Ch. 631..635: Divorced My Scum Husband, Married His Evil brother Chapter 631-635

Chapter 631

Vernon was surprised by how this kid handled his intimidation and harsh truth. He thought the boy would cry and throw a tantrum like no other. Vernon would have a reason to kick them out in the pretense that Chloe shouldn't keep four unrestrained and uneducated boys that would only give her a headache.

But this boy…

"But um… can we stay tonight, Uncle?" Aaron asked politely. "My brothers are very tired. I don't want to wake them up right now…."

Vernon glanced at those three boys who slept together on the bed. They looked very exhausted, based on Chloe's story about Chelsea's insanity and her mother's murder. It was pretty obvious these boys had it very rough tonight.

Vernon gritted his teeth as he realized that he had grown a little sympathy for these boys, especially the oldest ones. He must've been the one suffering the most, yet he still acted strong for his brothers.

'Fuck, now I feel like an asshole for wanting to kick them out,' Vernon cursed himself. 'Maybe I shouldn't let Chloe put too much of her idea inside my mind, now I become too weak minded and weak hearted.'

"U—Uncle?" Aaron called him. "Can we stay for tonight?"

Honestly, Aaron already realized that he wouldn't be able to stay with Aunt the moment he saw this scary man in front of him. He didn't look happy. In fact, he looked very angry when he saw them.

Aaron learned early that they weren't really wanted by anyone in this world. Their father often neglected them, and their mother despised them—even wanted to kill them.

The only ones caring for them were Gran and Aunt Chloe.

But now that Aunt Chloe was with this scary man, Aaron had lost hope. He just wished he could somehow protect his brothers.

Vernon clicked his tongue and scolded, "Why are you still up at this hour? It's almost two. Go sleep with your brothers!"

Aaron's heart jumped when he got scolded. He looked up and saw the man looking away from him. But Aaron was very happy because this meant he could at least spend the night here with his brothers.

"Yes! Thank you, Uncle!"

Aaron turned around and quickly joined his little brothers on the bed. He tucked the blanket and hugged Nathan, who was the nearest to him.

Vernon stared at those boys for a while and then left the room.

He closed the door and leaned on it for a while, trying to calm his aching heart.

He was angry at himself for being so softhearted. The previous him wouldn't even think twice about kicking these boys out.

For him, his goal was only Chloe.

He didn't hesitate to throw Mackie away if she became too much of a problem for him. He didn't care if Chloe would be sad or scared of him because all he needed was her by his side, even if that meant he needed to chain her.

But she changed him over time.

Just like what she did to him when he was a kid, Chloe slowly made him a better person, gentler, and a lot calmer when handling difficult stuff.

Now he didn't even have the heart to kick these boys out, thanks to Chloe's influence on him.

"You don't know how much you matter to me, Chloe…." Vernon murmured. "You're truly the woman that I need. Sometimes I'm annoyed that you keep using your emotions. But now, I can't even let go of my emotions.."

Vernon finally calmed down after some time. He glanced at the door next to him and then checked the time. Then he scoffed, "Two in the morning, that old woman must be wide awake by now."

"Damn, I can't believe I have to ask for her help. But she's the only one that can help me right now," Vernon said. He walked to the next room and then knocked on the door.

Knock. Knock.

There was no answer from the other side. So Vernon knocked again and said, "This is Vernon, open the door."

Then, in less than ten seconds, the door was opened.

Dorothea was in her pajamas, peeking from the slightly opened door, and asked, "Yes, Vernon?"

Vernon peered at the old woman. As expected, he still didn't have any good opinion of her. Every time he saw her, there were only bad memories flashed in his mind, making him resent her even more.

But he also wanted to know if this woman had truly changed. Chloe was so adamant, claiming that Dorothea wasn't the same abusive woman. She realized her wrongdoing and tried to make it up.

'But she wasn't the one suffering under Dorothea's hand. I did,' Vernon thought.

"Let me in, I want to talk with you," Vernon said.

Dorothea hesitated for a second. She was scared that she might have done something to offend Vernon. She didn't want to get kicked out just when she thought her life finally had some light in it.

