Chapter 65
“No, that’s not true, Blanche-no! Sis, you’ve got it all wrong!” Jeannette stammered, her voice trembling.
“I’m not your sister. My mother had only one child—me,” Blanche replied coldly, her gaze flicking to the door. Across the hallway, outside the VIP suite, a waiter stood at attention, but Blanche knew well enough there were others waiting outside too-security, most likely.
The Summit Grand Hotel wasn’t the kind of place where people could make a scene without consequence. She’d thrown open the door, shouted accusations, even gotten physical. By now, security should have arrived.
As expected, the manager entered, flanked by two security guards.
“Manager Francis, how could you let someone impersonating me get in here?” Blanche’s voice rang with indignation.
“Or do you consider her the real Mrs. Simmons now?” Her words were icy. Manager Francis mopped sweat from his brow, looking terrified. “Ma’am, of course you’re the only Mrs. Simmons. No one else.”
“I… I have no idea how these people got in. To think she’d dare pretend to be you.” He glanced at Jeannette and her companions with open disdain.
“You! I’m obviously—” Jeannette started to blurt out, but stopped herself.
She’d been brought in by Eddy…
Despite her anger, Jeannette still had enough sense to hold her tongue. Eddy would never allow her to air their dirty laundry in front of Blanche. She’d provoked Blanche before, but never left any evidence. If she said too much now, Eddy wouldn’t forgive her so easily.
“Manager Francis,” Blanche said coolly, “what does our hotel do with guests who have no respect for our rules?”
“We escort them out and blacklist them,” he recited, as if reading from the hotel’s rulebook. “They’re never allowed back.”
“Then what are you waiting for? Remove these three immediately. And inform every company under the Simmons Group banner: Jeannette, Rhoda, and Pollock are never to be served or welcomed again.”
Half of Novandria belonged to the Simmons Group, and another thirty percent of businesses had close ties to them. Blanche’s words were a death sentence for Jeannette and her family in this city.
Jeannette had always paraded around, enjoying the perks of being “Mrs. Simmons.” Mr. Simmons had indulged her for years. But everyone knew Blanche was the real apple of his eye. Defying Blanche was far more dangerous than crossing Mr. Simmons himself.
After a moment’s hesitation, Manager Francis nodded. “Yes, ma’am. I’ll notify all our affiliated businesses and have these three escorted out immediately.”
Jeannette’s face drained of color. She gave in instantly. “Blanche, please-I wasn’t pretending to be you! You misunderstood what I said!”
Rhoda, who had always resented living in Sheila’s shadow, now found herself being humiliated by Blanche. She glared at Jeannette’s stomach, convinced her daughter’s place in Eddy’s heart was no less than Blanche’s.
“My daughter is the real Mrs. Simmons. My son-in-law brought us here! He just stepped out-he’ll be back any minute, and then you’ll see!” Rhoda’s voice rose to a shrill pitch as she turned to Pollock. “Didn’t you say you wanted to make things clear with this little tramp?”
“Well, today’s your chance.”
“She can’t even have children-she’ll be kicked out of the family sooner or later. What are we afraid of?” Rhoda sneered.
Invigorated by Rhoda’s words, Pollock squared his shoulders, thinking of
Eddy’s generosity toward their family-and Jeannette’s “promising” pregnancy. He spoke up, “We’re all family. I wanted to keep the peace.”
“But you treat your own father and sister like this? Heartless.”
“We’re here as Mr. Simmons’s guests. Soon, my Jean will take your place as the next Mrs. Simmons!” Pollock puffed out his chest, glaring at Blanche. “Let’s see who dares throw us out today!”
