Ch. 171..175: Divorced My Scum Husband, Married His Evil brother Chapter 171-175

Chapter 171

"Uncle, can you tell Daddy when will he bring Mommy and Mackie back to our old home? I miss him already," Mackie requested.

…

"Did your Mommy tell you that?" Vernon asked.

"Un, Mommy said that Daddy has a big problem at work, and he cannot bring us back home, that's why Mackie and Mommy live with you right now," Mackie said, trying to remember all the things that Mommy said to her about Daddy.

…

"I'll tell him to work harder," Vernon replied ambiguously, but Mackie took it as a yes, so she nodded happily and hugged her Uncle's big arm.

"Thank you, Uncle!"

"Hm."

Mackie resumed eating her breakfast, but Vernon only fiddled with his food. He was busy thinking about many things that he didn't know about his sister-in-law.

In his imagination, Chloe was living happily with Vincent after she ditched him. But now she left Vincent because he didn't give her enough money to satiate her greed for material things.

So he thought Chloe would be ruthless enough to slander Vincent in front of their daughter, maybe telling her the cold hard truth about him being a cheating bastard, and her being a greedy whore.

'But she decides to lie and cover for him instead? What the fuck is in her mind?' Vernon pondered.

Vernon thought that he knew everything, and judged her by what he thought was the correct reaction.

But maybe… Everything was wrong.

Maybe he was wrong the whole time.

Vernon stared down at the plate full of home-cooked food. Even by the looks of it, Vernon knew that his sister-in-law cooked this food with her heart. She always did since he was a kid, and continued doing so right now.

'I want to keep her around because I love what she cooks, and she's generally useful as my maid, and also a pawn to take down my Big brother. Those are the only reasons… right?' Vernon questioned himself, even if he knew the real reason, he didn't want to admit it.

He never wanted to admit it, since he would be seen as weak and pathetic by her.

**

Chloe was busy cleaning Vernon's penthouse and also her apartment on the lower floor the whole day, while Vernon left in the afternoon for a quick meeting again.

Mackie was helping her Mommy by making her bed and also spraying air freshener around, especially in Uncle Vernon's penthouse, because Uncle Vernon was so dirty, smelly, and sloppy!

"Hmph! Uncle is only handsome, but he's not as clean as Daddy!" Mackie complained as she accompanied her Mommy.

Chloe chuckled and continued vacuuming the floor.

"Mommy, Uncle Vernon can hire maids, right?" Mackie asked.

"Yes, he can. He is not poor, dear."

"Then why doesn't he hire a maid to do this? We have a lot of maids in the mansion!" Mackie protested. "Hmph! Uncle is not as rich as Daddy!"

Chloe dropped the vacuum cleaner immediately, she crouched in front of Mackie and warned her, "Mackie, you should never say that in front of Uncle Vernon, okay?"

"Um? Why Mommy? It's true, right? Uncle is not as rich as Daddy!" Mackie claimed.

It was true, and because it was true that it would incite Vernon's anger. She knew that Vernon was a proud man, and he always hated to be compared with his Big brother ever since he was just a kid.

"Just remember that you shouldn't say that in front of him, or we will get in trouble," Chloe warned her daughter again.

Mackie wasn't satisfied with her Mommy's answer. She felt that her Mommy was giving her a warning for no reason.

She pouted and crossed her arms, "Mommy, I want to go home."

"That's—" Chloe was stunned by the sudden request. She didn't expect Mackie to remember about her home. She was very accepting these days about living in this new apartment.

"D—Dear, we don't lack anything here, right? Do you want anything instead? Maybe Mommy can give it to you," Chloe said, trying to shift Mackie's attention somewhere. "How about we buy you a new doll instead? I heard there's a new Barbie collection, complete with the dollhouse!"

Chloe knew that Mackie liked toys, and her mind would be distracted instantly when she heard about dollhouses. She even had a room full of dollhouses and legos, because Mackie loved building legos and playing houses.

But, Mackie didn't seem to be interested in toys right now. In fact, her expression turned even sourer than before, and she asked, "Mommy, I don't want to right now. I just want to return home."

"We can't do that, dear… you know what I said before?"