"I won't kick you out if you do something for me," Vernon said again, giving assurance because he realized that Dorothea was scared of that reason.

Dorothea finally gave in and opened the door wide for her son.

Vernon entered the room and was a tad surprised by how tidy Dorothea had become. She basically lived in this suite these days, but Vernon specifically told the janitor not to clean this place because he didn't want another person he needed to watch over it. He had to minimize any possibility of Dorothea getting discovered, which meant he had to minimize her contact with anyone else.

So he expected her room to be dirty and smelly.

Surprisingly, the room was clean, and it smelled nice, "Did you ask Chloe to clean your room?" Vernon asked sarcastically. He couldn't believe that Dorothea would clean her own room.

A woman like Dorothea wouldn't even touch the dirt on her shirt, let alone clean dirty places like the toilet.

Dorothea smiled. She sat on the couch and replied, "I did it myself. Chloe is too busy taking care of you and Mackie."

Chapter 632

"Yeah, that's bullshit," Vernon sneered. He sat on the opposite couch facing Dorothea and added, "Do you really think I believe that you're the ones doing the dirty jobs? Stop guilt tripping my woman to do your stuff."

Dorothea decided to just stay silent after realizing that Vernon wouldn't believe her anyway. So she went straight to the point, "Why are you knocking at my door at this hour? Do you need something?"

Vernon's sneer and mocking grin dissipated instantly. He forgot that he had knocked on her door because of those four boys.

He crossed his arms and asked, "What do you do when I'm not around?"

"Uh, I help Chloe to cook, clean my room, and watch TV. Sometimes I take care of Mackie when she wants to play with me during her free time," Dorothea said. She wanted to be honest with everything so her son wouldn't be suspicious of her. "I've cut my contact with anyone from the Gray family since I'm currently in hiding."

Vernon nodded. It was the same explanation that Chloe gave to him. Dorothea was like a regular old woman these days, so she was harmless.

Of course, Vernon still couldn't believe Dorothea. He didn't even believe Chloe because he knew that Chloe often tried to protect Dorothea from his rage.

So this would be the best time to prove if this woman had some good bone in her.

"I want you to follow me," Vernon said. He got up and walked to the door.

Dorothea became tense instantly. She thought Vernon wanted to kick her out right now, "W—Where are we going?"

Vernon halted his step and replied, "To the next room. Follow me."

Dorothea was scared that Vernon might do something to her. Maybe he was at his boiling point and wanted to beat her up to make it even between them.

She was a frail woman now, so she couldn't defend herself, let alone fight back.

'Just like what I did back then…' Dorothea lamented. 'I beat him when he was just a defenseless kid. How could I be so cruel? Why did I unleash my rage on Vernon when my real rage is directed to Vaughn instead?'

That question often popped into Dorothea's mind. She blamed herself for everything she did back then and wished she could be more like Chloe.

Because Chloe never hurt her daughter, Mackie turned out to be a great child with confidence, intelligence, and emotional maturity. She was also fiercely protective and loved her mother so much.

Something that Dorothea didn't get from either of her sons.

'Maybe after he beat me up tonight, he can finally let go of his rage and grudge against me. I hope we can start anew as a pair of mother and son. I hope this nightmare will end.'

Thus, after gathering enough courage to face her execution, Dorothea got up from her seat and then walked out of her room.

He saw the door next to hers was already opened and assumed Vernon was waiting inside.

So she dragged her feet to the next room and entered.

She saw Vernon standing near the bed, looking at four little boys huddled together. They were in a deep sleep, so none of them noticed that Vernon and Dorothea had entered the room.

Dorothea gasped. Trains of bad assumptions ran wild in her mind. She guessed that Vernon must've had a lot of relationships before he met with Chloe again, and the four boys on the bed were his children from his previous flings.

Somehow, this was even scarier than her getting beaten up by Vernon. Because these boys would probably break Chloe's heart, and Dorothea already had a strong connection with Chloe. She wouldn't want to see her daughter-in-law be saddened by this problem.

Chloe had a strong motherly instinct, but caring for four children from Vernon's past unmarried flings would be hard for her.

"Come here," Vernon commanded while his eyes were still on the four boys.

