ONCE MOCKED, DISGRACED:SON IN LAW REVENGE

CHAPTER 5 POISONING

The housekeeper's words had acted as a catalyst, transporting Nate back to the day when his life had gone upside down. 

Three years ago, the household's usual routine had been shattered when the old man fell unconscious on his way to an important board meeting, and the results of a primary examination showed an attempt to position him.

Chaos erupted in the household and he was rushed to the hospital; as soon as the old man was admitted into the ICU, the family members started pointing fingers and shouting in anger and disbelief. 

Meanwhile, Nate was sitting in a quiet corner of the ICU, sulking by himself.

He was wondering who could have committed such an act against his grandfather, watching his family accuse each other without a second thought. 

But suddenly, he heard his own name being pulled into the middle of this ruckus. 

One of his aunts shouted through tears,

"Nate! He was the one who took the tray of coffee and snacks to his grandfather's room this morning; I saw it with my own eyes!"

This accusation hung in the air, as it was enough to put the spotlight on Nate's bewildered face.

Before he could understand what was happening, Lucas, his cousin, added fuel to the fire.

"She is right! I had already lifted the tray from the kitchens when Nate rudely stormed in, on my way to grandpa's room. He rudely snatched the tray from my hands and said that he was here now, so he would do it.

I assumed he just wanted to spend some time with grandpa, so I let him go; but if I knew then, what kind of dirty intentions you had, I would have stopped you right then!"

THWACK!

Lucas had just finished his sentence when another aunt stepped forward and slapped him across the face;

"You shameless brat! If you are alive today, it is only because of my father. And you dare to poison that man?!"

The sudden slap brought tears to Nate's eyes, as the hallway outside the ICU buzzed with murmurs. Nate found himself stuck in a web of allegations, with no evidence to support his innocence.

Apart from the humiliation of being slapped, he was also struggling to accept the hateful looks that everyone was giving him, as if he had already been pronounced guilty without a trial.

He was already caught in the confusion and shock of what was happening; and tears started to roll down his cheeks on hearing the harsh words and abuses.

He desperately tried to explain his situation, saying;

"Aunt Darla, what are you saying? How could you see me carrying the tray to grandpa's room! It's impossible, ask any of the servants–"

"Shut up! You still have the audacity to spin lies now?! Who will believe the words of a traitor?"

Nate gulped down his tears as he choked out the words, desperate to prove his point.

"You don't have to believe me, just hear me out! Ask uncle Simon, he knows that I returned from the University late last night and slept late in the morning, then how is it possible? There is no logic to this, Lucas is clearly lying!

And most importantly, why would I want to do something like this? I–"

Rodrick, the husband of the aunt who had first accused him, cut him off in the middle as he stepped forward, his face red with anger. 

"You bloody snake! Shut up and beg in front of someone else you will be convinced by your fake tears! Because let me tell you, none of us is getting fooled by your pathetic stories."

He dismissed Nate's attempts to defend himself, as Nate's uncle continued his words, driven by his frustration… or maybe, a darker motive.

"You know what! I could end your pathetic life right now, as a rightful answer to what you have done. And none of the people present here would even question it! 

Then how dare you think that you could poison my father, the head of this family, and get away with it? Miserable parasite–"

 

However, just as Rodrick came closer to Nate, ready to hit him, uncle Stephen, stepped forward to intervene. 

"Control yourself!"

"But brother, how can you protect this leech who wants to kill our father–"

"I am just as enraged as you are, for the condition our father is in. But remember, we don't have any concrete proof of anything, apart from your wife and son's words. How can we believe your words against his and announce a verdict?"

Stephen's words momentarily halted the discussion, even though the crowd was almost ready to take some violent action against him. 

Rodrick grudgingly closed his mouth, although his frustration for being forced to let him go, was clear. Meanwhile, Stephen turned his attention towards Nate;

"And you, young man. You are still under suspicion for what happened–"

This is all that Rodrick needed, and he jumped in aggressively once again. 

"Just because of this, we are willing to do you the great favor of allowing you to leave, even though you don't deserve it at all!"

After some discussion, the mercy extended to Nate was that he would be exiled from the family, instead of paying for it with his own life.

Nate was completely stunned; he never expected his own uncle and family members to wrongfully accuse him in this way… amongst the crowd of relatives present there, there wasn't a single person on his side.

Rather, his uncle Rodrick issued a stern warning as Nate was kicked out of the mansion;

"Don't ever make the mistake of coming back, or you yourself will be responsible for the consequences. And let me tell you right now, I will not spare your life twice."

With a sense of finality, Nate had walked away from the family he had known all his life, cutting all ties that day.

"Sir Nathaniel? Are you still here?" 

The butler's voice cut through the fog of Nate's memories, bringing him back to the present.

"Yes, yes uncle Simon. I am listening…"

"Well, Master, there is some bad news along with that. Two days ago, the old master emerged from his coma. The whole family was gathered at the mansion, to support him in his last moments.

But unexpectedly, the first thing that he spoke up after regaining his senses, was that he wasn't poisoned by you. There is no need for you to do anything else to prove your innocence, Master!"

A bittersweet feeling rose up in Nate's heart, as the butler continued;

"With great regret, I have to inform you that the old Master, your grandfather, is no longer with us. But before his death, he left all the family estate and assets to your name. You are now the Lord of the Pemberly family. Congratulations, my Lord."

Nate was thrilled to hear this, even as his eyes were brimming with tears. His heart was aching, not only out of sorrow for his father's death, but also for the pain and injustice he himself had been suffering for the past three years.

And yet, the feeling of heaviness had lifted from his heart– in his last moments, his grandfather had chosen to correct the mistakes of the past. He felt a rush of emotions: relief, grief, gratitude and excitement. 

In this whirlwind of emotions, a genuine laughter of relief burst out of his mouth, releasing all the pent-up tension.

However, what he didn't know was that behind his back, the grand hall's imposing doors had swung open at this moment. 

With their faces hanging in despair, Erica and Maria stepped out of the family meeting, hand in hand. But as soon as they turned the corner, their gazes fell directly on Nate, who was standing alone near the gate and laughing loudly.

In their eyes, he seemed to be quite happy to hear about the family's misfortunes, and the sight caused a volcano of anger to erupt within Maria. 

She felt a rush of hatred on seeing his face, as according to her, he was probably laughing because he was finally getting his freedom. If Erica actually married Anthony Rossi, Nate would surely get a divorce. 

Just the thought of him laughing at this fact was enough to fill her veins with anger, and she lashed out by kicking Nate swiftly in his shins with her sharp heels. 

"Aahh- what the hell?!" 

Nate turned around in shock, only to find his mother in law's face twisted in rage as she spat out;

"I know a bloody swine like you didn't deserve to marry into the McKinney family in the first place! Anyone in your place would forever be grateful to my daughter, but you have shown your true colors yet again!"

Standing beside Maria, Erica's expression also mirrored the same disappointment as her mother. Her tone was bitter as she said;

"Honestly, I never expected you to be so heartless and cruel. But you can try not to be so happy, can't you? If not out of regard for my feelings, at least show some respect for our marriage."

Saying this, Erica turned around and rushed out of the gate, and Maria followed her, giving Nate a dirty glare. 

"Erica, darling, don't be upset because of this moron! He isn't worth it, my dear, don't torture yourself for his sake…"

Nate was caught off guard by the sudden turn of events, and he wanted to explain that it was all a misunderstanding, that he would never laugh at their problems! 

But before he could open his mouth to say anything, they walked farther and farther away, leaving him alone with his increasing sense of helplessness. 

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