Chapter 2: A Fake Painting

Words : 1922 Updated : Oct 23rd, 2025

"Who are you?" A flood of information crashed through Gabriel's mind, sending a splitting pain through his skull and forcing a scream from his lips. He snapped his eyes open and found himself on a hospital bed. He turned his head. A stunning woman sat at his bedside, her face lighting up with joy when she saw he was awake. "Thank goodness! You finally woke up! You scared me half to death. The doctor says it's just scrapes and bruises, but when you wouldn't wake up, I thought you were done for." She pressed a hand to her chest, trying to steady herself. The sudden jostling made his head swim. He had no time to appreciate her beauty. He glanced at the clock. It was eleven thirty. "Damn it. I'm going to be late!" "Where's my painting?" He sprang off the bed and searched the room. Startled, the woman blurted, "I hit yours and ruined it. Luckily, I've got one in my car. Take this for now!" "Thanks!" Without even looking, Gabriel grabbed the scroll and bolted out of the hospital room. "Hey! Leave me your number!" she called after him. "I'm Rosalyn Looske!" The only reply was the bang of the closing door. Gabriel tore down the street, then stopped short. He stared at his hands and listened to his own heartbeat. There was a mark on his palm that looked like a red birthmark, the exact same shape as the pendant he had bought. Tears poured down his face. A steady current of inner energy coursed through him. The Martial Foundation he'd thought destroyed had been restored. His mind brimmed with medical knowledge. Inner energy surged within him. All of it pointed to one thing. It was real. Every bit of it was real. Gabriel shouted in delight. It hadn't been a dream. It was real. "God, you finally answered me!" He looked up at the sky and shouted, tears streaming down his face. "This guy's nuts." "Must be. Sprinting one moment, bursting into tears the next." Passersby muttered as they gawked. Someone even snickered out loud, but Gabriel didn't care. If anything, it made him happier. The mockery only made it feel more real. "Why did the Jauncy family hunt me down back then?" "Who set me up?" His expression hardened as he murmured, "Since life has given me a second chance, I'll dig out the truth. If I don't take revenge, I don't deserve to be called a man." "And the network I worked so hard to build, why didn't they come looking for me?" "Still, until I know who's behind it, I'm stuck playing the live-in son-in-law." He decided to quietly investigate what had happened back then. Now that his Martial Foundation had recovered and he had his medical skills, the Jauncy family, and whoever was behind them, were in for his wrath. He could finally face Madison. He'd show her whether the husband her grandfather chose was really a useless nobody. He checked the time again, hailed a taxi, and rushed to the hotel. In the back seat, he still couldn't come down from the high of getting a second chance. He'd thought he would muddle through the rest of his life, but the universe had handed him a second chance. "For now, the most important thing is to hide my identity." When he reached the hotel entrance, Madison was already waiting. "Did you get Grandma's gift ready?" She looked him up and down, her gaze full of disgust. He lifted the scroll in his hand and smiled. "Yes. We won't embarrass ourselves this time." In the cab, he'd finally looked at the painting Rosalyn had given him. It put his original to shame. It was the real deal, an authentic Gary Warth. Madison didn't spare it a glance. She frowned and said, "Don't run your mouth later. All the relatives will be there. Their snide comments are pretty much the norm. No matter how nasty it gets, you just swallow it." Truth be told, she almost wished he'd push back for once, show a little backbone. But Gabriel had always endured in silence. She just didn't want him dragging her down and making her a laughingstock. He nodded with a faint, nonchalant smile. Seeing his attitude, Madison scoffed and walked straight into the hotel. Gabriel was used to it. He followed her with a wry smile. "Hey, Madison, what took you so long?" "Don't tell me you didn't bring a gift and you're too embarrassed to go in?" "Madison, did you prepare a surprise for Grandma?" Her relatives chatted warmly with Madison, leaving Gabriel on the sidelines. He didn't mind. If anything, he felt a touch of relief; fewer eyes meant fewer chances to be someone's punchline. Just as he thought he might slip through unnoticed, someone made sure he wouldn't. Madison's cousin, Eden Ades, had made a habit of picking on Gabriel. "Gabriel, what's that in your hand? Grandma's gift?" Eden looked him over with naked disdain. "You didn't buy that from a street vendor, did you?" "Yeah," Gabriel said truthfully. Laughter broke out among the relatives. Madison's face flushed at once. She hadn't expected him to embarrass her the moment they walked in. Yet, Madison didn't speak. She had never truly counted Gabriel as family. As long as she didn't get dragged into it, she would hold her tongue. "A loser stays a loser," Eden said with a smirk. "This is the effort you put into Grandma's gift? I have no idea what Grandpa ever saw in you." "Here, take a look at mine. This painting cost me thirty thousand dollars." He unfurled his scroll with a flourish. "Hurry up and toss your garbage. Don't make us look bad." Gabriel stayed silent and glanced at Madison. He remembered her warning not to shoot his mouth off, so he kept quiet. "Eden, that's enough. That's your money, not ours; No need to flaunt it," Madison said coolly. She hadn't planned to get involved, but their marriage was a matter of public knowledge. Even if they hadn't shared a bed in three years, even if she'd never let him touch her, it didn't change the fact that he was her husband. Gabriel stared at her, surprised. In the three years since he'd married into the Ades family, it was the first time she had spoken up for him. "Flaunt it? Madison, you think I'd show off to you and this loser?" Eden snorted. "I just think he doesn't respect Grandma. And you, do you not know any better? You knew you married a loser, and you still won't help him save his pathetic reputation? Hmph." "You..." Madison flushed. Ever since her grandfather passed, her standing in the family had plummeted, and her finances were nowhere near Eden's. Gabriel said evenly, "Go ahead and flaunt it if you want. I just worry you were conned and don't even know it. Or maybe you brought a fake to fool Grandma." "You can tell at a glance it's been artificially aged. Mine might be humble, but it's real. Unlike you, bringing a counterfeit to trick her." His words landed like a bombshell among the Ades. Every eye swung to him in shock. Gabriel had actually talked back to Eden. He had even called Eden's painting fake.

Chapter 2: A Fake Painting

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