Chapter 48

Priscilla's POV

I could feel my entire body trembling, and my veins pulsating. I couldn't even hold a pen anymore. In my 19 years of existence, I have never encountered men like Dave and Max. They behave like teenagers despite their age, playing a game of cat and mouse. One of them even has his sights set on his nephew's girlfriend, Dave. Max comes here and accuses me of something he knows nothing about. He didn't even bother to ask me before hurling insults about my upbringing and leveling false accusations in my face. So what if his exes have cheated on him? Does it mean that all women are like that? I don't even resemble a cheater. I ran my hands through my hair, attempting to control my anger. I can't believe and tolerate this nonsense. I yearn to find my place soon because in this place I feel like a prisoner. I can't even go out!

I got out of bed and headed to the bathroom. Maybe a shower would help calm me down because if I don't confront someone physically, I won't be able to find solace. Max is behaving like nothing more than a brat, wallowing in self-pity instead of moving forward with his life. Shit happens in life, people break up every day, people cheat every day, so it's nothing new. That's just how the world works.

I let the cold water pour down my body, but it wasn't even providing any relief because my anger was inexplicable. After taking a shower, I left the bathroom with a towel wrapped around me. As I made my way to the closet, I abruptly stopped at the sound of my door opening. I saw Max entering my room, carrying a tray of food. He stood in the doorway, frozen, when his gaze met mine.

Without uttering anything that I might regret later, I headed to the closet. After applying my body lotion and changing into my nightwear, I emerged from the closet. Max was standing by the bed, holding a tray that he had now placed on the nightstand. I began moving towards the door, but Max grabbed my hand. I remained motionless, not saying a word. I was so furious with him that I didn't want to speak to him at all.

"Priscilla, I know I'm being foolish and acting like a jerk. But I'm truly sorry. I couldn't think clearly when Dave sent me a picture of him holding your hand. I thought you had gone to meet him, but now I understand that you didn't. Please forgive me, I'm sorry." Max's tone was filled with regret. I couldn't believe I was ensnared in the twisted game Max was playing with Dave. I didn't want to speak to Max, and that was final. I kept my mouth shut.

"Priscilla, please just yell at me or hit me. Do anything you want, but don't remain silent. I can't bear this side of you. I made a mistake, and I'm sorry. I'm truly sorry," Max pleaded, but I remained quiet. When I'm truly angry, I prefer not to speak. Right now, I yearn to shed tears to release my anger. It was the only thing that could help me find peace.

Max's POV

As soon as I saw Priscilla collapse, my eyes widened in shock. I quickly moved to catch her before she hit the ground. What could have caused her to faint so suddenly? I held her in my arms and made my way to the bed, carefully laying her down. I immediately pulled out my phone and dialed Mark's number. He answered right away.

"What did you do now, Max? Is Priscilla alright?" Mark asked before I could say anything. Of course, he knew it was about her.

"She fainted, and I don't know why! We had a small argument," I said anxiously, my heart racing with fear.

"Of course, you had a small argument. If anything happened to her, I will never forgive you! I will be there soon," Mark said and hung up the call.

I placed my phone on the nightstand and sat at the edge of the bed next to Priscilla. I covered my face with my hands, feeling a knot in my stomach. I immediately regretted shouting at her without any evidence. Why did I keep forgetting that she was pregnant? Why did I get so angry seeing her with Dave? Why couldn't I control my emotions?

As I looked at Priscilla, who lay on the bed, I noticed how pale her face was and how much weight she had lost. I realized that I had been acting like a jerk. Priscilla had nothing to do with what Nelly had done to me. She knew nothing about everything, and I was the one who got her into this mess. I blamed her for my lack of thinking, but I was the one responsible for my actions. I just didn't know why I kept making these mistakes with her.

A few minutes later, I heard footsteps approaching Priscilla's room. I immediately knew that Mark had arrived. After a few seconds, the door was pushed open, and Mark entered, followed by two nurses. I quickly rose from the bed.

"What happened to her?" Mark asked, walking past me to the bed. I explained everything that had happened that day: the picture that Dave sent, how I lost my cool and shouted at Priscilla.

"She fainted because she was hungry. She's pregnant, and it's not healthy for her to stay hungry for long because she's not just eating for herself but for two people in her belly. And Max, why would you shout at her, knowing that she was pregnant? Didn't I tell you to take care of Priscilla? You got her into this mess, and now you're doubting her because of Dave. Seriously, Max?" Mark asked.

I gulped down the lumps in my throat. "Man! I just lost it, I don't know what I was doing," I said, running my hands through my hair.

