<.Manor No. 6, Eldoria Heights.>
Every member of the main Elsher family—except for Lariette—gathered for dinner on the weekend night.
They hadn't had a family meal together as of late because the first and third sons were not in the country. They had just returned recently.
Six spots of the twelve-seater dining table were occupied. The seventh, the one beside Rafael was empty. It was where Lariette usually sat.
"Phanie, why aren't you eating? Do you want something else? I'll tell the kitchen."
Alaric, the secondborn son inquired as he worriedly looked at the listless Stephanie. His sapphire eyes behind a pair of glasses were brimmed with concern.
Declan and Rafael, the first and the thirdborn sons looked up from their plates before redirecting their eyes to Stephanie. They had just realized she hadn't even eaten one-third of her plate.
"Phanie, are you sick?" asked Declan, his voice steady yet hinting at concern, "Should Eric check on you?"
"Is it the stress from your wedding preparations?" Rafael chimed in.
Jonathan and Samantha paused from eating. Worries were etched on their brows, feeling restless to see their beloved princess being troubled by something.
"What's wrong, my dear?" Samantha put down her cutlery, "You didn't eat much at lunch either."
Realizing all attention was on her, Stephanie slowly raised her chin, her limpid eyes glossy with unshed tears. Her aggrieved look was perfectly clear for everyone to see.
"It's nothing," Stephanie put on a faint smile, gently shaking her head, "I just don't have much appetite. I'm tired from dress fittings today."
The three brothers exchanged a look before collectively staring at their parents. They could tell there was something more beneath their youngest sister's excuse.
Stephanie usually had so much to share with them, filling the opulent dining room with her chatter and laughter. Her bubbly self was nowhere to be seen tonight.
"Don't tell me..." Alaric trailed off, a realization dawned on him, "Did Lariette upset you again?"
Declan and Rafael were caught off guard, noticing the look of anger on Alaric's countenance. Jonathan and Samantha said nothing.
"N-no, Lari didn't do..."
Stephanie's feeble voice was drowned by Declan's roguish yet firm voice.
"Why do you bring up Lari? Did something happen?"
Rafael glanced from Declan to Alaric, sensing an incoming heated debate – including his own headache.
Frowning, Alaric pushed his glasses up his straight nose bridge. His tensed voice expressed his displeasure with this issue.
"Phanie is so worried about that ungrateful girl. Hah! She dared to dump Damien and make Phanie and Mom sad. She's still so rebellious after losing so much blood. That girl..."
"What do you mean by losing so much blood?" Rafael interrupted, "And what about dumping Damien? Aren't those two happy together?"
Declan and Rafael were thoroughly speechless.
The eldest had just returned from a long business trip while the third had just ended an intensive training for his future gaming tournament. They knew nothing about the recent events that happened in their family.
"Mom, Dad," Rafael turned his attention to Jonathan and Samantha, "What the heck happened?"
"Language, Ray," Samantha sternly reminded her third son, her delicate brows furrowing, "Don't bring your..."
"This isn't the time for that!" complained Rafael, cutting off the rest of Samantha's words, "What happened? What's wrong with Lari and Damien?"
"Well, they...." Stephanie stuttered, unsure how to bring the issue up to her brothers, "Damien... made a mistake against Lari. She insisted on breaking up even though Damien is so regretful now."
"What?" Rafael threw his hands upward, "What kind of mistake has he made? We all know Lari was so head over heels for him."
Rafael found Stephanie and Alaric's claims to be ridiculous.
Everyone in their family knew Lariette treated Damien like a king. She had never gone against him in the entire duration of their relationship.
Stephanie blinked, her eyelashes fluttering. Her voice trembled slightly as she resumed, "The thing is... He did... He... Argh! I don't want to talk about this anymore!"
Under Rafael's surprised gaze, Stephanie suddenly stood before rushing out of the dining room. Her action shocked everyone.
"Phanie! Stephanie!"
Samantha worriedly called out but, Stephanie's slender figure quickly vanished behind the majestic pillars.
"Alaric," Declan's attention was still on his younger brother, calling his full name. Narrowing his eyes, he uttered, "Tell us. Did Lari really lose blood? How? What else do you know?"
Unlike Rafael who focused on Lariette and Damien's shattered relationship, Declan was more fixated on what caused Lariette to lose so much blood. Stephanie's stunt also unfazed him.
Realizing the impatience in Declan's authoritative tone, Alaric knew he needed to be careful when speaking next.
Despite being only one year younger, he didn't really dare to challenge his eldest brother.
"Lariette caught Damien in bed with someone. She got into an accident right after that. Her injuries were nothing, I swear! Now Phanie tries to patch things up between them and..."
BAM!
The loud echo stunned everyone. All eyes looked at Declan. He suddenly slammed his palm on the table.
"Declan..."
Declan didn't let anyone—not even his own father—interrupt him.
"What kind of accident? Surely Lari wouldn't lose so much blood if it's a minor one. And..." Declan tore his eyes away from Alaric, now staring at their parents, "Why hasn't anyone told me all of this?"
Rafael quietly nodded, agreeing with Declan. He shared the same concerns and surprise as his eldest brother. He never expected such major issues to happen during their absence.
"We didn't want to distract you two," Jonathan replied, trying to assert his authority before everyone, "This matter is nothing much. Just a stupid lovers' quarrel."
"Yes, you don't have to concern yourself with this," Samantha hurriedly chimed in, showing support to her husband, "Lariette is alright now. She told me she'll come with Damien to our family dinner with the Silveras."
Scowling, Declan pointed out the obvious, "She got back with the cheater? Or, did you pressure her, Mom?"
"Dec! Don't speak like that," Samantha hissed, her expression showing her dissatisfaction, "Isn't it good? Damien has learned from his mistake."
"Your mom's speaking the truth," Jonathan interjected. He resumed eating as if nothing affected him, "Our main focus now is Phanie and Matthias' wedding. We have to make sure nothing goes wrong."
Declan blinked, unsure what he should say next. Trailing his eyes in a direction, he stared at Rafael. Both of them wore the same confused looks on their faces.
What the hell happened last week?