The CEO's Amazing Ex-Wife Is Back (Thalassa and Kris)

Chapter

215

Rita's face went pale, her breath catching in her throat at the same time Bridget let out a gasp behind Karen.

"What... what did you just say?" Rita questioned, her voice barely above a whisper.

Karen closed her eyes, feeling the guilt, the shame, and the fear all crashing down on her.

She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. "Tessa isn't Kris's daughter."

Rita shook her head violently, stepping back as if she had been struck. "No. No, that can't be true."

"It is." Karen's voice cracked as she repeated the truth.

Rita's hand flew to her mouth. "Who... who is the father then?"

Karen hesitated, her fingers tightening around her dress. "Does it matter?"

"Yes, it matters!" Rita's voice rose, piercing the air with anger and disbelief. "Tell me who the father is." Karen looked away, the shame crawling up her spine. "It's Henry."

The silence that followed was suffocating. Rita blinked once, then twice, her breath quickening as the truth settled in.

"Henry?" She repeated, her voice thick with shock. "You mean Kris's friend?"

Karen opened her mouth to answer, but before she could get a word out, a stinging slap landed on her cheek, so hard it made her stumble back. Pain radiated across her face as she clutched her cheek in stunned silence.

"How could you?" Rita's voice was trembling with fury, her hand still raised. "How could you do something like that to a good man like Kris? You made him love and raise another man's child! You deceived him together with one of his best friends!"

Karen's eyes welled with tears, not from the pain of the slap, but from the disgust in her mother's eyes. She tried to defend herself, the words spilling out weakly. "Henry and Kris aren't friends anymore." "That doesn't matter!" Rita snapped, her eyes blazing with fury. "They were friends when you betrayed him! How could you deceive Kris into thinking Tessa was his? You used your pregnancy to force him into marrying you, knowing fully well he wasn't responsible for it!"

Karen's voice was shaking as she responded. "You know I've always loved Kris, Mother. I did it because I loved him!"

Rita's face twisted in disgust. "That's not love, Karen. That's selfishness! Do you even realize the pain this will cause Kris when he finds out?" Her voice dropped, heavy with emotion. "He loves Tessa so much... It'll destroy him, Karen."

Karen's breath hitched as she shook her head, her eyes desperate. "That's why Kris can't find out. Now do you understand, Mother? We can't give the evidence to the police. We need to protect this secret."

Rita's expression shifted from anger to disbelief, as though she couldn't comprehend the person standing before her. "Do you really think your secret is worth denying Thalassa her justice? Worth denying justice for the women Linda Miller trafficked? You're willing to protect a monster like Linda to cover up your lie?"

Karen's panic-intensified. What the hell had she been thinking when she decided to tell her mother the truth? She had thought it would make her mother understand and not give the evidence to the police, but now she realized she'd made a terrible mistake.

"No, Mother, please. You don't understand-"noveldrama

"I understand perfectly." Rita's voice was hollow now, full of sorrow. "I'm a failure. I have failed as a mother. Where did I go wrong with you?"

The words felt like knives in Karen's chest. She stepped closer, her voice trembling. "So what are you going to do, mother? You agree that Kris can't find out the truth, right?"

Rita's eyes filled with tears, her lips quivering. "I'm not going to let you drag me into this, Karen. I won't be your accomplice. I'm going to give the evidence to the police and tell Kris the truth."

Karen's world crumbled in an instant. She stared at her mother, wide-eyed in horror. "No... no, you can't!"

"I have to," Rita insisted. "Kris deserves to know. He's a good man, Karen. He doesn't deserve your deception."

Karen shook her head frantically.

"But he loves Tessa, mother. He's her father in every way that matters. Why destroy that? And think about Tessa! She loves Kris so much. He's the only father she knows. When Kris disowns her and stops treating her like his daughter, how do you think she will feel? Have you thought about that?"

Rita's face softened with sorrow. "I have thought about that. But Kris deserves the truth. He has the right

to know, even if it hurts. He deserves the chance to make his own choice."

Karen's breath came in shallow gasps as she ran her fingers through her hair, tears streaming down her face. "No, mum! No! You can't do this! You claim to love me, but it's obvious you don't. If you did, you wouldn't do this to me!"

Rita's voice softened, but her resolve didn't waver. "I love you, Karen. But that doesn't mean I have to lie for you. I won't be a part of this."

Karen's mind spun. She had to do something. She had to find a way to dissuade her mother.

Furiously wiping the tears from her face, she leveled her mother with a cold look. "If you tell Kris the truth,

I will hate you forever! Do you hear me? I will never forgive you! You'll have to forget that you have a daughter or a granddaughter!"

Rita's expression shattered with pain as Karen turned on her heel and stormed out of the house, the door slamming behind her.

Rita sank into the couch, burying her face in her hands. Her shoulders trembled as despair washed over her.

What was she going to do?