From Forgotten Wife To Fierce Queen - Chapter 17: Chapter 17

At Vanderbilt Manor, Dominick's mother, Lauren, slammed the phone down, her face clouded with frustration.
"What is Dominick thinking? He took Sonny to Rosemont Haven tonight. That place has been empty for years. Why does he want to live there all of a sudden?" Lauren complained with anger, pacing back and forth.
The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. Finally, she grabbed her coat, ready to storm out the door.
"Where are you going?" asked Reginald, Dominick's father, his tone calm but curious.
"I'm bringing Sonny back," Lauren snapped. "Sonny's never suffered a day in his life, and today he was hit and humiliated at school. My heart breaks just thinking about it. I wanted to comfort him when he got back, but your son drags him off to that godforsaken place."
Grayson was Lauren's treasure, her pride and joy. No one, not even Dominick, was allowed to treat him poorly.
"Rosemont Haven is still maintained, and Lily's there. Sonny isn't going to suffer," Reginald said, his voice steady. While he loved Grayson deeply, he didn't spoil him the way Lauren did.
"No way," Lauren retorted, determined to leave, but Reginald stopped her with a firm look.
Reginald said, "Enough. Dominick knows what he's doing. He barely gets any one-on-one time with Sonny because of work. Let them have this moment, okay?"
"Mom, Dad's right," chimed in Kayla. "Let Dom try being a proper dad for once. I think Sonny's probably already forgotten what his dad looks like."
Lauren hesitated, but with two against one, she reluctantly sank back into her seat. Though her heart still ached for Grayson, she couldn't deny that Reginald and Kayla had a point.
"But how did this happen?" Lauren muttered, her frustration bubbling up again at the thought of her precious grandson getting hit at school. She never even scolded Grayson, and now some stranger dared to lay a hand on him.
She clenched her fists, her temper rising. "I told you, Sonny shouldn't be in that school. There are plenty of elite academies in Harrowfell that would treat him like royalty."
"Mom, this school's actually pretty great. Plus, Dom's on the board of directors," Kayla explained, trying to smooth things over.
"That makes it even worse. The son of a board member gets hit? Who even has the audacity?" Whenever Grayson was involved, Lauren's usual composure disappeared, replaced by a fierce protectiveness.
"Whose kid is it? That's totally rude. I won't let them get away with it!" Lauren's fiery declaration made everyone pause, and she turned her sharp gaze toward Marissa.
Earlier, Marissa had started to explain but hadn't finished. When Lauren learned Grayson had been hit, she immediately called Dominick. However, Dominick didn't tell her anything about the case, only saying Sonny wouldn't be coming home that night.
Marissa handed Lauren a cup of water with a calming smile. "Lauren, have some water. Please don't worry. Sonny just got a little scratch on his neck. It's already been treated, I promise."
Lauren trusted Marissa, knowing she adored Grayson almost as much as she did. Since Marissa said it wasn't serious, it probably wasn't. But still, she couldn't let it go. "Whose child did it to my sweetheart?"
Lauren knew everyone at the school was well aware of Grayson's identity. The few who'd tried to cozy up or cause trouble in the past had been swiftly dealt with. And now, no one would dare hurt Sonny.
Marissa looked conflicted. She opened her mouth several times to speak but stopped, leaving Lauren impatient and exasperated. "Just tell me, Marissa. Whose kid was it?"
Lauren braced herself, expecting the name of someone powerful or influential. But the name she heard made her freeze when Marissa finally answered, "Paisley's daughter".
"Paisley?" Lauren's reaction was instant, her voice sharp as she slammed her cup down onto the table. "She's back? And she has a daughter?"
"How old is that girl? And who's the father?" Reginald asked, cutting straight to the point. Unlike Lauren's emotional outburst, his calm inquiry struck a nerve.
He wasn't jumping to conclusions, but his instincts told him there was a possibility. Maybe that girl was Dominick's child.
Lauren seemed to catch on quickly, and her expression shifted to one of excitement mixed with suspicion.
"She's three years old. She's not Dom's child," Marissa said. She felt glad that Paisley hadn't claimed Serena was Dominick's daughter.
Of course, there was no way to be sure if Paisley had been telling the truth, but as long as she denied it, Marissa was determined to cement that story.
Hearing that the child wasn't Dominick's, both Reginald and Lauren couldn't hide their disappointment.
"Seriously?!" Kayla exclaimed, her voice dripping with disdain. "That vixen divorced Dom four years ago, and now she's got a three-year-old? That's some seamless timing."
The room fell silent as the Vanderbilts exchanged looks, and their expressions turned gloomy at the implication.
Kayla continued, "I knew she didn't leave Dom just out of the blue. She must've cheated on Dom back then.
"That girl is probably the result of her cheating during the marriage. She knew the truth would come out, so she pushed for the divorce before anyone could figure it out."
The more Kayla talked, the more convinced she became of her theory. To her, it explained everything—why Paisley had willingly left the Vanderbilt family and her son behind.
But this time, Lauren didn't seem to agree. "If you say Paisley found another man right after she divorced Dom, that's possible. But cheating during the marriage? I doubt it. I never liked her much, but she didn't seem like the type to do something like that."
"Mom, come on. You can never really see through someone," Kayla argued, rolling her eyes.
Lauren shook her head firmly. "Look, she left with nothing—no alimony, no assets, not even a dime. If she was cheating and planning her future with someone else, she would've taken something to secure herself."
Kayla laughed smugly and retorted, "Maybe she found true love. She only married Dom for the money in the first place, and when she realized we didn't like her and she wasn't getting anywhere, she left the second some knight in shining armor showed up.
"Makes perfect sense, doesn't it? That woman's a scheming bitch. If it weren't for her, Dom and Marissa would've had a happy family by now."
"Oh, Kayla, don't say that," Marissa interjected, her voice heavy with sadness. "Dom and I just weren't meant to be. I went abroad to study, and... when I came back..." She trailed off with a weak smile.
"It's alright, Marissa," Kayla said, trying to console her. "Dom's future is with you, and you're the only sister-in-law I'll ever acknowledge."
"But Paisley is Sonny's biological mother. I—" Marissa replied.
"So what?" Kayla huffed. "She was nothing but a plain, useless housewife. She never deserved Dom in the first place. And now that she's had a child with another man, does she seriously think she has a shot at patching things up with him?"
Kayla scoffed, "Dream on! Even if she begged Dom, he wouldn't spare her a glance."
"Alright, enough about that bitch," Kayla said with a dismissive wave of her hand. Her tone changed instantly as she pulled out her phone and showed Marissa a picture of a painting.
Kayla said, "Look at this, Marissa. This is the latest piece by my favorite painter, Nion Vaire. It's a mineral pigment painting. Do you know what that is?"
Marissa shook her head politely. "No, but it sounds fascinating."
Kayla grinned, delighted to explain, "Oh, it's alright. Just look at the detail, stunning, huh? Honestly, I'll have to practice for years just to come close to this level."
Marissa had little knowledge about such paintings, but she wouldn't miss the chance to win over Kayla. "If you like it so much, I could try to reach out and buy it for you."
Kayla's smile faltered, and she replied, "Mr. Vaire's work is impossible to get. If it were that easy, I'd have one by now. But thanks, Marissa. I'll just keep practicing and maybe try to replicate it myself."
Marissa's smile tightened slightly, but inside, she made a mental note. 'I will find a way to contact this Nion Vaire and get this painting, no matter what.'