Divorced My Scum Husband, Married His Evil brother

"Why? Because I want Mommy to eat!" Mackie said excitedly. "That's why I'm with you, Uncle! I want Mommy to eat too!"

…

"Huh?" Vernon frowned. He gazed at his little niece, wanting a further explanation, but Mackie didn't seem to think it was that important. Because she resumed watching Spongebob while munching on the diced pumpkin in the soup.

Vernon continued staring at him and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

"By what?" Mackie responded— still with her eyes on the TV.

"Because you want your Mommy to eat too— what do you mean by that?" Vernon elaborated on his question, thinking that his niece didn't understand the question.

"Ah... Um… because Mommy rarely eats!" Mackie said.

"Rarely eats?"

"Un!" Mackie nodded, "Mommy rarely eats. I want to help Mommy, so she can eat!"

…

Vernon got a little annoyed because Mackie didn't seem to see this as an important topic. Her eyes were glued to the show, and she kept the remote by her side, ensuring that her Uncle wouldn't change the channel.

"Mackenzie, look at me when we're talking," Vernon ordered.

"Later, Uncle! I'm watching Spongebob!" Mackie insisted. "Look at that— Spongebob forgot to feed Gary. That's why Gary left!"

…

Vernon glanced at the screen and saw Spongebob crying because Gary left, searching for his pet everywhere, even though Spongebob was the one who forgot about Gary's existence in the first place.

It was a little weird that Vernon got uncomfortable watching this scene, but he did, and he returned his focus to his niece again.

Vernon wanted to scold Mackie for being impolite towards him but realized it wasn't his position to scold her since she wasn't his child.

So he waited until the episode ended, and Mackie was finally open to another question, "Mackie, why are you here with me? Why don't you accompany your Mommy?" Vernon asked.

Mackie finally turned her head towards Uncle Vernon and answered carefreely, "Because I want Mommy to eat! She's rarely eating anything, Uncle!"

"Rarely eating anything?" Vernon frowned. He thought she was only acting so scared because of his presence, but apparently, it was not the sole reason.

"Yes, whenever Mommy is sad, she will cry and not eat for days! Mackie remembers that Mommy only ate ice cubes or tea when she was… um… really sad at home!" Mackie replied.

'That's not normal,' Vernon thought. He had just realized how thin she was after last night because she always wore a puffy shirt or oversized one, so this must've happened for a long time.

"But it's okay, Uncle!" Mackie suddenly said. "Mommy said that it's normal for her not to eat. So it's fine!"

Mackie seemed to think it was normal, which was quite disturbing for Vernon. It was obviously not okay, but knowing that Mackie was only a seven-year-old kid made sense that she'd believe anything her mother said.

"Do you think it's okay?"

"Um… not really," Mackie replied. "Mackie always saw Mommy eating so little and not eating in front of Daddy. Mackie wants her to eat a lot, but Mommy said she is not hungry…."

"She always said that?"

"Un!" Mackie nodded. "She always said that she is not hungry, and when she eats too much, she will puke! She told Mackie I shouldn't force her to eat because it will be a waste!"

"That's why Mackie followed Uncle to the living room!" Mackie said. "I don't know if going to the living room will help Mommy eats, but Mackie will do it for her!"

…

Vernon sensed a much deeper problem beneath the explanation coming from his little niece. After all, Mackie was too little to understand any problem, especially when Chloe intentionally tried to hide it from her daughter.

'She was not this thin before I left,' Vernon thought. As much as he remembered, his sister-in-law always had a regular body. She was neither fat nor thin and was good at maintaining her weight because she cooked her food herself.

She also watched his diet when Vernon was little and seemed to be doing the same with Mackie. Because Mackie grew up at a healthy weight and was very energetic.

'But what about herself? Why is she so thin?' Vernon asked himself but couldn't come up with an answer.

He was absent for ten years. He intentionally cut contact with everyone in his family so he wouldn't feel so much pain.

He tried to escape by hooking up with so many girls, but eventually… he returned here…

But it was all for revenge to unleash the rage and unfair treatment that had been building up inside his heart for so long.

However, he expected his sister-in-law to live glamorously once he returned. His revenge would taste so sweet when he saw his glamorous sister-in-law, who mocked him, finally fall from grace.

Her crumbling marriage with Vincent was expected by Vernon. He knew what kind of man his Big brother was. He was basically the copy of his father, who cheated on his mother a lot, even when the kids were around.

But he didn't expect her condition to be so pitiful. He thought… at least she'd be using the money his Big brother gave her, just like how their mother tried to ignore their father's cheating by spending so much money on random stuff.

Vernon peeked from the sofa. His hawk-like eyes peered straight at the dining table far from the living room. It was blurry since he was myopic, so he picked up his reading glasses from the drawer beside the sofa to check on her.

He peered again and saw his sister-in-law trying her hardest to sip the ginger soup. Her face was even paler than before, and her hand was trembling, making it really difficult for her to hold the spoon. It also looked like she was in so much pain just swallowing a spoonful of pumpkin soup.

'What is wrong with her?' Vernon wondered. 'I'm already in here, far from her sight, and she still eats like she's in so much pain?'