"That Daddy is still busy with his problems, and we can't go home unless Daddy picks us up?"

"Yes…" Chloe confirmed. Even if she had to lie, she did it to protect Mackie's innocence, at least until the divorce was finalized, so they could be separated for good.

Mackie's expression gradually eased and then turned sad. She lowered her head, as she was battling herself not to demand too much from Mommy, since Mommy was working hard here.

"Mommy… if we can't meet Daddy, can I at least call him?" Mackie begged. "Mommy, Mackie misses Daddy a lot…"

…

Chloe's heart was in pain as she heard Mackie's request. She didn't know what to do or what to say.

Of course, she had no intention to allow Mackie to meet her Daddy, but at the same time, she felt that Mackie's request would gradually be even more demanding as time went by since Mackie was actually a very stubborn little girl.

'I should find a way to make Vincent sign the divorce paper, and we can proceed with the legal court. He has too much power in him, he'll find his way to put us in marriage counseling, and force me to return home, so he can abuse me again…'

'No, I don't want that. I—I've had enough of his abuse. I just want to be free with my daughter. Why is that so difficult to earn?'

 

Chapter 172

'No, I don't want that. I—I've had enough of his abuse. I just want to be free with my daughter. Why is that so difficult to earn?'

Chloe shuddered out of fear when she imagined all the abuse that she would experience if she was forced to return home. She knew very well that Vincent was angry, and the abuse would 100% turn physical until she breathed no more.

Chloe stared at her daughter who still lowered her head. She gently caressed Mackie's hair, "Dear, I will see what I can do, okay? I hope I can… uh… text him, and ask if he is not busy, so he can call you."

"Daddy is very busy, and he is dealing with his problem right now. So we shouldn't disturb him, and if he refuses… you have to be okay with it, understand?"

"… yes, Mommy…" Mackie nodded weakly. She already knew the outcome because Daddy refused to meet them, which made her really sad.

But she still had hope coming from Uncle Vernon. She raised her head and stared at her Mommy, "Mommy, I also told Uncle Vernon that he should talk with Daddy."

Chloe's eyes widened, she felt her soul leave her body for a second before recovering and asked, "W—What do you mean by that, dear?"

"Umm… I told Uncle that Daddy has a problem, and won't let us stay inside our home or meet him. So I ask him if he can meet Daddy and ask him when we can return home," Mackie said innocently. "I just want to meet Daddy…"

Chloe's legs trembled, she sat on the floor because she couldn't even crouch anymore. She stared at her daughter at a loss.

Mackie realized the change in her Mommy, so she asked, "Mommy, did Mackie do something wrong? I'm just asking Uncle to talk to Daddy…"

"N—Not at all, dear. It's fine, Mommy is just tired after doing so many chores," Chloe replied with a forced smile. "Hopefully, Uncle Vernon will come home with good news, okay?"

"Un! Okay!"

Mackie was relieved that her Mommy didn't scold her, "Mommy, since you're tired, Mackie will help you do chores!"

Mackie tried to hold the vacuum cleaner handle and started sucking the dust and crumbs on the carpet.

Chloe stared at her daughter with pitiful eyes, she felt so guilty for hiding how much of a bastard her father was.

But she had her reason that she couldn't tell her.

She sighed out of woe, 'How do I tell Vernon about this? I don't want him to know too much about my marital problems…'

'I also need to tell him to shut up and play along, I don't want him to have a bad influence on Mackie…'

**

Chloe continued cleaning with her daughter until it was time for dinner. She cooked a warm, filling meal for dinner before telling Mackie to finish her homework and go to sleep.

Chloe sat alone in the living room again, waiting for Vernon to come home. She was in her pajamas, and also not touching her phone, afraid that she couldn't hold the urge to open the gallery and scroll through the old photos until she cried again.

She was watching the TV, but she stared at it blankly as her mind flew off somewhere.

She was still worried about Vernon's reaction once she confronted her about Mackie and her relationship with Vincent.

"I still need to talk to him. Even if I'm scared," Chloe murmured. "I don't want him to say something wrong that would probably hurt Mackie."

