Nathan's lips curled into a self-satisfied smirk. "Handling someone like Amy, who barely makes ends meet, is child's play."

"Alexander, let's leave Amy hanging for a while. I'll come up with a plan to make her beg to come back."

Alexander ignored Nathan's suggestion, his piercing gaze shifting to Victoria instead. "Victoria, you claimed you fell down the stairs accidentally. Why didn't you mention this earlier?"

A flicker of unease crossed Victoria's face. Unlike Nathan and Liam, Alexander had an uncanny ability to see through deception.

Tears pooled in her eyes as she met his stare. "I thought Ms. Sinclair was coming to apologize to Liam and you... I just wanted to bring her to see you both..."

"Maybe I was too eager. I reached for her, but I'm not sure if she pushed me away or if I simply lost my balance..."

Nathan cut in, "Alexander, Victoria was only trying to help. The security footage shows her attempting to bring Amy to you. She never accused Amy directly."

He lowered his voice. "Liam was the one who pointed fingers at Amy. Who would question a child's word? Besides, Amy's always been cruel to Victoria. If people assume the worst about her, that's on Amy."

Realizing the trap, Liam bowed his head. "Dad, I'm sorry. I must have misunderstood."

Victoria quickly interjected, "Alexander, Liam's just a boy. It's natural for him to make mistakes. If anyone should be blamed, it's me. I shouldn't have approached Ms. Sinclair..."

Her pleading eyes met Alexander's. "Please don't punish Liam. Haven't I suffered enough?"

Liam watched Victoria shoulder the blame, gratitude and resentment warring within him.

Of course, Victoria was the compassionate one. His mother, meanwhile, seemed to take pleasure in provoking him. Unbeknownst to him, Victoria had masterfully shifted responsibility onto him while extricating herself from the situation.

Alexander's stern expression softened slightly. "Victoria, this isn't your fault. You wouldn't have fallen if you hadn't been trying to reach Amy. Now, focus on recovering."

As he spoke, Alexander's phone vibrated.

Charlotte's anxious voice came through the line. "Alexander, Mom's out of medication, and Amy hasn't delivered the new batch. She's been bedridden all day with one of her migraines—worse than usual. You need to make Amy bring those pills immediately!"

Alexander frowned. "What does Amy have to do with Mom's medication?"

"Alexander, you know Mom's suffered these headaches for years. No conventional treatment worked. Then about two years ago, Amy started bringing her some special herbal remedy."

"Against all odds, it actually helped. She's been supplying it regularly ever since."

"But now she's three days late!"

Charlotte's voice sharpened. "Do you think she's withholding it deliberately to punish Mom?"

"Whatever issues she has with us, she can't play games with Mom's health!"

A heavy silence followed before Alexander responded, "She's been doing this for two years?"

"At least," Charlotte confirmed.

"I've consulted every specialist imaginable with minimal results. What exactly is Amy giving her?"

Charlotte hesitated. "Some ancient herbal formula, she claimed. Mom had it analyzed—her doctors said it was safe. But you know these chronic conditions take time..."