Chapter 68
Maxine was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing.
Cleo huffed and smacked her arm. “What’s so funny? Are you losing it?”
“No, just… Maxine laughed through the lump in her throat. Maybe it was because she’d been fighting alone for so long, and now someone had finally stepped up and said they’d stand with her. It hit her harder than she expected.
She reached out and pulled Cleo into a hug.
Cleo was caught off guard, but when she saw Maxine’s teary eyes, she got it right away.
“Hey, don’t cry,” she said. “It’s not a big deal. We’re close–of course, I’ve got your back. And with me helping, we’re definitely gonna crack this thing.”
Maxine wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. “Thanks, Cleo. Really. But I still mean what I said earlier–I have to do this myself.
This road was only going to get more dangerous. And even Maxine didn’t know where it would lead.
A few days ago, she might’ve gladly taken Cleo’s help. But now? She couldn’t do that. She was willing to take the risk, but she couldn’t drag Cleo into this abyss.
Cleo stared at Maxine, stunned. “What are you talking about? After all these years-”
“It’s because we’ve been friends for so long that I have to look out for you,” Maxine cut in.
Seeing Cleo frown, she forced a small smile. “Just think of it as me making a backup plan for Jessica. If something ever happens to me, at least she won’t be alone. I might need to leave her in your care.”
Cleo looked at Maxine’s slightly red eyes, then glanced away with a soft sigh. “You’re always like this–trying to carry everything by yourself.
“Honestly, if I were you, I’d just ask Sebastian for help. With his connections, bringing down Gabriel would be nothing.”
Maxine gave a quiet smile but didn’t respond.
Cleo had a point, but Maxine didn’t want Gabriel dead. She wanted Ivanna and Gabriel’s story to come to light. She wanted the world to see everything Gabriel had done and watch him answer for it all.
Then Cleo asked suddenly, “By the way, were you out earlier? When I called, it sounded like you were outside.”
Maxine thought back to her meeting with Valerie, and her mood grew heavy again. “I met Valerie earlier.”
She didn’t want to go into too much detail, so she gave a quick rundown of her day, steering the conversation elsewhere. “Brian’s been acting off lately. I don’t know what’s gotten into him.”
Cleo blinked. “What else could it be? He’s jealous. You used to revolve around him, but now, you barely give him the time of day. He and Sebastian are basically the same type. Of course, he can’t handle it.”
Maxine felt drained just hearing that. “Brian didn’t used to be like this.”
Cleo rolled her eyes. “Come on. Like father, like son. Unless something big knocks him down a peg, he’s not gonna change. That arrogance and ego? He got it straight from Sebastian. If you hadn’t filed for divorce, you probably never would’ve seen
- it.