Dorothea approached him carefully and then asked, "Vernon, did you… did you not use condoms when you had sex with other women before? How could you make four?!"

Vernon glared at her and replied, "These boys are Chloe's nephews. They are her sister's sons, Judith's grandsons."

Dorothea didn't know much about Chloe's side of the family. But she knew that Chloe was born into a lower class with a single mother that supported the whole family.

Dorothea thought Vincent married the wrong woman back then, so she simply ignored Chloe's existence.

Well, she still believed that Vincent married the wrong woman even now. Because he shouldn't be married in the first place. Men like Vincent and Vaughn wouldn't understand love as they believed all women were just items they could treat as cruelly as they wanted to.

But then she remembered how Judith tried to extort money from her just because Dorothea asked for Chloe's number. It was so ridiculous that her opinion of Chloe's family worsened after that.

Vincent already told her that Chloe's family members were a bunch of leeches who always asked for money, and Judith's action proved that Vincent was right.

"Where's their mother?" Dorothea asked. She headed to the bed and sat on the edge, checking the boys who looked thin and pale, proof that they weren't well fed.

"In jail," Vernon replied curtly. "Chelsea—their mother murdered Judith, and then tried to murder these boys as well. But she failed because these boys barricaded themselves in a room. Now that their father is gone, their mother in jail, and their grandma died, nobody can take care of them except their aunt, so Chloe brought them here without my permission."

Dorothea was shocked by the revelation. She turned her neck towards Vernon and asked, "W—What was the motive behind the murder? Did something happen in the house?"

"Insanity," Vernon replied. "That bitch is insane, and she's persuaded by one man to kill her entire family in exchange for hand-in-marriage."

Dorothea gasped, "Who's that crazy man? How could he be so cruel to kill an old woman and four defenseless boys?!"

Vernon paused for a moment, he stared at Dorothea and replied, "Vincent."

Chapter 633

Vincent?!"

Vernon put his index over his lips and looked at the kids, telling Dorothea to shut up, or these boys might wake up.

Dorothea covered her mouth instantly but still couldn't hide her shock. She stared at Vernon with disbelief. She shook her head a few times and then murmured, "H—How could that be? Is he that cruel?"

"He is, you can ask Chloe about this. I got it from her, and she got this information from the Officer when she got called to the police department this evening," Vernon informed. He peered at his mother, who seemed to be in too much shock that her brain short-circuited on the spot. "Why are you surprised anyway? Do you not realize what a terrible monster he is?"

"I know he is terrible. I know he's abusive as well. It's the reason why I decided to come to you and Chloe, because I realize he is just as bad as your father…." Dorothea lamented. "But I never knew that he could be so cruel to target kids."

"He will do anything to get some reactions from Chloe," Vernon said. He remembered that moment when Chloe got beaten up in the Headmaster's office. He saw how hard Chloe tried to mask her pain so Vernon wouldn't overreact. But every time Vernon was reminded of that moment, his blood would boil to the point that he wanted to go to Vincent's house right now and crush that bastard's head.

Dorothea noticed that Vernon had already clenched his hands until his veins were showing. She quickly patted her son's arm to wake him up, "Vernon, take a deep breath. You know that Chloe wouldn't want you to make a rash judgment."

Vernon took a deep breath to calm himself down, and then continued, "Well, now you know, these boys have nobody in this world except for Chloe, and knowing that Vincent will not tolerate any failure in his plan. He might actually start hunting these boys just to perfect his plan to get reactions from Chloe."

"Then how about Judith…" Dorothea asked. "Does Chloe know about her mother's death? Chloe told me they're estranged now, but I think she will still be sad, right? Did you comfort her?"

Vernon's heartbeat skipped for a second, and then he lowered his head, "I was so caught up with these boys' problems that I argued with Chloe all night about this. I simply ignored her loss. But she also didn't mention her mother at all, so I thought she's not that affected."

"Oh boy, of course she is affected," Dorothea said. "Chloe is a highly empathic person, Vernon. You can't put him in the same shoes as you and I."

"I know, I was so angry at her for bringing these boys…."