…

Vernon checked his watch as he pushed the penthouse main door open, 'Still 9.30.'

He lifted his head and saw his sister-in-law sitting in the same spot as yesterday. But her expression looked a lot more serious, and… dare he say, quite courageous. Because she kept her straight face as she stared at Vernon.

Usually, Chloe would lower her head out of fear when she saw him, and he knew why she became so serious right now.

Vernon smirked. He walked in and closed the door behind him. He swaggered towards his sister-in-law and threw his briefcase to the sofa.

He stood in front of Chloe with a menacing look and asked, "Do you have anything to say?"

Chloe looked up to stare at the giant and took a deep breath, "Vernon, about what Mackie said…"

"Hm? About what?" Vernon baited her to talk. He wanted her to tell the full story, but he doubted that his sister-in-law would actually spill everything.

So he urged her to talk, even if it was just a sentence about her secrets.

Chloe gritted her teeth, she really couldn't say it out loud because she felt that Vernon didn't have to know.

But since Mackie had accidentally told Chloe's lie towards Vernon, then she couldn't hide any more.

"Vernon, I lied to Mackie about the reason why we left the mansion," Chloe confessed. "I… I told her that Vincent was having a difficult time, and dealing with a difficult problem. So, Mackie and I have to leave the mansion until he clears his problem…"

"And that girl believes you? That's stupid," Vernon commented. "Even the little me wouldn't be that gullible."

'You are that gullible though, I tricked you often when you were a kid,' Chloe replied in her heart as she didn't dare enough to say it out loud in front of him.

Chloe lowered her head. She fiddled with her fingers as she felt so uncomfortable telling something so private about her life to someone else.

Even though she hadn't told her mother about this, and she also filtered a lot of stuff when she talked with Diamond, despite their closeness, Diamond was still Vernon's secretary, so Chloe didn't want Diamond to know literally everything about her life.

"Mackie believes it because Vincent was often absent. He rarely came home since a year ago, and even if he did, he just stayed for a night or simply picked Mackie up so they could go to the mall and have fun before dropping her back to the mansion…"

Chapter 173

"Mackie believes it because Vincent was often absent. He rarely came home since a year ago, and even if he did, he just stayed for a night or simply picked Mackie up so they could go to the mall and have fun before dropping her back to the mansion…."

Vernon raised one brow amusedly. He wasn't that surprised his Big brother did that. It was reasonable since their late father— Vaughn Gray, also did that when they were kids.

He was so busy with the growing businesses and also branching out to other businesses. So his life was filled with one business meeting after another. He would fly from one state— even countries for a night, then leave for another in the morning.

So he lived mostly in the five-star hotel the Gray family owned or invested in. Of course, with different women in his bed each night. It was his way to de-stress.

Meanwhile, their mother would drown herself in liquor or expensive diamonds.

She often said that she didn't need him because a man's worth was his money. As long as their father gave her money, everything else didn't matter.

So he didn't see a problem here, at least from his family's perspective. What Vincent did was justified, including him sleeping around.

But he didn't utter his opinion out loud since he knew it would probably incite Chloe's anger if he said that Vincent leaving to sleep around was normal for the men within the Gray family.

Besides, Vernon doubted that was the only reason his sister-in-law left his Big brother.

Chloe felt so guilty whenever she remembered her lie to Mackie. Her daughter was her only guilt and the only reason she was hesitant about leaving Vincent.

"Mackie… She has a great relationship with her father. She saw him as her hero, and a great father that is smart, rich, and powerful," Chloe said.

"And that's your reason for lying?" Vernon asked.

…

Chloe nodded weakly.

"I don't want to ruin the image of a great father in her eyes. She deserves to have the image of a great father figure, even if… even if I hate Vincent."

Vernon looked down at his sister-in-law. He was actually annoyed at her right now.

Because he wanted her to burn all the bridges between herself and Vincent Gray. Even if that meant he had to tell Mackie about the divorce.

There was a sense of crisis in him because his sister-in-law was so meek, the probability of her returning to his Big brother was high, and Vernon didn't want that.

'I need her here… I don't know if I will use her in the future to bring down my brother. But I need her here for now…' Vernon thought.

