When she heard Gavin’s words, Raelyn was dumbfounded, “I… Dad, what do you mean? You’re not going to do something about it?”
“What do you want me to do, huh? Go against Richard for your sake?” Gavin sneered. “I’m old, weak, and well aware that I can’t pull Richard down. Both you and Devon are still in the prime of your life, so why don’t you two challenge Richard yourselves? Go on, then!”
Raelyn was enraged by this point as she thought Gavin would take her side, and she didn’t expect him to speak of her that way.
“I’m your daughter, and Talitha is your granddaughter! Are you just going to sit there and watch us get destroyed like this?”
“Can’t your husband or Talitha’s dad take care of it? You only know to look to us for help when something terrible happens. What do you take the Saunders family for?” Gavin looked at Raelyn coldly. “You’re no longer considered as part of the Saunders once you’ve married, so don’t you even think that I must do everything for you just because you’re my daughter. I have my own son and grandchildren to care for. I can’t even help my own granddaughter when she’s bullied, so how do you expect me to take care of you two, who don’t share the same surname as me anymore?”
Raelyn was shaking, “But Talitha is your granddaughter too, isn’t she? Dad, you’re not making sense right now!”
“I’ve done all that I can. If you’re not satisfied with it, then maybe you should do something about it yourself. Don’t you know that you can’t always rely on others? No one can stop you from doing what you wish to do, can’t they?”
Knowing that she had failed to make a scene, Raelyn started to sob uncontrollably. Through tears, she said, “Mom was right. She said no one would care for me after she passed away, and she couldn’t have been more accurate!”
Seeing how Raelyn was making a big deal out of it, Gavin picked up his phone to make a call. On the other end, Devon answered the phone respectfully, “Dad?”
Gavin scoffed, “I’m afraid I’m not qualified to be your dad! Now, I’m asking you… Are you Raelyn’s husband? Are you Talitha’s dad?”
“What do you mean by that, Dad? Of course I’m their husband and dad! There’s no doubt about it,” Devon replied with false innocence, even though he could hear Raelyn sobbing in the background.
“Oh, cut the act! If you truly see yourself as a husband and dad, why are you letting Raelyn make a scene in someone else’s home? You’re a grown man, and yet you let a woman take care of the trouble in your family. How much more useless can you get?”
“Dad, I didn’t know Raelyn had gone looking for you. I was caught up in a meeting at the town council and haven’t even gone home yet. Oh, Raelyn shouldn’t have done that… I’m coming over right now. Dad, please calm down.”
“Come on, I’m not a fool, so stop your act! Just come take Raelyn and Talitha home and off my shoulders!” Gavin disregarded Devon’s dignity.
“Is that all you can do being a member of the town council? I should’ve known that you Andersons cannot be relied on. You’re just a blood-sucking nobody! Why did I ever expect you to take on any responsibilities? Whenever something bad happens, you rely on your wife to solve it for you, using the Saunders family like tools at your disposal. I’d expect you to show some improvements after so many years, but no… Just when will you prove yourself useful?!”
Listening to Gavin’s harsh words, Devon’s face turned livid. Meanwhile, Raelyn hadn’t expected Gavin to humiliate Devon like that too. So, she rushed forward to snatch the phone away from Gavin’s hands, which he let her after giving Raelyn a piece of his mind too.
Raelyn had ceased her crying by then, “Dad, how could you say such horrible things to Devon?”
“Well, which part of it is wrong? He could have taken care of this by himself if he just had the capability to do it! Why must he always push you to the frontlines? Does he think the entire Saunders family is at his disposal? In his dreams!”
Talitha gaped at Gavin, who was furious and was unable to utter a single word. Raelyn originally had planned to come with Talitha to make a scene in front of him so that he would intervene in this matter and go against Richard.
After all, Gavin had always given in to her wishes whenever she caused a scene. But Raelyn didn’t expect that not only did he not help her this time, but he had even called Devon to chastise him.
As someone who came from a less glorious background, Devon cared about his dignity a lot. However, he had lost every last strand of it after receiving such harsh words from Gavin.
Raelyn was angry and she resented Gavin, but she could do nothing about it. In the end, she left the mansion with Talitha in a state of disgrace.
As the sound of their car grew distant, Gavin looked at Archer, who had remained silent the whole time, and heaved a deep sigh, “Do you think I was too cruel to Raelyn?”
Without shifting his gaze, Archer said steadily, “If you wish to become Devon’s underling, then go ahead and feel sorry for her. I’ll never stand up for them in any way. From now on, they are none of my concerns. I’ll only stand up for my loved ones.”
Gavin fell silent for a moment after hearing Archer’s words. Then, he said, “What do you plan to do about Valeria and Raymond’s mother?”
“I went to see her earlier tonight. I’m planning to marry her soon.”
“You have to do this cleanly, or Hayden surely won’t be happy about it. Don’t forget, we used Natalie’s death to threaten Savannah and forced Hayden to compromise. If he finds out that Natalie isn’t dead, he won’t let this matter go easily. I don’t care if he chooses to go against us, but I’m worried that he’ll make things difficult for Valeria and William.”
“I know what to do, dad. I’ll discuss this with William. But it’s getting real late now, so you should get some rest. We can talk about this tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Raelyn was still burning with rage when she returned to the hotel with Talitha. Not only had her shouts and cries gone unheard, but it was also her fault that Devon was humiliated by Gavin back there.
Talitha, on the other hand, was crippled with exhaustion. So, once they arrived at the hotel, she fell into slumber without even washing up. However, Raelyn was in no mood to sleep, so she stayed in the living room and called Devon.
Devon, who was triggered by Gavin’s insults, rebuked Raelyn mercilessly over the phone, “I told you not to go to your dad’s, but you went anyway. Now, you had me involved and humiliated by your dad. He already hates my guts, and now you made him hate me even more!”
“I’m sorry, honey. I thought Dad would soften up like he used to, but who knew he had become this heartless. I’ve underestimated him,” Raelyn said in an apologetic tone, which was very much different from the awfully rude one she had used with Archer and Gavin not long ago.
However, Devon showed no appreciation for her apology, “For decades, I’ve been on the receiving end of your dad’s and Archer’s disdain. I’ll never stoop low to beg them for anything ever again. You can settle Talitha’s matter yourself!”
“I know. I’ll think of a way to solve this.”
“What are you going to do?” Devon questioned.
“I’ll go and apologize to them first thing tomorrow.”
“Hah! So you’ve mulled it over, I see. But it wouldn’t change a thing even if you apologized,” Devon sneered. “After all, with the addition of a new and legitimate descendant of the Saunders family, our daughters would have to step aside from now on. I’m afraid that you won’t be able to get what you want, so it’s not too late if you stop now.”
“Yes, I know, but it’s still too early to tell who would be the last one standing!” Raelyn’s voice was dripping with hatred.