"Max, listen to me carefully. If anything happens to Priscilla, there will be hell to pay, trust me. I have given her an injection, and she will be awake soon," Mark spoke with a hint of anger, his eyes burning with fury. I didn't understand why he was so overprotective of Priscilla, but I didn't have any energy to argue with him.

"Has she been taking her medication?" Mark asked again, and I looked away from him. I didn't know if she had been taking her medication or not.

"Max, I need to tell you something important. Priscilla is the child of Monica Jenks, my sister who went missing 4 years ago. I don't know what happened to them that made them run away, but Priscilla was not born on the streets. She is not a street kid, so please stop treating her like garbage. If you can't take care of her, I will take her and live with her. You won't say anything about it, trust me." Mark said this with a serious tone, and I felt my eyes widen as a heavy feeling settled in my stomach. I knew Monica Jenks; she was a famous fashion designer, singer, and model and was almost the richest woman in the country.

The situation was a bit confusing. My father was in love with that woman, even though he was married to my mother. Her picture was all over their room. I was shocked to learn that this woman was Priscilla's mother and that she was very wealthy. So, Priscilla was born with a silver spoon after all. But what caused her and her mother to end up on the streets? Was this related to the story she told me? Did Priscilla murder her father, which led her and her mother to become homeless? I felt overwhelmed and confused.

"Does she know that you are her uncle?" I asked, with a lump in my throat.

"Priscilla is a hardworking woman and I don't believe she would want to trap any wealthy man. She doesn't know my identity, and I have no intention of telling her because she wants to keep it confidential. But that doesn't give you the right to bully her just because you suspect she's here to trap you," Mark replied.

He returned to the bed and began giving instructions to his nurses. My mind became preoccupied. The names Monica Jenks and Priscilla Jenks came to me. Why didn't I consider this before? Is it possible that Priscilla was the one responsible for my father's murder as well? That day, she mentioned that a 15-year-old girl had killed five men, including her father. Suddenly, I had a strong suspicion that my father was one of those men who had harmed her mother. It would be unwise to dwell on this without any evidence. I must avoid jumping to conclusions.

"I have given her an injection, she will wake up soon but please take care of her, or else I'm taking her with me, better keep that in mind. Right now I'm leaving. I have other work to do," Mark said as he and his nurses left the room.

I walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge of it, my gaze fixed on Priscilla. She looked so innocent. I was sure she couldn't even hurt a fly, let alone be capable of killing my father. I had complete faith in her. I pushed aside the strands of hair that were covering her face, and Priscilla squinted her eyes.

"Are you okay, Priscilla?" I asked softly. She opened her eyes fully and met my gaze, but quickly looked away before sitting beside me on the bed.

"Priscilla, why didn't you eat something in the morning, afternoon, and evening? Why aren't you taking your medicine? I had to tell you to abort the pregnancy, but you refused, and now you can't even take care of yourself. What's the matter with you?" I asked, trying to keep my cool. I didn't want to get angry right now.

Priscilla got up from the bed, put on her slippers, and began walking out of the room. I quickly followed her.

"Priscilla, are you still angry with me? I have already apologized, haven't I? I'm sorry for everything I said earlier, please forgive me," I said, trailing her as she descended the stairs. However, Priscilla remained silent, not even glancing at me. This was the first time I had seen this side of her, and her silence was so frightening that I couldn't bear it for even a moment.

"Ma'am , should I make something for you to eat?" Marie asked as soon as we reached the sitting room.

"Go to sleep, Marie. It's so late at night. I'm not hungry," Priscilla said weakly. Of course, she was hungry, but it seemed like her stomach was full because of anger.

"Marie, please make her something to eat. She is hungry," I instructed.

"Marie, go to sleep. You've been working the whole day. I'm sure you're just tired," Priscilla said before she started making her way out of the house.

"Make her something to eat and bring it outside," I said and followed Priscilla outside the house. I walked to the garden where she was sitting on the bench, and I sat next to her. Priscilla didn't bother to turn or look at me. She was looking at the moon quietly. She was so distant from me that I didn't know how to get through to her.

"Priscilla, I don't like seeing you like this. Please, just shout at me, yell, or do whatever you want to. I won't stop you, but please don't give me the cold shoulder," I begged her. I had no choice but to beg since I was wrong.

"Priscilla, you are pregnant. You can't be sad like this. If you are sad, the babies are also sad. I'm sure you don't want that, do you?" I asked her. However, I was caught off guard when Priscilla burst into sobs, tears glittering in her eyes. I didn't expect this kind of reaction from her. I had hurt her with my words, and her anger was beyond explanation. I have to admit that these days, I'm acting like the biggest fool in the world.

I held her tightly in my arms, letting her vent her anger through tears. She wasn't crying because she was hurt, but because she was angry with me and didn't know how to express it. So she decided to cry.