However, before he could say anything, he had to know about the root of the problem.

What happened when he was out for ten years?

"Honestly, I don't even know why you left my Big brother," Vernon said to the point. "Mind telling me what really happened with your marriage life with him?"

Chloe was stunned, and her body stiffened in an instant. She could feel Vernon's hawk-like eyes looking down at her with a prying gaze, waiting for her to spill the tea.

But she didn't want to. She still didn't know if Vernon was on her side or Vincent's.

Chloe could not trust him, and she was afraid that Vernon would eventually sell her out to his Big brother.

Also…

'How am I supposed to trust him about my secret when nobody in my life knows about the details except Vincent and me?' Chloe asked herself.'

'After all, he hires me to live with him as his personal prostitute becuase he wants to get the experience of fucking his sister-in-law. I have no worth in his eyes….'

'But, maybe… just maybe… I have more worth in his eyes? Will he actually help me, or use me instead?'

…

Chloe hesitated, trying to weigh the good and bad if she told him the truth.

Vernon got impatient with her long silence, so he added more incentive, "Come on, sister-in-law. Tell me the problem, you know that I can always talk it out with my family— even with my Big brother. Maybe you can get your divorce faster, or… maybe you want to reconcile with him instead?"

Vernon's gaze turned colder when he said, 'reconcile.'

There was anger surging from his heart. He wanted to crush something when he imagined his sister-in-law and Big brother reconciled to form a happy family.

'Fuck, I'm getting annoyed now.'

Chloe reacted after she heard reconciliation and lifted her head. She glared at Vernon and shouted, "I don't want to!"

"Then tell me what's the problem!" Vernon yelled. "Don't make me wait. You know damn well I can get annoyed pretty easily!"

Vernon's eyes glinted with coldness, and Chloe noticed the hostility in his hawk-like eyes.

She didn't know if the hostility was for her or someone else, but she just assumed the hostility was for her.

It was like a bucket of cold water poured on top of her head. She got clarity after realizing that she couldn't trust Vernon.

'He might have treated me fairly all this time. But I am still a prostitute for him,' Chloe thought. She clenched her fist. She was so close to telling Vernon about her problem, at least telling him that Vincent had abused her horribly.

But now, she became fully guarded again when she saw his dangerous eyes.

'I… I don't want to be tricked by another prince charming. Vincent is enough for me, I don't want to be trapped twice!'

Vernon thought his meek sister-in-law would finally give in and tell him about her life with Vincent as a married couple.

But, she actually got up from the chair and tried to leave without giving Vernon any explanation.

Vernon wrapped his hand around Chloe's waist to stop her escape. His gaze darkened, "Where are you going? You haven't told me anything yet."

Chapter 174

Vernon wrapped his hand around Chloe's waist to stop her escape. His gaze darkened, "Where are you going? You haven't told me anything yet."

Vernon pulled her to his side, trapping her in his tight embrace until Chloe's face was buried in his pecs. Chloe looked up and met Vernon's hostile gaze.

It was intimidating, and Chloe wouldn't lie that she was scared.

But the more he tried to intimidate her, the more she felt there was no point in telling him about it.

Chloe clenched her fist to toughen herself so she had enough bravery to open her mouth. Then she replied;

"I don't want to tell you, Vernon."

Vernon's eyes widened for a second before they darkened even worse than before. Chloe could sense the anger in Vernon as if he was ready to crush her if she continued to refuse.

Chloe's heart hammered in her chest. She wanted to look away, but it would probably anger him even more.

"I think I misheard you," Vernon said. "Repeat that again."

He was giving another chance to his sister-in-law to speak the truth. He was being very nice right now, as much as he could. Chloe was the only woman he tolerated this far. If she was just a random woman, she'd never dare to speak like that to him.

He thought he didn't give her enough pressure. He knew that Chloe had turned into a mere meek woman now, so he thought… by adding more pressure, she would finally give up.

"I. Don't. Want. To. Tell. You," Chloe repeated.

It took a while until Vernon could process every word his sister-in-law said. Thousands of ideas floated in his mind;

What caused her to be so resilient so suddenly? Wasn't she supposed to be meek and weak?

