Chapter 45

Even Ronald raised an eyebrow, while Olivia and Sophia stood there, completely dumbfounded. They clearly hadn’t expected I’d go that far—slap my own father? Yeah, I did. Watching Thomas’s expression shift from stunned to pure fury, like he’d lunge at me any second, I just smiled faintly. “We’re even now,” I said calmly. “Dad, I forgive you.” That slap? That was for me. And with that, whatever was left of our father-daughter bond ended right there. As for what happened to Mom, I’ll make sure every cent the Carters own gets used to tear the scumbag and his little sidekick apart—let them destroy each other in the end. The room fell into this awkward silence until Olivia gave a forced chuckle. “Now, Isabella, hitting your dad? That was too much—he’s heartbroken.” Then she turned to Ronald with a grossly fake smile. “Mr. Wright, your father-in-law just wanted to discuss some company stuff, but Isabella, she kept bringing up strange things and upset him. He barely scolded her, and boom, she