Chapter 732
732 Chapter 731
Jake looked at the message on his phone and understood immediately.
Lewis had been keeping tabs on them for a while, just waiting for his grandmother to pass before dealing with each of them one by one.
A chill ran down Jake's spine for a moment, but he felt a sense of relief wash over him. He was thankful he'd finally wised up in the past few months and stopped going against his uncle.
Jake quickly replied, "Thank you, Uncle," and pulled up the location Lewis had sent him.
He then drove with Oliver to the given address.
...
Oliver was in denial until the very end. Following Lewis's directions, they arrived at the address and saw the car parked out front.
The second they stopped, Oliver bolted out of the car and rushed to the door, bursting inside without hesitation.
Through a large window, Jake stood watching as Oliver stormed in, seeing the shocked and panicked expressions on Marisa and the driver's faces and how Selena took a frightened step back.
He saw Oliver grab Marisa by the arm, violently yanking her toward the door in a fit of rage.
He was screaming, red-faced, and desperate, but somehow, he didn't seem threatening anymore.
The man who had once terrified Jake as a child, the father who seemed so untouchable, was gone. The man inside that house now was small and pitiful.
Jake found himself laughing softly. He couldn't understand what he had been so afraid of all those years.
With a quiet chuckle, Jake turned away and walked off.
He didn't look back.
That man wasn't worth looking back for.
Two days later, Jake received another message about his father.
Oliver was dead. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
The driver had accidentally killed him during a scuffle, and Marisa and Selena had helped bury the body in the basement.
All three were arrested.
When news of Oliver's death reached the Horton family, Jake was stunned. Even Melissa was taken aback for a moment.
Lewis's assistant, Tom, handled Oliver's funeral arrangements, eventually handing over the ashes to Jake and Melissa.
After a brief discussion, they decided. Since Oliver had hated being confined to the family home so much, it seemed only fitting to set him free.
They scattered his ashes into the ocean, letting him go where the wind would take him.
Oliver Horton's story had finally ended.
"So, does your mom still need to move back into the main house now that she's technically still part of the family?" In the Horton residence.
Lewis asked Jake after hearing what he had done with the ashes.
Jake shook his head. "No, we're fine staying where we are."
The concept of the Horton family's divisions had ceased to exist. The house and everything in it now belonged to Lewis. Jake saw no need for him and his mother to return. It would only force them to face people they had wronged, and living there wouldn't feel right.
Lewis gave a nod in response.
Without saying anything more, Jake turned to leave, but before he could take another step, a frail voice rang out behind him. "How could you treat your father like that?! You ungrateful brat! No altar for him, no remembrance—he'll be forgotten!"
It was Nathan who had overheard the conversation and stormed out of his room, looking like he had aged ten years overnight.
His posture was hunched, and his once proud frame weakened.
Old Mrs. Horton was buried the day before, and Julius hadn't taken Nathan away yet.
Jake stopped in his tracks and turned to face him. "Do you think that's what he cared about?"
Nathan froze.
Jake's voice remained calm. "What he cared about was why you abandoned my grandmother—his mother."
Nathan's face twisted in confusion, his brow furrowing.
Jake shook his head. "In the end, he was just a miserable man. But all of this? It was your fault. You were a coward. You should've stayed out of Clance, never reached for power. If all you cared about was your empire, you should have been crueler, but you couldn't even manage that. You weren't soft, but you weren't ruthless. You were the worst kind of man—one who couldn't choose."
Jake's words cut deep, and with that, he left without looking back.
Nathan, shaking with rage, tried to call after him, but the words wouldn't come. Instead, he collapsed to the ground, coughing up blood before passing out.
It was soon confirmed that Nathan Horton had Alzheimer's.
On the day he left Clance, he sat in the car wearing an adult diaper, laughing foolishly at everyone around him. He didn't recognize anyone anymore, and as he saw Lewis, he grinned and said, "Son, I'll come back to visit you!"
Lewis's expression stayed cold as he looked at Julius. "Take him back to the Oceanion estate."
Julius nodded silently, then sighed as he glanced around the now-empty house.
When they had first come here, the family had been whole, with old Mrs. Horton still alive.
Despite the bickering and tension, it had been lively.
Now, with her gone, the family was scattered.
Julius climbed into the car, and they disappeared around the corner.
Lewis stood watching the road for a moment. He was lost in thought when suddenly he felt warmth in his hand.
Surprised, he turned to see Keira beside him, her smile instantly softening his gaze.
"We should go home," she said, her voice gentle.
Home...
Even though his grandmother was gone, he still had her.
As long as she was there, he was home.
Lewis's voice was hoarse when he answered, "Yeah, let's go home."
Hand in hand, they walked back into the living room, but no sooner had they stepped inside than Erin appeared, unusually serious and without her usual pistachios.
She frowned at Keira. "You two need to quit the whole redemption drama. Keira, something's happened!"
Keira froze, her brow furrowing. "What happened?"
Erin stepped closer, her expression tense. "It's your mom."
Keira's heart skipped a beat, and before she even realized it, she had grabbed Erin by the collar, her eyes wild with panic. "What happened to my mom?"
Erin looked startled, clearly not expecting Keira to snap so quickly.
At that moment, Erin had a terrifying realization—if something had truly happened to Keira's mom, this petite woman might just tear the world apart.