Taken By My Fiancé's Uncle - Chapter 152: Chapter 152

Lorraine froze at his words. Her eyes widened. 'Would I just be a burden to Eugene?' She had never even considered this question before, but Ian tore it wide open with brutal honesty, forcing her to confront it.
She had nowhere to hide and no chance to escape.
Ian observed her reaction with satisfaction, clearly pleased that his words had the intended effect. He thought to himself, 'My baby sister I've cherished and protected all these years suffered such humiliation on that mountain.
'So, what I'm giving Lorraine now is just a little lesson in return.'
Someone in the crowd finally snapped, "Mr. Pedler, please step aside! We have questions to ask this homewrecker!" The world of the wealthy is complicated, and bitter women abound. Some so-called society ladies had already begun projecting all their resentment onto Lorraine.
One woman spat, "Why did you become a homewrecker?"
Another sneered, "Don't you have any shame or any sense of decency at all?"
"Is the money worth selling your soul for? Are you even human anymore?"
"You slut!"
One accusation after another rapidly devolved into outright curses. Someone else screeched, "Her sister is a homewrecker too! Those Shaw sisters are nothing but trash." A fresh wave of abuse crashed over again, even more vicious than before.
Lorraine's face turned ghostly pale as she watched helplessly, while these women raised their phones, snapping photos of her. They posted these online, exposing her to public humiliation and abuse. They wielded no blades, yet were the cruelest executioners in this world.
Lorraine felt like a ridiculous clown caught wearing someone else's clothes. At that moment, she was exposed, and people were stripping her bare, layer by layer.
No, they didn't think this was enough. With their sharp eyes, cutting words, and venomous curses, they wanted to peel away her skin layer by layer, grind her flesh to the pulp, and drill nails into the marrow of her bones.
They wouldn't stop until they had trampled on her very soul. Lorraine felt too exhausted, so cold to hold on much longer.
Meanwhile, at the hospital, after Mrs. Maria Moore relieved Eugene, he pressed his weary brow and stepped out of the VIP ward. He pulled out his phone and dialed Lorraine's number.
'Her phone's off?' A bad feeling rose in Eugene's chest. He immediately called Bailey. "Where's Ms. Shaw?"
Bailey replied, "She went out this afternoon. As you instructed, we didn't follow her to university."
"Hasn't she come back yet?"
"No, she hasn't."
Eugene hung up abruptly, found Lorenzo, and demanded, "Sheila's cell number—now."
Lorenzo quickly found the number and handed his phone to Eugene.
Eugene dialed Sheila's number right away. Sheila picked up and asked, "Who's this?"
Eugene asked, "Is Lorraine with you?"
Sheila was confused and couldn't hide her irritation. "Didn't you have someone watching her, keeping her under house arrest? Shirin and I waited for her at school all afternoon, but she never showed up. And her phone's been off the whole time."
Eugene's grip tightened on the phone, veins bulging at his temples as he said, "She's not with me, nor has she contacted you. Search every inch of the campus immediately!"
"Alright!" Sensing the urgency in his tone, Sheila quickly hung up and grabbed Shirin by the arm. "Quick, Lorraine's missing. We need to find her now."
Eugene stowed his phone and strode straight out of the hospital. Though his steps remained measured, Lorenzo could see the storm brewing in his expression and quickly followed him.
After stepping into the elevator, Eugene overheard two young nurses huddled together, furtively whispering over a phone.
"I think I met this woman before. Is she a homewrecker?" one of them murmured.
"You did?" the other whispered back.
"Yes, I think her name is Lorr... Lorr..."
"Lorraine? She's a homewrecker? How pathetic."
Eugene's eyes darkened menacingly as he abruptly snatched their phones from their hands.
"Hey, what are you..." one of the nurses exclaimed.
Lorenzo gave the two nurses a reassuring wave, signaling them to stay calm.
Eugene swiftly scanned the news photo on the screen—Lorraine was tied up on the second floor of a villa, with Ian standing right beside her.
The crowd glared at her with anger and reproach. She looked utterly exhausted, her head hanging low as if she barely had the strength to stand.
Eugene's voice turned icy. "What did you just say about her?"
"Um... Sh-she was outed online, they're saying she's a homewrecker." One of the nurses stammered, barely able to get the words out under his terrifying glare.
Eugene's expression turned thunderous as he returned their phones. The moment the elevator reached the ground floor, he stormed out with long, purposeful strides.
"Where is she?" Lorenzo kept pace with him.
"The Pedler residence." Eugene wrenched the car door open and slid into the driver's seat.
Lorenzo was about to follow, but Eugene stopped him. "I don't know what underhanded tactics Ian might use, or if he's drugged her. Stay at the hospital and be ready to give her emergency treatment if necessary."
