Chapter 311
In his spacious apartment, the phone in Chris’s left pocket began to vibrate.
He had finished the food in his bowl and eaten about half the dishes on the table.
He set his utensils down beside the fake scar he had just peeled off the corner of his mouth. The thing had been glued on so tightly it had barely let him open his mouth to eat.
Gavin was usually dependable.
Sometimes, though, he could be absurd.
Still, considering how far Gavin had gone with this, Chris couldn’t really complain.
He took out his phone and checked the caller ID. His gaze darkened at once. This was the first time his uncle had called since everything that happened yesterday.
His thumb slid across the screen, and his tone stayed even. “Uncle Julian.”
On the other end, Julian Xander asked gently, “Have you had lunch yet?”
Chris gave a quiet sound of acknowledgment.
These days, Julian was the only member of the Xander family still living full–time at the estate. He was Chris’s uncle, his father’s younger brother, and by far the most even–tempered person in the family.
Out of both family loyalty and basic respect, Chris would never be too harsh with him.
But while Julian was good at running a company, he had failed badly as a father.
“Are you calling to ask for mercy for Steve?” Chris asked.
Julian’s hand trembled around the phone.
He hadn’t slept all night.
The more he thought back on how he had raised Steve over the years, the more ashamed he felt. Especially now, after Steve had done something that brought shame on the whole Xander family.
The night before, Julian had gone into the family memorial room, knelt before the family memorial, and asked forgiveness for failing as a father.
He and Sasha had both said that Steve was a disgrace to the Xander family, a stain on a family that had upheld its name for generations. Neither of them would step in. They would treat it as if they no longer had that son.
But even so, Sasha had quietly asked someone to check on Steve at the detention center. Early that morning, she had called Julian and told him through choked–back tears that Steve had a high fever, had passed out, and was covered in injuries. She asked if he could beg Chris to show mercy.
He and Sasha might have been living apart, but Steve was still their son. They loved him the same.
+25 Bonus
He rubbed his face hard. “I know how serious this is. What Steve did is beyond what the law can forgive, and beyond what the Xander family can forgive. But he is still my son. I have never asked you for anything, Chris. But for my sake, could you at least let him get medical treatment first?”
But Chris only said coldly, “He laid a hand on someone he never should have touched. The fact that I didn’t shoot him myself was already mercy. Just pretend you never had this son. I’ll take care of you in the future.”
“Chris…”
Julian wanted to say more, but all he heard was the dead tone.
Chris had hung up.
Julian sat in the rocking chair by the courtyard, sighing over and over. The second he thought of what Sasha had told him about Steve’s condition, his eyes turned red again.
The sharp sound of high heels came closer.
He looked up.
Sasha had just arrived at the Xander estate. Her eyes were red as she asked, “Did you call Chris?”
Julian frowned. “He said no.”
“You’re his uncle. Even that wasn’t enough?” Sasha fought to keep her emotions in check. “If that still won’t work, then bring up his parents. There’s no way he wouldn’t listen.”

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