04. Final Decision

ROSEANNE

Night had fallen when I returned to the Moonveil mansion. The place that was supposed to be called home instead felt like hell to me. Tonight was the first night I appeared among my family after my long coma, and I knew they were not expecting me.

I entered the dining room with slow steps. The long table was filled with familiar faces, but none looked friendly. Aunt Eleanor, sat on the right side with her husband, Uncle Walter. At the end of the table was my cousin, Lavinia, who was busy with her cell phone but still gave me a disdainful look every now and then.

Grandpa Andreas still has two other sons, but tonight, I heard they cannot join us for dinner because they have business abroad.

“Oh, look, who’s finally risen from the brink of death,” Aunt Eleanor quipped in a high-pitched voice, a sarcastic smile spreading across her face.

I held my breath, trying to ignore her and sat in the chair usually reserved for me. But it seemed they didn't want to let me rest for a moment.

“Four months in a coma, and you’re still a burden,” Uncle Walter chimed in, his eyes filled with hatred as he stared at me. “I’ve spent too much time taking care of things while you were in a coma. If it weren’t for Father, I wouldn’t have bothered to do all that.”

“Whether alive or dead, you always cause us trouble,” Aunt Eleanor added.

I snorted, unable to bear to hear all their nonsense. 'It seems like they never look in the mirror, even though they are the biggest source of problems that always trouble Grandpa,' I muttered to myself.

“If it weren’t for Father’s mercy, you might have ended up as a homeless vagrant,” Uncle Walter once again uttered hurtful words to me. “I don’t understand why father brought you into this family when his own son had misbehaved as a child. He should have just thrown you out as revenge for Roland’s past actions.”

I clenched my fists under the table when Uncle Walter mentioned my father's name. I could have retorted all their words like in the past, but my head was still full of the arranged marriage that Grandpa forced on me and my cold conversation with Damian.

I choose to remain silent, just for tonight.

However, when Lavinia brought her body closer to the table and said pretty loudly, "Honestly, I don't know why Grandpa bothered to save you. You are of no use to this family," my patience began to wear thin.

I stared at her, my voice coming out coldly. “It’s no use? I thought you were pretty good at judging yourself, Lavinia. At least I’m not cheated out of hundreds of millions just because a stupid man played me.”

“Roseanne! You are so rude!” Lavinia immediately shouted angrily with a red face.

I had deliberately brought up the matter she had caused. If it were Uncle Walter and Aunt Eleanor talking, I could still restrain myself from responding. But not with Lavinia.

That woman had no right to belittle me when she was lower than a coward.

“Before you speak, you better pay attention to whether your words can attack me. If you continue to belittle me, I will not hesitate to tell you all your problems,” I said again.

The room froze for a moment. Lavinia opened her mouth to reply, but Uncle Walter interrupted her first.

“You talk too much for someone who should be dead,” he said. The words struck like a bolt of lightning.

I turned sharply to him. “What did you say, Uncle?”

“You heard me,” Uncle Walter said without hesitation. “You shouldn’t have to wake up again, Roseanne. Your life is a waste of time.”

I couldn’t hold myself back any longer. I stood up, glaring at Uncle Walter with hatred. “Uncle Walter, this is my life. You have absolutely no right to decide whether I should live or die. But realizing that all of you want me dead so badly, could it be that one of you is the mastermind behind the accident that caused me to fall into a coma, am I right?”

“How dare you accuse us, Roseanne! What basis do you have for saying that?! You don’t even have any evidence!” Aunt Eleanor was furious when she heard what I said.

I chuckled, finding this situation very funny. I could still speak calmly, but every bit of pressure in my voice made it clear that I was furious.

“I don’t need physical evidence to realize you are the masterminds. Come to think of it, the ones who hate me the most are indeed my own family members. You even wish that I would just die and never come back to this place.”