Did she also do this to his Big brother? Vernon doubted that she could be this brave when facing Vincent.

Maybe she was brave enough to face Vernon because she saw him being less than his Big brother? Was that the reason for her newly-found courage?

…

They were in dead silence for a while, but Chloe knew that Vernon was terribly angry. She tried to push herself away from him, "You got the answer, Vernon. Please forget that we ever talked about this and release me—AHHH!"

Vernon hugged her even tighter, so tight that she felt so much pain in her waist. She even thought that Vernon's grip would probably break her bones.

Vernon wasn't thinking clearly right now. His mind was clouded with rage. He always hated to be looked down on and compared with his Big brother, especially when the one who did it was his sister-in-law, Chloe.

Her words were like needles that pricked on his pride. He forcefully pushed Chloe to the sofa, just like what he did yesterday, and grabbed her shoulder so tight that she winced in pain.

Chloe struggled to get up. This was the same thing Vernon did yesterday, and she was terrified because of it.

Especially when she knew that Vernon's trapped her out of malice right now.

"VERNON, RELEASE ME!"

"Release you? HAH! Don't take me lightly just because you think I'm lesser than my Big brother!"

Vernon knelt in front of Chloe so they would be on the same eye level. His eyes glinted with malice, and his tone was cold, which was actually scarier compared to his exploding voice.

"I won't let you go. I will never let you go, Chloe," Vernon said ambiguously. "Now, don't make me mad, and tell me about your problem with my Big brother.

Vernon intentionally rubbed his thumb around her protruding shoulder blade, warning her that he could always dislocate her shoulder had she continued fighting back.

Chloe stared at Vernon, who looked at her as if looking at pitiful prey. Her eyes were pooling with tears again, but she refused to cry, at least not now when she was trying to protect herself and the shameful secret of her being abused for ten years straight.

,m "Vernon, no matter how many times you threaten me, I will not tell you," Chloe stated firmly.

Vernon gritted his teeth. He was done playing nice with his sister-in-law. She was an idiot who didn't know how to appreciate the help!

Vernon saw the tears that were pooling in her eyes again. He clicked his tongue annoyedly, "Oh come on, you're going to cry again? Stop using your fake tears to make me feel guilty! It won't work on me!"

Which was a total lie coming from Vernon's mouth. His heart actually started throbbing in pain when he saw the tears. But he couldn't let it get to him. He didn't want her tears to be his weakness.

"No, I won't cry," Chloe replied. Her voice was shaking, yet she persevered and tried her best to prevent a drop of a tear from falling on her cheek.

"Vernon, do you know why I won't tell you about it?" Chloe asked out of the blue, which caught Vernon off guard.

"Ah— uh… that's…."

"You don't know, right? That's because you don't see what you did wrong," Chloe said.

"What? I didn't do anything wrong! I was just asking you!" Vernon defended himself, thinking he literally did nothing to hurt her.

"Vernon… What you're trying to open is a box of terrible memories that I experienced for ten years straight. Do you think I will tell someone about my traumatic experience with intimidation and fear?"

"Vernon, you're not less than your Big brother. You are just as scary as he is. You are a monster, just like him," Chloe stated.

Chloe experienced the same fear with Vernon whenever he started intimidating her. She was scared and automatically tried to back off and cowered meekly, just like she did when facing Vincent.

Because trauma from years of abuse wouldn't automatically disappear just because she left her abuser.

Vernon could feel Chloe's body trembling, yet she continued staring at him despite her fears. He slowly released his hand on her shoulder, afraid that he might accidentally hurt her for real.

Chapter 175

Vernon could feel Chloe's body trembling, yet she continued staring at him despite her fears. He slowly released his hand on her shoulder, afraid that he might accidentally hurt her for real.

After all, he just wanted to scare and intimidate her, thinking it would finally let her open up.

It was also the method he did for almost everything. Intimidation 99% always worked in real-life situations when dealing with people around him.

But Chloe's reaction completely caught him off guard. He didn't expect her to retaliate and became so daring. Daring enough to call him a monster, similar to his Big brother.

