From Ashes of Scandal to His Embrace (Laurinda) novel Chapter 117

Laurinda stepped into the infirmary and immediately caught the tension in the air. Adolphus stood there, his eyes cold and fixed on Irvin, while Irvin looked downright defiant, refusing to back down.

“Can you seriously get a grip for once? How many times have I told you, you can’t just use that drug whenever you feel like it?”

Irvin wouldn’t even meet Adolphus’s eyes. Instead, he shot back, voice hard, “I promised I wouldn’t use it on anyone else, but I never said anything about Sam.”

Adolphus realized there was no reasoning with him, so he turned to Egan. “When you head back to Cabinda, take him with you. Let him talk to Cathleen and ask her what really happened between her and Sam. This can’t keep going like this.”

Every time Irvin saw Sam, he lashed out. Even if the drug wasn’t deadly, it could still do real damage. He needed to stop.

“I’m not going back to Cabinda,” Irvin muttered.

“Fine. Then call Cathleen. Does she really think she can just run away and dump all the blame on Sam? He’s suffered just as much as she has.”

Adolphus was clearly losing his patience. Normally, he kept out of other people’s drama, but Irvin was pushing him too far.

As long as Irvin was here, Sam couldn’t just avoid him forever.

Irvin seemed taken aback that Adolphus was actually sticking up for Sam. He clenched his jaw, disappointment written all over his face.

“You never used to interfere in this. You can’t just cover for him because he’s your friend.”

Adolphus let out a short, humorless laugh. “If I wanted to cover for him, you’d be out of here already. I kept out of it before because I didn’t know what was really going on between him and Cathleen. Now that I do, I’m not letting you keep acting out.”

“I know you don’t believe a word I say right now. That’s why I want you to ask Cathleen yourself. If she won’t tell you, then tell her what you’ve been doing to Sam. If she has any conscience at all, she’ll tell you the truth.”

Adolphus was done arguing. He waved Irvin off, telling him to just go make the call.

Irvin realized Adolphus was genuinely angry, and his stubbornness finally cracked a little. He took out his phone and stepped away.

“Finn had Harden give it to me. It’s an invite to his celebration party.”

The second he heard Finn’s name, Adolphus looked suspicious. “I’ll go with you.”

“Alright.”

“Cool. I’ll get my stuff done. Do you want me to find a dress for you?”

“No need. The Gates family isn’t that important.”

Laurinda waved him off, letting him get back to whatever he needed to do. She had her own plans, and there was no way she was dressing up just for Finn Gates.

She found a sunny spot in the infirmary, settled in with a book on her lap, and started reading and scribbling notes. Whatever she was up to, nobody seemed to know, and Laurinda wasn’t about to explain.