"Then you should apologize to her about this later, okay?" Dorothea lectured. "Now, let's focus on these boys. What are you going to do with them?"

"I was thinking about sending them to foster care before. But I changed my mind," Vernon said. "I don't want Chloe to be sad, so I'll have to figure out how to handle this problem."

"The first problem is the Child Protection Service. They will eventually check the boys' condition after at least a week. So I'm planning to rent a small apartment under someone's name and let Chloe and these boys pretend they're living there. Chloe will show that the boys are well taken care of, and there is nothing to worry."

"Second, we need someone to watch over them, and we absolutely cannot allow someone from outside to do that. I don't want to risk getting discovered by Vincent from an external source," Vernon said. He stared at his mother and added, "Dorothea, I want you to be the one who takes care of them."

Dorothea already guessed it would eventually lead to this. She went silent after that, not rejecting the idea nor accepting it.

She turned her head toward the boys and asked, "Do you really believe that I can take care of these boys?"

"Frankly, I don't," Vernon replied curtly. "You have a bad track record, Dorothea. You beat me up when I was a kid and you neglected me to the point that I have no more familial love for you by the time I am seven years old."

Dorothea's heart ached when she heard that.

She knew it was all true, but she still felt sad whenever she had to face her past sins.

She wanted to fix things between them, but it seemed that Vernon would never give her one. So she would be forever branded as the terrible mother, the monster in Vernon's life.

And she deserved it. She knew she deserved all of it.

Sensing that Dorothea was sad by his statement, Vernon added, "But, Chloe told me that I should try to at least tolerate you, and that I did. So I decided to give you one more chance, Dorothea."

"Take care of these boys, watch over them and treat them like how you want to fix things with me," Vernon said. "Treat them as your sons, how you want your sons to actually grow up to become good men. Then I will… I will perhaps forgive you for all the horrible things you did to me back then."

…

Dorothea stared at the boys for a while and slowly leaned to wipe the sweat on their foreheads. All of them seemed to have collective nightmares, maybe because of what happened tonight, and Dorothea felt an absurd amount of guilt knowing their misfortune was caused by her son.

Dorothea felt indirectly responsible for the damage she had caused by spoiling Vincent rotten until he became just like his late father.

She carefully tucked the blanket until it reached half of their body. After making sure they were comfortable in their sleep, she kissed them on the forehead one by one.

Vernon watched how Dorothea took care of the boy and couldn't help to feel a bit jealous because he had never been treated that kindly by his own mother.

 

Chapter 634

But there was no point in being jealous. He was a grown-up now, and he still at least had a good memory of being taken care of by his Big sis Chloe when he was young. It was the only memory he cherished, knowing there was a woman who could stuff his cold, empty heart with love and warmth.

Thus, after calming himself, Vernon asked, "So, what do you think? Do you want to take the job to take care of these boys?"

Dorothea got up from the bed and faced Vernon, "Yes, I agree," she replied. There was a fiery determination in her eyes. "I will show you that I am a changed woman, Vernon. I may not be the good mother that you need when you are a kid, but I will show you that I can be a good mother for these boys, and good grandma for Mackie and your next children with Chloe."

Vernon would lie if he said he wasn't happy with Dorothea's resolve.

She was right. Dorothea missed her chance to raise Vernon, but luckily, Chloe did that.

But she could be a good grandma for his children and also a good mother for these boys.

'I am sure Chloe will be happy with this arrangement, I can't wait to hug her and reconcile as soon as possible,' Vernon thought.

"Then I will start by moving all of you to two suites with a connecting door. So you will have your own room, and those boys will have theirs as well," Vernon said. "You don't need to watch them 24/7, because I think most of them are well behaved, especially the oldest one," Vernon pointed at Aaron, who was hugging his brother.

"That boy has matured way too fast. He's very well spoken, a little timid, and also polite. I think he will also help taking care of his brothers and helping you with house chores," Vernon said. "Remember, other than the ones who'll do laundry and deliver food if you need to, there will be nobody who will enter the suites. All of you are still in hiding, and we cannot afford a fuck up."

"Yes, I understand," Dorothea said. She stared at her son, who looked so tough and decisive. He was so different compared to Vincent, who was an egomaniac.