My gaze sharpened, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t going to keep quiet this time. “Aside from Grandpa, you all think I’m a burden, but you forget I never asked to be brought into this house. I didn’t even beg for your attention or affection. I also don’t care what you do because I only care about Grandpa. So stop treating me like I’m a problem that needs to be eliminated!”

“You!” Aunt Eleanor suddenly stood up, slapping my face hard. The sound of her slap echoed in the room.

My head spun for a moment from the blow, but the humiliation was far more painful than the pain on my cheek.

“How dare you talk to us like that!” She growled.

"It's enough!"

All heads turned toward the door when they heard a deep voice echoing through the dining room. Grandpa Andreas stood there, his eyes sweeping across the room with a sharp gaze. He walked over with calm steps, but his aura radiated undeniable anger.

“Eleanor, what are you thinking? Do you dare touch my granddaughter?” Grandpa Andreas’s voice was very cold as he spoke.

I froze in place, feeling disappointed and calm at the same time. Grandpa Andreas defended me like he used to, but I was also still very angry about his arranged marriage. He didn't even seem to care when we talked a while ago.

“She was the one who was rude to me first, Father,” Aunt Eleanor tried to defend herself.

“Shut your mouth!” he snapped, making Aunt Eleanor immediately fall silent. Grandpa Andreas then turned his gaze to everyone in the room.

“You are all a disgrace,” he said quietly, but menacingly. “Roseanne just woke up from a coma, and you treat her like this? You have shown the true nature of a loser.”

Uncle Walter banged the table in front of him, startling everyone. “Father! You’ve gone too far!” He could not accept what Grandpa had said.

Grandpa Andreas ignored Uncle Walter's words, he looked back at everyone and said, "I don't want anyone to look down on Roseanne anymore. Since she has returned to this family, she will be under my supervision again. If you dare to do anything to her, you deal directly with me." Grandpa's words were enough to explain that he didn't want anyone to fight back anymore.

As the one being talked about, I just kept quiet and couldn’t do anything then. My heart was too chaotic right now, and I felt like crying. A few hours ago, I felt like he was the source of my disappointment, but now Grandpa was my protector again. This feeling was too complicated to explain, so I just lowered my head and didn’t want to join in the conversation.

Grandpa Andreas sat at the head of the table, signalling for dinner to begin. Everyone began to eat in silence, an awkward atmosphere filling the room. I was already feeling nauseous and was sure I wouldn't be able to digest all the food that was placed before me.

About a few minutes later, after everyone had finished their dinner, Grandpa Andreas suddenly raised his hand again, stopping all movement and making everyone focus on him again.

“There’s one more thing I want to tell you tonight,” he said, making everyone curious, including me. “Roseanne is getting married to Damian Fenrison in two weeks.”

Instantly, the room became even quieter. Everyone stared at Grandpa in shock, and I was one of the most shocked. My hand gripped the iron fork so tightly that it hurt.

“What?! Damian Fenrison?!” Lavinia was the first to break the silence with her scream. “Grandpa, you’re kidding me, right?!” The woman looked very shocked and angry.

“I’m not kidding. Roseanne is going to marry Damian,” Grandpa Andreas replied shortly.

I could see Lavinia's eyes turning red from holding back her emotions. The woman clenched her two hands on each side and stared at me sharply from her place. I didn't know why she acted like that.

“Damian is our enemy, Father! He has been trying to bring us down for years. How could you decide to partner with him?! I don’t care if you want to marry Roseanne off to anyone because the child can get out of this house, but not Damian! I disagree because I don’t like him!” This time, Uncle Walter expressed his dislike for him.

“Shut your useless mouth, Walter. I don’t need your opinion at all,” Grandpa replied sharply. “The decision has been made, and the wedding will occur at the appointed time,” he continued even more firmly.

I wanted to scream and refuse, but my voice was stuck in my throat. I knew that nothing could change Andreas Moonveil's decision. He was the most powerful man in this family, and no one would dare to contradict him.