Chapter 415
The following day, before the crack of dawn, the Porter family patriarch''s phone began to ring
insistently. He had barely hit the sack a few hours prior, feeling like he had just drifted off when the
persistent ringtone roused him. Irritation bubbled within him.
Whoever had the nerve to call at this ungodly hour had better have a damn good reason, or they''d
have hell to pay.
“Boss, the young miss has taken off. She boarded the private jet and headed to Pinehurst,” reported
one of the patriarch''s men.
The news instantly swept away any vestige of sleepiness. The patriarch bolted upright. “And none
of you thought to stop her?”
This belongs ? N?velDra/ma.Org.
His daughter Madeleine was surely seeking out Nathan. Or possibly, she was on a mission to
confront his wife, Janice.
Under normal circumstances, in their own territory, he wouldn''t fret or interfere, letting his daughter
do as she pleased. But Pinehurst was a different ballgame, a ce where even his extended reach
faltered, and his daughter was heading there as the other woman—an oue that was bound to
end disastrously.
“We couldn’t stop her, sir.”
“Damn it all!”
After cursing, he instructed, “Arrange a flight immediately. I''m heading to Pinehurst.”
Unbeknownst to those in Pinehurst, Madeleine was flying their way on her private jet.
Lucinda awoke at her usual time.
The bed beside her was empty; Stefan had risen early. She reached for her phone to check the
time, then scrolled through WhatsApp, Facebook, and the flurry of messages in her social groups.
Once satisfied, she got out of bed.
A few minutester, as Lucinda was about to head downstairs, she opened her bedroom door to
find a maid about to knock. The maid greeted her and quickly ryed, “Miss, there’s a woman
named Porter at the gate. She’s asking to see your mother.”
"A Porter woman? Wants to meet my mom?" Lucinda frowned.
It must be Madeleine. Lucinda had never met her, only hearing of her existence through her brother
and mother. Madeleine was her father''s mistress, prominently at his side for years, attending
functions as if she were the Blue family matriarch herself. To outsiders, she was a marriage
certificate shy of official status.
What audacity for Madeleine to arrive at dawn demanding to see her mother—the brazen mistress!
"Is Dad up yet?"
"The family head flew out at first light. Your brother saw him off," the maid informed.
Lucinda sighed, feeling a bit like an afterthought to her father, a mere excuse for his visit.
"Is my brother and cousin still here?"
"Your brother left with the head of the family. Keith is still asleep," answered the maid.
After muttering to herself, Lucinda asked, "Where’s Ms. Porter?"
"Still at the front gate. The young master didn''t let her in."
Lucinda made her way downstairs.
"Honey, you’re up," Stefan said warmly as he entered the house and caught sight of Lucinda
descending the stairs.
"Your dad and cousin headed back early. They''re swamped withpany matters but asked me to
say goodbye for them. They''ll visit when they can."
Lucinda replied, "They could’ve at least told me so I could have seen them off."
Stefan chuckled, "You were sleeping so soundly, I didn’t have the heart to wake you. I took the
liberty of escorting them to the ne."
Remembering how Stefan had kept her upte the night before, Lucinda yfully chided him. “It’s
all your fault.”
"And Madeleine?"
"She''s outside, said she wanted to see Mom. I sensed trouble, so I had her stopped. Do you want to
meet her?"
"The mistress dares to confront the wife? I''d like to meet her on Mom’s behalf, see for myself just
how entrancing she must be to shamelessly cling to marrying my old man Dad."
Stefan inwardly chuckled at his wife''s colorful description.
"Since you want to meet her, I''ll have her brought in."
He promptly made an internal call.
Madeleine, having been kept waiting impatiently at the gate of Ascend Estate, was losing her cool.
But she had to endure it; this was Anderson family turf.
Janice''s son-inw was likely giving her a hard time, which was to be expected. Making a scene or
throwing a tantrum based on her status as a Porter heiress would almost certainly mean not getting
an audience with Janice.
After what felt like an eternity, the gate cracked open.
A security guard emerged and said cordially, "Ms. Porter, our young madam has agreed to meet
with you. Please, follow me."
The estate was vast, and neers could easily get lost. Madeleine acknowledged him with a
haughty nod.
Upon digesting his words, she frowned and said, “The young madam? I’m here to see Mrs. Janice
Blue, the head of the Blue family, not Lucinda Blue.”
The guard maintained his polite demeanor. “It’s quite a privilege that the young madam is willing to
see you, Ms. Porter. She doesn’t have time for just anyone.”
As Madeleine followed the guard through the opulent estate, she couldn''t help but wonder what
awaited her inside.
Madeline bit her lip, poised to argue further but then reconsidered. Maybe a chat with Lucinda
wouldn''t be so bad. If Janice refused to see her, she could always pass the message through
Lucinda.
Janice had been in Nathan''s cold shadow for over two decades, and now that she wasing to
her senses, she surely had memories of the past. Madeline refused to believe that Janice could act
as if nothing had happened.
If she showed up again, pleading for Janice to step aside and relinquish her role as the matriarch of
the family to her, it was bound to drive Janice up the wall and, hopefully, drive a wedge between her
and Nathan.
Madeline had gotten entangled with Hayden, but her obsession with Nathan wasn''t something she
could easily let go of.
She felt a surge of determination. If only she could get Nathan and Janice to divorce, with the years
of affection between her and Nathan, maybe he coulde to terms with her tarnished reputation
and carry on with her.
Even if she couldn''t marry Nathan, getting a rise out of Janice would be satisfying enough.
At the end of the day, if she couldn''t have Nathan, she was damn sure not going to let him rekindle
things with Janice.
"Thank you," Madeline finally said, acknowledging the security guard''s assistance.
The guard nodded towards a woman approaching, saying, "Ms. Porter, Edith will take you to see the
lady of the house."
Madeline''s gaze followed to where the guard pointed and saw a middle-aged woman pedaling
towards them on an electric tricycle.
Madeline''s eyebrows shot up in disbelief.
They couldn''t possibly expect her to ride in an electric tricycle, could they?
The Ascend Estate was vast, which she was aware of, but she hadn''t anticipated needing
transportation from the gate to the main hall, let alone an electric tricycle!