Maybe because Vernon was raised by Chloe, not her. So he grew up to be the better one among her sons.

She felt slightly emotional and asked timidly, "Vernon, can I… hug you?"

"Huh?" Vernon frowned. "What for?"

"I just… I just want to hug you. I have no intention other than hugging my son…." Dorothea said.

Vernon went silent for a long time, which made it awkward for Dorothea, so she changed her mind, "I—It's fine, I'm sorry for—"

"Make it quick," Vernon said.

"Sorry?"

"I said, make it quick before I change my mind," Vernon repeated.

Dorothea was shocked, but she quickly opened her arms and hugged her son. She rested her head on her son's chest, and her voice became hoarse instantly as she tried to hold her tears, "My son, you've grown to be a great man…."

"You should thank Chloe for that," Vernon said. He tried to play it cool, but his body was trembling right now.

He was fighting the urge to hug her back simply because he thought that Dorothea didn't deserve to get hugged by him.

"I know. I have a lifetime debt for Chloe. She raised you well, and she also gave me the second chance in life," Dorothea said. "My son, I'm sorry for everything I did for you. I'll spend my lifetime proving that I'm a better woman now, and I can be good too."

Vernon said nothing, but he allowed his mother to hug him tighter for a long time before she separated herself.

Dorothea wiped the tears at the edge of her eyes and said, "Don't worry about these boys, I will tell them about myself tomorrow morning. But you should also tell Chloe about this new arrangement, so she can help me and these boys to connect better. I know that Chloe must be the only one they trust right now."

Vernon nodded, "I'll return to the penthouse now. All of you will move to the new suites with connecting doors by tomorrow morning."

Vernon swiftly left the room to calm his heart. He entered the elevator and took plenty of deep breaths because there was excruciating pain in his heart.

For some reason, he actually wanted to hug his old mother. He wanted to tell his mother that he also wanted to reconcile with her. He wanted to forgive her for all the terrible things she did when he was young.

But his pride prevented him from doing so. He didn't want to look easy, and this conflict in his heart only worsened his heartache.

"Damn, I can't believe that I'm actually thinking about forgiving Dorothea. Chloe really should pat me in the head for being so kind these days," Vernon complained.

He reached the top floor and unlocked the penthouse door with his fingerprint. His eyes darted to his bedroom door. He didn't know if Chloe was still inside or if she had returned to her room downstairs.

But there was only one way to find out.

Vernon opened the bedroom door and then saw the sight of Chloe sleeping on his bed. She was curled up like a ball and looked fragile and sad, especially with the dried tears at the corner of her eyes.

Well, of course, she was sad.

Vernon knew that Chloe always cried alone after they had a fight. That was why he tried his best not to fight with her, or else he had to see her tears.

Vernon carefully rolled on the bed, joining Chloe, and spooned her from behind. He pulled Chloe deeper towards his embrace and whispered, "Don't worry about anything, my love. I will do everything as long as you're with me. As long as you can be happy only with me."

Chapter 635

Chloe woke up feeling stuffy the next morning as if she had been hugged by a bear the whole night.

"Umh…" Chloe felt ticklish on her nape because someone was blowing warm air from his nose, so she looked over her shoulder and saw Vernon sleeping comfortably. He was mumbling something and hugged her deeper into his embrace, not letting go even though Chloe tried to wiggle her body out of his bear hug.

Vernon frowned when Chloe moved too much. He grumbled and then squinted his eyes open. He saw that Chloe had been tossing and turning so much inside his embrace that now they were facing each other instead of the spooning position Vernon did when he went to sleep with her.

Vernon smiled and kissed Chloe on the head, "Morning, sweetheart."

Chloe stared at Vernon for a long time. She was unsure if something had happened after last night when he stormed out of the penthouse. But he seemed to be a lot calmer and in a better mood.

"Vernon, I'm sorry," Chloe said in a low voice.

"Hm? Did you do something wrong?" Vernon asked. He looked genuinely confused by her apology.

"Um, about last night," Chloe mentioned. She observed Vernon's expression to ensure she didn't offend him. "I'm sorry for making you upset last night. I'll try to find a way to take care of the boys without your help…."

