room. Penny's heart raced, though her face remained a mask of concern for her mother.
"Now it's your turn, Brag," she thought, glaring at him with hidden malice.
Brag's voice cut through the tension, his tone dripping with disdain.
"Marrying an insipid girl... speaks volumes about your sanity, dear cousin," he said, his words sharp and deliberate as he locked eyes with Zanier.
Zanier's silver gaze flickered toward Brag and Cassia, but he remained unmoved.
"If you're all finished," he said, his voice ice-cold, "then I'll be on my way."
He turned, walking nonchalantly toward the door, his back to his aunt Sliva, who collapsed to the floor in despair. Penny, keeping her facade intact, rushed toward her mother.
"Mother!"
Penny says rushing towards Silva.
Meanwhile, Zanier's mother stood frozen in disbelief, unable to comprehend her son's sudden defiance.
"And I'm sure none of you will stop me, right?" Zanier asked, his voice laced with a sinister challenge as he paused at the door, glancing back with a flicker of warning in his eyes. "If so, now is your time."
The silence that followed was thick with unspoken tension.
Without another word, Zanier walked out the door, leaving the room in a heavy, suffocating stillness.
Meanwhile, Cassia stared in slight disbelief, her expression faltering as the weight of Zanier's sudden defiance settled in.
The shift in his demeanor was unexpected, and Brag noticed the flicker of shock in her eyes.
"So, she still has feelings for him, huh?" Brag thought, his gaze narrowing slightly as he observed Cassia's stunned reaction.
His lips curled into a faint, sinister smile as a darker thought crossed his mind. He smirked, the idea simmering with malice.
"I'll gladly hand her back to you, Zanier," Brag mused, his mind spinning with the potential benefits.
Not only would he be rid of Cassia, but he could finally get what he wanted from her, manipulating the situation to his advantage.
Just then, his eyes met Penny's across the room. She was kneeling beside her mother, trying to stabilize Sliva, who was on the verge of collapse.
The tension in Penny's face was unmistakable as she glared at Brag, her mind racing.
"This is spiraling out of control," Penny thought, her frustration mounting.
All she wanted was Brag's support in securing her inheritance over Bae, but now everything had shifted.
Zanier was about to marry Bae, and her plans were crumbling.
"Think wisely, Penny," she reminded herself, sensing that Brag wasn't acting like his usual self.
She watched him carefully, noting the unsettling calm in his demeanor.
"Brag..." Penny thought, her determination steeling as she realized she needed to destroy the marriage between Zanier and Bae before it even began. She couldn't allow Bae to win—especially not now.
As her eyes lingered on Brag, she saw the familiar smirk creep onto his face, a subtle but unmistakable sign that he had something brewing.
Penny's lips curled into a faint smile, knowing all too well what that expression meant.
"He has a plan," she realized, her suspicion giving way to anticipation.
Just then, a commanding voice cut through the tension, halting the heated atmosphere in its tracks.
"Zanier is not a child anymore. Let him do as he sees fit." Granny Elaine's voice resonated with authority, drawing everyone's attention.
Her presence, though often silent, commanded respect. She wasn't in full support of Zanier marrying Bae, but she valued her husband's wishes, and more than anything, she wanted peace in the family.
Elaine's sharp gaze scanned the room.
"As long as he doesn't break the family tradition, he's fine. That's what your grandfather said," she added, quoting her late husband with a mix of nostalgia and resolve.
Brag's eyes flickered at her words, a subtle shift darkening his expression. He spoke with a sincerity that felt almost unsettling.
"So, he's allowed to do as he pleases, but the rest of us aren't?" His tone carried an undercurrent of resentment, a hidden grudge surfacing as he directed his gaze at his grandmother.
Granny Elaine's eyes narrowed slightly, taken aback by Brag's challenge.
"What are you saying?" she asked, a note of surprise tinging her voice.
Around the room, the family watched in silence, tension creeping back in as her words hung in the air.
Brag's response came with a charming smile, but his eyes betrayed a different emotion entirely.
"Just kidding, Granny," he said, his tone light, almost playful. "After all, we're family. We need to help poor Zanier out, right?"
The room remained on edge, Brag's casual demeanor doing little to ease the underlying friction.
"You're right, my dear," Granny Elaine exhaled softly, trying to ease the tension hanging in the room, but the weight of the moment lingered.
Her eyes swept across the family, still on edge, sensing the simmering emotions that weren't easily calmed.
Just then, a voice cut through the stillness.
"What's all this commotion about, Granny?" Cody's voice carried a tone of irritation, his presence sudden and more distant after a year of being away.
He appeared at the doorway, his expression unreadable but bothered by the family drama unfolding before him.
Granny Elaine turned to him, her face softening in recognition, though the unease still clung to her.
Before she could respond, Cody continued, his voice dripping with disinterest. "Isn't Brag's engagement over? So why is everyone still here?"
Cody's cold gaze landed on Brag, who met it with his usual aloof smirk.
"It's all about your cousin marrying Bae," Cody's mother, Jia, chimed in as she approached her son.
"Bae?" Cody echoed, the name vaguely familiar but distant enough that it barely registered in his thoughts.
He glanced briefly at the others, uninterested in whatever drama had taken root.
"Well then, I'm off," he said coldly, already turning to leave, his disinterest in Zanier or Brag, the eldest grandsons, clear.
His detachment was palpable as if he couldn't be bothered with any of the family's affairs.
"That's the right choice for you, young man," Brag remarked, his voice laced with subtle mockery as he watched Cody strip himself from the situation, exiting the room without a backward glance.
Cody stopped at the door, his hand on the frame, and cast a cold, sidelong glance back at Brag.
"As long as you all keep your commotion to a minimum," he said flatly, the icy tone matching the chill in his eyes.
He left without waiting for a response, leaving behind a room steeped in unresolved tension.