Chapter 150: Top Of The Chain
As the tension in the room thickened, the doctor quietly excused himself, slipping out without a word, leaving behind the storm about to break.
Theo’s eyes sharpened the moment he recognized the old man. Kennedy. His jaw tightened as he instinctively moved closer to Daisy, shielding her with his presence. He bent down, his voice low against her ear. "I’ll call security..."
But Daisy’s grip shot up, clutching his hand with surprising strength. Her eyes, wide with fear and defiance, locked on his. She shook her head firmly, her voice trembling. "No. Don’t go. Don’t leave me..."
Seeing the way her eyes shook, Theo swallowed hard, his throat tight. "I won’t leave," he murmured softly, brushing his thumb over her knuckles. "I’ll just call my people to come... okay?"
While the quiet exchange lingered between them, Old Man Kennedy made his way further inside. His cane tapped against the floor with each slow, calculated step before he lowered himself onto the sofa with practiced ease.
"It’s been a while, hasn’t it, my sweet granddaughter?" His voice carried the arrogance of a man who never questioned his right to be obeyed, his chin lifted as his cold gaze fixed on Daisy lying in the bed.
Daisy’s entire body began to tremble, so violently that the blanket rustled around her. Her breaths came shallow and uneven, her fingers clutching Theo’s hand as though it was the only thing anchoring her.
Theo froze, stunned. He had never seen her like this before, so broken by fear that it stripped away all the fire he knew she carried. His chest tightened painfully at the sight.
"Daisy..." he whispered, leaning closer, his free hand brushing gently at her arm. "It’s okay. I’m here. You’re safe."
But his words seemed to barely reach her. Her wide eyes were fixed on the old man across the room, her lips parted but no words forming, only a faint shiver running through her frame.
Old Man Kennedy leaned back, watching the exchange with a cool, calculated smirk, as if her fear amused him.
"Remember when you visited me when you were eight?" he said, his tone deceptively soft, like he was recalling a cherished memory. "I told you... to be a good Kennedy, you need to show me your worth—"
"Stop spouting nonsense!" Theo snapped, his voice cutting like a blade. His hand tightened protectively around Daisy’s as he stood between her and the old man. "What is worth? She was never yours to judge. You disowned your own daughter the moment she married the man you didn’t approve of. Don’t act like Daisy is a Kennedy... because you made damn sure she wasn’t."
His eyes flicked sharply between Old Man Kennedy and Jasmine, fire and disgust burning in them both. "So don’t sit here pretending this is family business. You both forfeited that right a long time ago."
Daisy’s gaze dropped, her chest rising and falling too fast, voice breaking as she whispered, "Theo... help me, I feel suffocating..."
Theo’s heart lurched. Panic flashed in his eyes as he immediately turned to her, lowering himself to her level. "Hey, hey... look at me," he urged, cupping her trembling face with both hands. "I’m right here. Just breathe... with me, alright? In... and out... slow, like this."
He exaggerated his own breaths, steady and deep, desperate for her to follow as his thumbs brushed away the tears gathering in her lashes.
Theo kept his focus on Daisy, guiding her shaky breaths, his voice low and steady. "That’s it... in and out... I’ve got you."
But when he felt her trembling ease only slightly, his jaw clenched. In one swift motion, he pulled her gently against him, cradling her head to his chest and covering her ears with his hand as if shielding her from every poison word in the room.
His eyes shot up, blazing with fury at the intruders.
"That’s enough!" His voice thundered through the room, raw and unyielding. "Get out! Both of you! Now! Or I’ll have security drag you out myself!"
Old Man Kennedy didn’t even flinch. He flicked his tongue in mock disapproval, his gaze dripping with disdain. "Tsk, tsk, tsk... that mouth of yours. That’s exactly why you were never on my list—"
"Thank God for that," Theo cut in, his retort slicing the air. "Because I’ve never wanted to be on your damn list. Now do us both a favor and get lost... while I’m still showing a shred of respect to someone who should be thinking about his deathbed instead of threatening his own granddaughter."
The words came out sharp and smooth, too sharp for the Theo Daisy usually knew, his protective instinct drawing out a darker, steadier side of him.
Old Man Kennedy’s lips curved into a slow, mocking smile, unfazed by Theo’s bite. "Ah... such fire," he drawled, tapping his cane once against the floor. "But fire burns out quickly when it isn’t fed. Let’s see how long you can protect her once the world comes knocking."
Old Man Kennedy’s eyes lingered on Daisy, sharp and unrelenting, as though he were peeling her apart piece by piece. His tone dropped, low and deliberate.
"You’re weak, Daisy. And weak people always get crushed. No matter who stands beside them."
Something in the room snapped for her. Her chest heaved and her fingers trembled until she pressed them over her ears as if she could block out the memory. The present dissolved into a single, bright, awful moment from her childhood.
’A child of a nobody can only remain a nobody... unless you prove yourself.’ His voice had been cold and unforgiving that day. He had tapped his cane against the polished floor—once, twice and each strike a drumbeat in the small study that made her flinch. Jasmine had brought her there without her father knowing. The study door had clicked shut. The lock had felt like a cage.
He’d forced her to stand in the center of the room, hands at her sides, and told her not to move, not to cry. Hours stretched while he lectured her on "worth," bending his face close enough that his breath smelled like old tobacco and disdain.
’Your father?’ he’d said, smiling slowly, ’He’s dust. I could crush him with a flick of my fingers.’ He snapped his fingers then, soft and casual, like a judge pronouncing a sentence. The sound had been so small and final that the child in her had felt the world tilt.
He didn’t touch her, but the intimidation was total. The low voice, the cane tapping, the deliberate warmth of threat in every sentence. He humiliated her in front of servants, called her name a dozen times like testing whether she’d flinch, and kept returning to the same lesson—love is useless, loyalty is bought, weakness is punished. When at last the door opened and Jasmine led her out, she had been silent for days. The lesson had stayed.
Back in the hospital room, Daisy’s shoulders shook. She couldn’t form words, she only trembled into Theo’s chest when he pulled her into his embrace.
Theo tightened his arms around Daisy, protective and furious, a cold stone of anger settling in his gut. The air thickened, silence pressing down on the room. Jasmine’s lips parted as if to speak, but no words came out, only her uneasy glance darting between them.
Old Man Kennedy slowly pushed himself to his feet, the cane clicking against the floor with measured weight. "Let’s end this beautiful reunion here for today..." His voice was smooth, mocking. He tapped the cane once more, the sound echoing. "I will see you again, my dear granddaughter."
He strode toward the door, Jasmine immediately trailing behind him like a shadow. Just as his hand touched the frame, he paused. Turning his head ever so slightly, his sharp eyes locked on Theo.
"Don’t fool yourself," he said, his voice low, carrying an iron edge. "You and your father may think you sit at the top of the chain, but neither of you will ever surpass me. Remember this... what is meant to be in my grasp will always find its way back to me."
With that, he left, Jasmine slipping out after him, the door sliding shut and leaving the room weighted with his words.