Vernon closed his eyes again, seemingly uninterested in the story's topic, "I took care of that problem already. Let's just sleep again, okay? It's a holiday."

"But there is no holiday for you…."

"It's Mackie's holiday, right? Then let me sleep more since we don't need to prepare breakfast for her, I'll go to the office around ten," Vernon said. "I want to sleep more with you by my side."

Chloe's eyes widened. She had a lot of questions in mind, mainly wanting to know if Vernon did something to the boys, such as kicking them out in the middle of the night.

But then she realized Vernon might be harsh and strict sometimes, but he wasn't evil. He wouldn't kick four defenseless boys in the middle of New York night. It was too dangerous.

At least, that was the assurance she needed for now.

She saw that Vernon had already fallen into deep sleep again. After days of nonstop working, he must've been so tired, so she decided not to disturb his sleep and snuggled with him for the holiday morning. After all, Mackie must be sleeping comfortably in her bed today.

Chloe woke up again around nine-thirty in the morning. But it seemed that Vernon was too tired to wake up.

So she carefully pushed his body away and sneaked out of the bedroom. She washed her face in the bathroom outside and then started cooking breakfast for her small family.

She was in a great mood today, knowing she could finally use her hands to care for her family again.

Chloe cooked pancakes in the morning. She also prepared herbal tea for Vernon and hot chocolate for Mackie. She put three plates with four stacks of pancakes on the dining table and then packed two boxes full of hot pancakes for the boys and Dorothea downstairs.

Right after she finished packing the pancakes, her daughter came up the stairs and greeted her, "Good morning, Mommy! First day of winter break! I'm so happy!"

Chloe smiled at her daughter, who was as energetic as always, "Morning, dear. You should eat your pancake while it's hot. I will also make you a hot chocolate since it's very cold outside," Chloe said. She put all the food boxes inside a wheeled container and added, "Mommy will go to the tenth floor, okay?"

Mackie tilted her head, "What's wrong, Mommy? Why are you bringing that box? Do you need my help?"

"Ah, well, Mommy wants to send food for your Grandma," Chloe said. She didn't mention the boys yet because she wanted to make it a better surprise for Mackie when they were in a better condition.

"Grandma still can't eat with us?" Mackie pouted. "Then let's go down, Mommy. I want to eat with Grandma too!"

"Oh, you shouldn't, dear. Who will accompany your Uncle for breakfast?"

"Does Uncle need me to have breakfast with him?" Mackie asked.

"Of course! He will be lonely eating breakfast without you. So you should stay here, okay?"

Mackie huffed, "Okay then. Come back sooner, Mommy, or I will eat your pancake too!" Mackie threatened, and Chloe only chuckled in response.

She went out while pulling the wheeled container and went down to the tenth floor, where the boys and Dorothea were staying. She knocked on Dorothea's door first since she usually woke up early.

But there was no answer.

Chloe frowned, "Huh, that's unusual."

She knocked on the door a few more times, but there was no answer.

"What's wrong with her? Maybe she's sick? It's winter after all, it's not good for her fragile body…." Chloe assumed. But somehow, she couldn't shake off this bad feeling in her heart.

She was anxious that maybe Vernon had had enough of this whole thing and kicked Dorothea out of the apartment.

"Oh no, don't tell me that he also—" Chloe dared not to continue her sentence. She rushed to the next door and knocked on it harder.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Boys, open the door!"

…

There was nothing but silence. Chloe began to panic. She knocked a few more times, and even harder this time.

Knock! Knock! Knock!!

"Boys! Answer me!"

…

"Oh no, did Vernon actually kick both the boys and Dorothea last night?!" Chloe was trying hard to stay positive, but whenever she remembered about her poor nephews that just went through a traumatic event and also her frail mother-in-law, she couldn't help being anxious.

"N–No, Vernon is not that evil," Chloe assureed herself. Thus, she took her phone from her pocket and called Vernon.

The call was connected after a few beeps, and she heard the voice of Vernon munching his pancake. He didn't seem to be in the same distress as Chloe was experiencing right now.