Chapter 519: Cut ties
Nate insisted on being nearby when Lara made that call. He promised not to intrude, but he wouldn't hear a word about walking out. Nor about Lara abandoning his office.
«I won't even listen if you need privacy,» he said. «I'll just be here.»
«It's okay,» Lara chuckled. «I can't understand why you are so fixed on witnessing something boring, that's all.»
«It's about you, so it can't be boring. Also, I want to be here if you have a panic attack. Just in case.»
«I don't think it will happen, but okay. Do you want me to put the phone on speakers?»
«There's no need,» he murmured.
Your next read awaits at empire
First, he really didn't want to intrude. And, second, he could hear just fine without the speakers.
Lara used his phone to make the call so that her mother wouldn't save her number. At first, she wanted to call with the anonymous option. But it would have been like admitting she feared them contacting her.
Nate wasn't someone they could call every day and harass just yet. It would be fine, eventually.
She pressed the digits, one after the other. She hadn't erased the calls when her mother had called just in case so that she could recognise the number if she found her new one.
The phone rang twice before her mother answered.
«Yes? Who is this?» she heard. That voice made her want to run away, but she clenched her fists - her right hand making the phone crack in pain - and continued with her intention.
«It's me,» she said. «Lara.»
The line fell in silence for a few moments, during which Lara wondered whether Gracelyn would hang up. However, she didn't.
«You took your time to call me,» the woman said. «Whose number is this? Is it yours?»
«No, not mine. I borrowed the phone from someone. I call to tell you to stop whatever you're doing. It won't work, and Nate won't accept any proposition you might have. He won't have dad's company build a hut, let alone something bigger.»
«Hey, you little ungrateful thing! I raised you, and you betrayed my trust. The least you can do is give back some of our care. Have you missed anything during the years you were with us?»
«No, but... It's different now. You said I am no longer your daughter, which means I don't owe you anymore.»
Lara's eyes fixed on the floor. If her cubs weren't in the kindergarten, they would run to her and hug her for comfort. She wasn't alone, Nate was right. She hadn't ever been, in truth.
As much as she gave her best to raise them, they gave her strength and comfort. They weren't something she needed to hide, to be ashamed of. On the contrary!
«We still raised you,» Gracelyn pointed out, shameless like usual. She wouldn't even try hiding that part of her character from Lara.
They both knew there was no point.
«What do you want, in fact?» Lara asked. She could take the chance to discover more from her mother before severing ties once again.
«Ask Nate Woods to employ your father's company to build a new facility. Once done that, I'll stop releasing news to the press.»
«Will you stop? Or is it just a way to make me do what you want? How can I be sure you'll actually stop?»
«What? Do you think I'll waste my time on you?»
Lara sighed. Just as expected, her mother was planning to exploit every chance to gain even a gram of social standing. More than the money they would earn by building for Nate, it was about the reputation.
Also, it would send the signal that they were on good terms. It would introduce Grace and Steve in Nate's circle of friends, causing problems for him for the rest of time. She couldn't allow it.
«Stop publishing things about me,» Lara said.
Her tone was solemn, her shoulders straight. She wasn't fearing anything, at that moment. She had already gone through the worse her mother could do to her. She had nothing to lose anymore.
«If I read anything about me in a magazine again, I'll reveal about how you threw me out of home,» she said. «I'll tell everyone that we don't talk anymore and that you don't have any right to answer questions about me. To me, it will be a short hard moment to survive. To you, it will be the end of any attempt to become one of those you look up to.
Think twice about it,» Lara declared, exchanging a meaningful glance with Nate.
He just looked back, smiling tenderly. He would have supported her no matter the consequences. No matter how irresponsible or selfish her actions were. She could afford to act spoiled - be it just for that one time - because there was someone watching her back.
Thunder interrupted the conversation, and Lara decided to hang up.
«This is all I wanted to tell you. Don't call this number because it's not mine. We cut ties once, it's enough.»
She pressed the red button before Gracelyn could summon a reply and delivered the phone back to Nate.
«Thank you,» she said. «Now I'll go fetch the twins before the storm is here.»
«Do they fear thunder?» Nate murmured, surprised.
«Yes, they do. I prefer if they're with me when it starts.»
«Oh, I can go,» Nate said.
«You're behind schedule with your job,» she pointed out. «You can't continue taking breaks! Finish your things, and we'll come here to spend time during the storm. Oh, wait... It is safe here, isn't it?»
«A hundred per cent.»
«Good. I'm just worried because of the window. Isn't there another room we can use?»
«Without the panoramic view?» Nate muttered. «I'll find one free. Let's meet on the fourth floor later.»
As such, he went out in search of a safe room for his family. He forgot to finish his tasks as Lara had ordered him. There was something ten times more urgent.