In Love With My Bully-Chapter 82: Past Echoes

After my mother’s funeral, life slowly started moving again. Or at least, everyone else’s did.

The house felt bigger now.

I had stayed behind at the mansion to keep my father company. Nita and Queen had returned to her apartment, and I brought Chayara with me since the judge maintained she should stay with me until a decision was made.

Dad and I sat in the dimly lit living room, the soft blue glow of the television flickering against the walls as we watched some game neither of us was actually paying attention to. He handed me a bottle of beer without looking at me, the sound of the cap popping off breaking the silence between us.

"When are you leaving?" he asked casually, taking a swig of his own drink.

"Next week."

"Good. I can have my house back."

I gave him a look. "Pretend to be a little sad, will you?"

A small smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. "I just want to get busy, actually. Going back to work will help distract me from how lonely my life will be from here on out."

I exhaled slowly, "Yeah, I feel you."

He turned his head slightly, "Nah... don’t compare yourself to me. I lost my wife. You choose to be alone."

I shrugged, unable to argue with that. "True. It’s still a hard choice, though."

He took another sip. "Nita told me she accepted a job with Victor."

I nodded. "Yeah." She hadn’t told me herself, but I knew. Victor had called to let me know.

Dad raised a skeptical brow. "So, you’re just going to leave her to start working with him? A man who is clearly interested in her?"

I clenched my jaw. "She’s single now. She can do whatever the hell she wants."

His expression didn’t change. "Is she?"

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I know you guys are still fucking."

I nearly choked on my drink. "For God’s sake, Dad, could you try not to make it sound so dirty?"

He shrugged. "What? How else is it supposed to sound? You guys aren’t getting back together, so it is actually fucking."

"Oh boy. I am not having this conversation with you." I stood up quickly, desperate to escape before he said something even more uncomfortable.

"Are you going to tell her you’re leaving?" He asked before I could make my escape.

I hesitated. "No. It’ll just make it harder than it already is."

Nita’s POV

Three weeks since Abby’s funeral, and I still felt her absence in every part of my life. She had been more than just a mother-in-law; she had been a second mother to me. Someone I could confide in when I didn’t feel comfortable talking to my own mom. There were things she understood about me that even Richard hadn’t. Losing her felt like losing a piece of myself.

But life, as it always does, kept moving. I had started working for Victor as his auditor. The company wasn’t officially launched yet, but it was already generating income. My job was simple—go over the accounts weekly and send in a report. The pay wasn’t much, but it was something. The best part? I could work from home.

Richard and I had settled into a routine. Every weekend, he would pick up Queen in the morning and return her at night.

But that Saturday, I waited all morning, expecting his usual text saying he was on his way. It never came. By noon, I was pacing the living room, checking my phone more often than I cared to admit. By evening, my stomach twisted with unease. I didn’t want to call him—I didn’t want to seem desperate—but something didn’t feel right.

What if something had happened?

I hesitated, then finally picked up my phone and made a video call. He answered after a few rings.

The moment his face appeared on the screen, I could tell something was off. He looked... tired.

"Hey, hi," I greeted awkwardly, trying to mask my concern. "I was just calling to see if everything was alright. I thought you would come pick up Queen today."

"Oh, yeah. Right. I went on a mini vacation. I just wanted to get away for a while," he responded.

I blinked, "Oh. Okay. Uh... right. Okay."

I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to say to that. I had no right to ask for updates about his life anymore, but it still stung that he hadn’t told me.

"Just let me know when you get back," I added quickly.

"I will. Is Queen doing okay? Sleeping well?"

I smiled slightly. "Yeah. All I have to do is read a page from business magazines, and we both fall asleep from how boring it is."

He smirked. "Well, you know, you have to groom her early. My dad did the same with me."

I rolled my eyes. "You seriously think she’ll grow up to take over from you? What if you have other kids? What if she wants to do something else?"

He leaned back against what looked like a hotel headboard. "She’s the queen of the Numero empire. Always will be. Plus, she’s a Numero. She’ll definitely be her father’s daughter."

I sighed, shaking my head. "Ridiculous logic. Alright," I said, yawning. "I’m heading to bed. You have fun."

"Yeah. Goodnight."

*****

The scheduled court date arrived, and I had assumed Richard would show up, at least for this. Two weeks now, and he was still on his vacation. Even if he had relinquished rights to Chayara, he could try to be here for his father. It wasn’t my place to be upset, but it still gnawed at me.

I sat behind Mr. Numero, my hands folded on my lap, watching as Miss Kingston stepped up to the podium.

