Chapter 399: Chapter 399

Penny could feel her heart in her throat. While he was without a shadow of a doubt a total asshole, Anthony was still her dad and that had to count for something. She knew Adam’s end goal was to tear the company and the family down and she had stated that she would stand by his side.

But following through on that was another matter altogether. As she walked beside Arachne who was a few steps behind Adam and Melanie. Penny peered at Arachne’s face who was unsure if she should be amused or worried.

"What’s wrong Aun– I mean Ms. Arachne!" She asked, quickly correcting herself and making sure she sounded extra polite as to not offend the scary lady after Arachne directed a dubious glare in her direction.

"The madness in that woman is so unpredictable..." Arachne admitted after a moment of silence, mumbling in a voice so low, that Penny barely heard it herself even though she was walking right next to her.

"Madness? Auntie Melanie is often quiet and or cold. Not ever really mad..." Penny tilted her head in response. She didn’t know why but her gut instinct was telling her that it was appropriate that she whisper at tge same volume as Arachne.

"That girl’s obsesdion with my little snake is....unhealthy. While normally I would laugh or applaud this madness...given my current state, it would be unwise to be in close proximity..."

Penny’s lips became pursed before she asked the question on her mind: "What are you trying to say?"

Arachne sighed before she nodded her head towards Melanie who was happily explaining various minor changes to a quietly bewildered Adam. He was clearly caught offguard by her uncharacteriscally bright demeanour.

"If we did not have some form of blood ties to him, that one would not have smiled at us, she would have resorted to bloodshed." Get full chapters from novel~fire~net

Penny looked perplexed as Adam and Melanie entered an elevator. Penny was about to step in as well but was held back by Arachne who spoke up.

"I am not so good with encloeed spaces, we will take the next one. What floor do you want us to go to?"

Penny was about to ask what the big idea was until Penny saw Melanie’s eyes. They were locked onto her with a savage malice barely concealed within her gaze. However that look disappeared the moment Arachne spoke.

"Oh! I’m sorry! The destination is on the 17th floor. Jeremy will happily demonstrate his advancements once we go to his lab!"

Adam looked confused, directing a subtle queationig gaze towards Arachne who acted like there was nothing wrong.

"We’ll meet you there then." Arachne stated as a matter of fact. Adam’s expeession crumpled a bit but he went along with his mother’s intentions for now.

Once the doors of the elevator closed, Penny realized that she had stopped breathing for a second. Taking a deep breath, she spun on her heels and looked Arachne in the eyes and practically shouted

"What the hell was that?! She looked like she would have tried to murder me if I stepped inside the elevator!"

The corner of Arachne’s mouth twitched as she immediately retorted "You are right. She would have blatantly tried to murder you."

Penny back straightened at the candid responee betore she bared her teeth in annoyance as she shouted "But why would she have tried to kill me?!"

Arachne’s lips twitched again but she remained otherwise deadpan as she replied "Because Melanie is a psychopath who is in love with Adam. I believe the human word to describe her is.....yandere?"

Penny stood rooted on the spot, her expression going from annoyed and exasperated to one devoid of any form of emotion.

If one listened closely, one might even hear the sound of Windows crashing as her brain shut down, unable to comprehend what she had just heard.

It took a minute but the chime of the elevator opening again was enough to rouse Penny from her stupor.

"WHAT IN THE ALABAMA FUCKERY IS THAT?!"

The corner of Arachne’s lips trembled like a leaf in the wind. She was struggling very hard not to laugh but after countless years, it had almost become a habit for her to laugh at the craziness of mortals.

Additionally it didn’t help that Penny’s "Strike a Pose" skill activated at that exact moment. She stood frozen with one arm dramatically outstretched as if she had been struck by lightning. Her eyes were wide, her mouth trembling as she pointed at the elevator like it had personally betrayed her as dramatic music echoed in the hallway and a light shone down on her body.

"No. Absolutely not. Incest is not wincest. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not ever," she declared solemnly with an indignant tone

Arachne covered her mouth with one hand, her shoulders shaking ever so slightly.

"You think this is funny?" Penny snapped, spinning toward her with wild eyes.

"I think," Arachne said carefully, lowering her hand, "that you mortals never fail to surprise me. The chaos you create for yourselves... it is art."

"This is not art. This is a crime scene waiting to happen." Penny grabbed handfuls of her hair and groaned loudly enough that someone down the hall dropped their clipboard. "Why would she be into Adam anyway? He is mean. He is bossy. He is emotionally constipated. There are so many red flags waving around him I am getting dizzy just thinking about it!"

Arachne tilted her head. "And yet you still care about him."

Penny stopped mid-rant and scowled at the floor like it had personally insulted her.

"Okay, fine," she muttered reluctantly. "Yes, I care about him. But not like that. Ew. No. Adam is... he is like a big brother, alright?" She threw her hands in the air as if daring the universe to argue with her. "A big brother who is infuriating, bossy, and looks at people like he is deciding whether they deserve to keep breathing, but still. Family."

Arachne raised a brow. "I see....."

Penny crossed her arms and scowled, glaring at the floor as if it had personally betrayed her. "Yes, like a big brother. You know, the kind who makes you want to pull your hair out half the time but also somehow makes you feel safe. Ugh, it is so confusing sometimes."

Arachne’s lips twitched again, barely hiding her amusement. "Confusing, indeed. Mortals have a strange way of complicating what should be simple."

"Simple?" Penny echoed, incredulous. "It’s official! Being crazy is genetic!" Unwilling to continue with this conversation any longer, she stepped into the elevator and growled "Let’s go. I just wanna leave here as soon as I possibly again so I can get away from this family of freaks!"

Arachne had a wry smile on her face as she followed her from behind. Penny seemed to forget in that moment that she was also a part of that family.