"Alright." Lorenzo jolted, suddenly remembering. "Weren't you planning for her to conceive? What if she's been given something that could damage her health?"
Eugene's grip on the steering wheel locked rigid, his eyes burning crimson as he slammed the accelerator and roared off.
At the same time in the Pedler residence, Lorraine had no idea how much longer she had to endure this torment. The torrent of abuse showed no sign of stopping, even starting to spiral out of control.
Ian waited for the right moment and then spoke to Lorraine again, his tone calm but persuasive, "Lorraine, if you leave Eugene, your life will be so much better. I can send you somewhere no one knows you, somewhere even he can't find you.
"No one will judge you or point fingers at you every day. You'll be free to do whatever you want, live the life you enjoy, and finally be happy."
Lorraine weakly lifted her head, her eyes rimmed red and shimmering with unshed tears, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall. In a trembling yet resolute voice, she said, "Unless he tells me to leave, or I won't go anywhere."
This was the promise Lorraine made to Eugene—she would stay obediently by his side until the very moment he told her to leave. 'A promise is a promise—how could I ever go back to my word?
'Not a minute, not a second less, until that moment finally comes. Not a second sooner, not until that moment arrives.'
"You're so stubborn," Ian sneered. "Do you even realize what you'll bring him? Humiliation? Or ridicule? Don't tell me you believe Eugene would marry you?" He uttered the last words with a derisive laugh as if it were the most absurd notion in the world.
Lorraine froze. 'Will he ever marry me?' Lorraine wondered. She didn't know. Not the slightest clue. But she retorted, "Whether he marries me or not—what's it to you? At least back on the mountain, he chose to kiss me, not Norah."
Ian's handsome face froze for a split second before blossoming into a deceptively warm smile. "Then by all means," he purred, "watch how 'homewrecker' imprints in your whole life."
Suddenly, a commotion erupted at the grand entrance. The doors were violently flung open from outside. Everyone was shocked, heads snapping toward the commotion—There stood Eugene!
He arrived at the party dressed simply in black slacks and a crisp, tailored white shirt—completely casual as if he didn't care what anyone thought. Yet his commanding presence remained undiminished.
Someone tried to greet him, "Mr. Moore, nice to meet you." Without sparing a glance at the crowd's insincere smiles, Eugene strode directly to the foot of the staircase. He looked up at Lorraine, who stood on the upper floor.
Lorraine's lashes fluttered weakly, her eyes brimming with tears that threatened to spill over. 'He must know everything already. But why did he still come?' Eugene, you fool.' She couldn't help but think.
Lorraine stared at him and then shook her head gently but firmly to tell him not to come any closer to her in front of all these people. Because he would only be like her—a target of public scorn.
Seeing her stir slightly, Eugene eased just a fraction. Yet, step by resolute step, he climbed upward, unwavering, until he came to a firm halt midway on the stairs and stood his ground. He went no further.
Ian drawled lazily, "Mr. Moore, come to join my party?" Their eyes locked for a heartbeat—hostility flared between them, raw and undisguised.
He was warning Eugene—there's no need to risk your reputation for a woman like her. Not worth the trouble. In Ian's opinion, women were all just playthings, no different from the remote-controlled cars or model airplanes he played when he was a kid.
To noble guys like them, Lorraine's worth even less than a paper airplane he folded.
Eugene took a few more steady steps forward, his footfalls echoing like a familiar drumbeat, resonating deep in everyone's heart.
Tears Lorraine had been holding back for so long finally spilled down her cheeks, even as she frantically shook her head at Eugene, begging him not to come any closer.
She looked like a complete fool, crying her heart out. And right now, in her eyes, Eugene looked just as much of a fool as she did.
Ian turned to her and murmured, "Tell me, do you think Eugene came here for you?"
Lorraine clenched her fingers tightly, met Eugene's gaze in silence, and whispered, "I was never worthy of him. So why go through all this.?"
She meant every word—not a single lie in it. Her gaze was heartbreakingly clear, yet filled with utter despair. It was as if she knew there was no hope, yet couldn't help but love him.
Her love was so small, so insignificant—like a fragile fern in a sunless cave, desperately straining toward the distant sunlight. Even if that sunlight would scorch her and bring about her end, she would still yearn for it, relishing every moment despite the pain.
Ian was stunned by her gaze—so full of solitary courage yet heartbreakingly vulnerable. He stared, transfixed—Tear tracks streaked down her pale, delicate face—tears that hadn't shed before.
She had held them back until the moment Eugene appeared, and they came flooding out uncontrollably. Looking at Lorraine like this, Ian suddenly felt a strange feeling in his chest—a whirlwind of emotions too fleeting to grasp, vanishing as quickly as they came.
Then, everyone in the room heard Eugene's voice—deep, measured, and leaving no room for argument—ring out, "I'm here to take my wife home."