Which confused Vernon…

'I—I want to win against my Big brother. But I don't want to be a monster….'

'No, I'm not a monster. At least, not in front of her….'

Vernon stared at Chloe, who was still trembling. She still tried her best not to cry in front of him, even though she must be in pain holding her tears.

He soon realized that his regular approach might not be the best. He retreated to give her space, but he was still kneeling in front of her, who sat on the sofa. He felt awkward and guilty at the same time. He didn't expect his action would lead to such a reaction from his sister-in-law.

"You can cry if you want…." Vernon said. His tone was a lot more gentle. He was careful because he didn't want to accidentally scare Chloe even worse than this.

"No, I won't cry," Chloe said. "Because if I did, that means I show how weak I am in front of you, Vernon."

"I just want to know about the problem between you and my Big brother…." Vernon tried to voice out his reason, not wanting this to be a long misunderstanding between them. "I can help."

"Vernon, when you've experienced a terrible life for ten years straight, you try to keep them deep in your heart. You try to hide them as you find it shameful, and saddening," Chloe said. "I'm not going to trauma-dump what I experienced to you."

"Besides… we are not close enough, Vernon."

"Not close enough?" Vernon's eyes widened. He already thought they were very close these days.

He never allows anyone to talk with him eye-to-eye like this.

Nor did he ever allow anyone to be a part of his life.

He also never allowed any other woman to fill his heart.

"But I thought we're close enough. You live with me already," Vernon said, trying hard not to raise his voice.

"You hired me as a maid and your personal prostitute. You want to try how does it feel to fuck your own sister-in-law," Chloe stated, opening all the harsh words and actions that Vernon did to degrade her. "You see me as an item to satisfy your curiosity, and I am willingly doing it because I want to leave this city with my daughter. That is all, Vernon Phoenix Gray."

Vernon zipped his lips. He didn't know what to answer because all she said was true.

Though, he didn't do it to satiate his curiosity. He did it because he wanted to give her a taste of revenge. After all, Chloe blatantly said that he was disgusting.

Now he wanted to turn her into a disgusting, disgraced woman.

'But, am I satisfied now? She is already so disgraced. From Mrs. Gray, the new Mistress of Gray family, to a mere maid and my personal—'

Vernon lowered his head ashamedly.

True, he was angry at her and still angry for what she said to him back then. But he realized that revenge against Chloe wasn't as sweet as he expected.

"Please, don't ask me about this again. It's something that I keep tight for myself, it's too painful," Chloe got up from the sofa and looked down at Vernon, who still knelt and lowered his head like a kid that had been punished.

"Vernon, please play along with Mackie. I'm begging you, at least until my divorce is finalized," Chloe said.

"You can't lie to her forever," Vernon argued.

He disliked how his sister-in-law kept lying to her daughter and covering for Vincent. It always peeved him out.

"I won't lie to her forever. I just need time," Chloe said firmly.

Vernon wanted to call her out for being an idiot because he thought Mackie should've known the truth as soon as possible.

But Vernon didn't even know the truth because Chloe refused to speak.

"Please forget what I said tonight, Vernon. I dare to raise my voice against you because I don't want to be bullied forever. I'm exhausted…."

Chloe walked away from the living room until she stopped before going downstairs. She turned her head around to check on Vernon and reminded him, "Don't forget to at least wash your face and brush your teeth before sleep. You didn't do it the previous night, it's not good for your gum health, you know."

Chloe went downstairs, and Vernon deflated right on the spot. He sat weakly on the floor, trying to process what had just happened.

"I did it again. I made her cry yesterday, and I did it again tonight," Vernon blamed himself for not learning from his mistake.

But he always thought intimidation was how to get people to do stuff for you. He always did that, and it always worked, especially when you bore the Gray surname.

Though, he had never tried it on other women because none of those women objected to his request. They were too much in love with just one sweet word or two, maybe an unforgettable wild night for them to make them do him a favor.

It was easy.

But he couldn't do that to Chloe because he couldn't pretend in front of her. He couldn't just say that he

"Why is she so different?" Vernon fretted. "Why can't she just simply fall for me, like the rest of those women? Am I lacking something?"