She turned to the judge, "Your Honor, the opposing counsel would like to paint my client, Mr. Numero, as a heartless man who took a child from his mother without just cause. But the truth is far from that. Miss Lilian Moore is not just an unfit grandmother; she is dangerous."

Lilian sat motionless at the defendant’s table, her fingers tightly gripping the edge of her blazer. Her lawyer, a middle-aged man with graying hair, leaned forward in his chair, clearly prepared for a fight.

Miss Kingston continued. "Let’s talk about the past, shall we? Years ago, after their affair ended, Mr. Numero made repeated efforts to ensure a healthy co-parenting relationship. However, the defendant was not interested in co-parenting, she was interested in control. She used Sam as leverage, threatening his life whenever Mr. Numero did not comply with her demands. There were multiple instances where she stated, either directly or indirectly, that if she couldn’t have my client, then she would kill the child."

There was a murmur among those seated in the courtroom. Even I felt my breath hitch. I glanced at Mr. Numero, who was completely still.

Lilian’s lawyer stood up. "Objection, Your Honor! These are baseless accusations. Where is the proof?"

"I have here..." she handed some documents over to the court. "a medical report from thirty years ago in which a certain Sam Moore, whose last name was later changed, was treated for fluid in his lungs."

"I also have his nanny in court today, who was an eyewitness, if you care to listen to her story. Finally, I have a recorded video from the biological father of the child himself, who cannot be here because he is currently incarcerated for the kidnapping of Mrs. Benita Numero and the attempted murder of Mr. Richard Numero Junior."

She turned to the screen at the front of the courtroom, where a video began playing.

Sam appeared on the screen, "I know that I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I’ve let my anger control me for years, and I’ve hurt people because of it. But I know where that anger came from. My mother fed it to me."

Lilian visibly flinched at the words.

Sam continued, "I loved my mother, even though I found out about her later in life. I still do, but she is not well. I would hate for my Chayara to end up like me, driven by revenge. I want her to have a good and peaceful life, one in which my mother isn’t a part of. I do not want her raised with the kind of hate my mother planted in me."

I swallowed hard.

"Chayara deserves better. She deserves stability, love, and a family that won’t use her as a pawn in a game of revenge."

When the video ended, the room went silent.

I turned slightly, watching Lilian. She sat frozen, her lips pressed into a thin line.

Her lawyer, to his credit, tried to regain control of the situation. "Your Honor, let’s not forget who the Numeros are. There have been numerous allegations over the years regarding their involvement in illegal activities. Drug trafficking, money laundering—should we really take their word over that of a mother?"

Miss Kingston was unfazed. "Those allegations were nothing more than an unfounded witch hunt by the authorities, something that has never been proven. However, the evidence against Lilian Moore is not just hearsay. It’s documented. It’s real."

She turned to face the judge directly. "Your Honor, my client, Mr. Numero, made a difficult decision years ago when he took Sam from his mother. He did what he thought was best for his son. And though Sam’s life may not have been perfect, we cannot let history repeat itself with Chayara."

The judge remained silent for a long moment before finally saying, "This court will adjourn until a final decision is made. We will reconvene in one week."

With that, the gavel slammed down, and the session was dismissed.

As soon as we were on the courthouse steps, I turned to Mr. Numero. "How did you get Sam to say all that?"

He looked at me for a long moment before replying, "I told him the truth about his mother."

I stared at him, speechless.

After a long pause, I shook my head. "Why didn’t you bring this up when Richard was fighting for custody?"

He looked away for a moment before answering. "Because I couldn’t break Abby’s heart with the details of my relationship with Lilian."

Right. That made sense.

We walked down the steps in silence before I asked, "Have you heard from Richard?"

Mr. Numero nodded. "Yes, actually. He’s doing alright."

"Do you know when he’ll be back?" I tried to sound casual, but I wasn’t sure how well I was pulling it off.

Mr. Numero gave me a knowing look. "No, why? If you miss him, you know you can tell him, right?"

I let out a short laugh, shaking my head. "No. That would just complicate things even more."

"You sure?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. And it’s not me missing him per se," I corrected. "I just don’t think Queen should stay this long without seeing her father, especially at this age."

He nodded as if accepting that answer, though I wasn’t sure he believed me.

Changing the subject, he asked, "How’s the job with Victor?"

"It’s fine," I said with a shrug. "We haven’t officially launched yet, so there’s not much to do."

"And is the young man behaving himself?"

I laughed. "What if he isn’t? I’m single again, remember?"

Mr. Numero scoffed. "Single my ass."

He laughed, shaking his head as he offered his hand to help me down the steps.