The Supreme Power Behind a Wheelchair

Chapter 7: An Unshakable Resolve

Adrian swung his fist in a fit of rage, but Damien moved with surprising speed. Even in a wheelchair, his movements were precise. With a quick motion, he caught Adrian's wrist before the punch could land on his face.

The grip was so strong it sounded like something cracked. Adrian screamed in pain, his piercing cry echoing through the room and freezing everyone in the Stratton family. “Aaaah!” he yelled, clutching at Damien's hand, trying to break free.

Damien stared at Adrian with cold, unwavering eyes. The tense atmosphere in the room shifted into a suffocating silence, broken only by Adrian’s ragged breaths and the faint creak of Damien’s wheelchair moving slightly forward. Still holding Adrian’s wrist, Damien spoke, his voice low but cutting through the air like a blade.

“Celeste is my wife,” he said firmly, directing his gaze to everyone in the room, who looked on in shock. “From now on, no one is allowed to mess with her. Consider this your warning.”

With that, Damien released Adrian’s wrist with a decisive shove. Adrian stumbled backward, his face pale with pain. Before anyone could react, Damien reached for Celeste’s waist and pulled her gently yet confidently onto his lap. Celeste could only gape, too stunned to speak.

Without another word, Damien started rolling his wheelchair, carrying himself and Celeste out of the meeting room. All eyes followed them, paralyzed by Damien’s bold and unexpected actions.

Behind them, Adrian’s furious voice rang out. “I’ll kill you! Just wait!” he screamed, his voice hoarse with pain and rage. The Stratton family quickly surrounded Adrian, trying to calm him as he clutched his twisted wrist.

The family matriarch, however, merely looked at Adrian with icy disdain before turning away and leaving the room. With her assistant’s help, she departed without a word. Disgusted by the humiliating commotion, she chose to isolate herself in her quarters. Her silence cut deeper than any reprimand could.

After the matriarch’s exit, Adrian started whining to his mother, Eleanor Stratton. His usual smug expression had crumbled into one of pitiful complaint.

“Did you see what Celeste did to me, Mom? She even got her cripple of a husband to attack me!” he cried, his tone dripping with self-pity.

Eleanor sighed heavily, trying to console her son. “Adrian, calm down. We’ll figure out a way to handle this.”

But Adrian shook his head furiously. “How can I calm down? What if Grandma gets mad at me and decides not to hand over the company to me?” he said, his voice filled with fear and frustration.

From across the room, their father, George Stratton, finally spoke up. “Why do you keep whining about that?” he snapped sharply. “Celeste is your sister. Do you want us to turn against one of our own just to coddle you? Stop this nonsense, Adrian!”

“Why does Dad always take Celeste’s side?” Adrian shot back, his eyes glistening with tears. Turning back to his mother, he sought her support once again.

“Mom,” he said, his tone pleading, “That guy, Damien, needs to be kicked out of this family. He’s nothing but trouble for Celeste. If we don’t act now, he’s going to ruin our family’s reputation.”

Eleanor was silent, her heart torn with worry and indecision. She knew Damien’s actions couldn’t be ignored, but she also couldn’t outright dismiss Celeste, her eldest daughter.

Meanwhile, Adrian quietly began hatching a devious plan. He knew their grandmother held the key to everything. If he could regain her trust, Celeste and Damien’s positions would crumble completely.

“I need to win Grandma back,” he muttered under his breath as a doctor, called by his mother, began examining his injured hand. “And the company… I won’t let Celeste take what’s rightfully mine.”

Adrian’s face, once contorted in pain, now twisted into a cunning smirk. He wouldn’t let this incident derail his ambitions. In his mind, he was already crafting a scheme to destroy Damien and reclaim the company from Celeste’s grasp.

Eleanor, on the other hand, felt increasingly trapped between her two children. After ensuring Adrian received proper care, she and George decided to head home, leaving Adrian to stay at their grandmother’s villa.

*

After delaying their return out of unease, Celeste and Damien finally made their way home. The drive was quiet.

Once out of the car, Damien calmly wheeled himself behind Celeste, but his thoughts were racing. He knew his actions at the villa would have serious consequences. Even so, seeing Celeste’s silent demeanor, he decided not to break the quiet.

Celeste, on her part, couldn’t stop replaying the events in her mind. She couldn’t believe Damien, the man her family had always dismissed as useless, had stood up for her by hitting Adrian. More than that, the way Damien confidently pulled her onto his lap and walked—no, wheeled—away in front of the entire family kept flashing in her head. Her face warmed every time she thought about it.

But anxiety soon crept in. Celeste knew Adrian’s vindictive nature. He wouldn’t let Damien’s actions slide. Her thoughts spiraled, imagining all the ways her brother might retaliate.

When they reached the Stratton family home, Celeste hesitated at the door, unsure if she should enter. Damien noticed her expression and waited patiently for her to gather herself. Taking a deep breath, Celeste finally opened the door.

“Celeste, you’re back,” said George Stratton, her father, from the living room. He stood calmly, still dressed sharply after their earlier meeting at the villa. He and Eleanor had arrived home before them.

His gaze shifted to Damien, but there was no contempt or mockery in his expression. Instead, George gave a brief nod and said, “Come in.”

But before Damien could roll his wheelchair forward, another voice rang out from inside the house.

“He’s not allowed to come in!” shouted a woman in a sharp tone.

Celeste’s mother, Eleanor Stratton, appeared on the stairs leading to the second floor, her face twisted in anger. She stormed toward the door, blocking Damien before he could cross the threshold.

“Leave!” she commanded, her cold glare piercing through Damien like daggers.

Celeste froze in place. “Mom, what are you doing? This is our family home. Damien is my husband.”

“He may be your husband, but he’s not part of this family!” Eleanor retorted, her eyes hard. “Don’t you see what he’s done? He caused a scene in front of your grandmother and hit your brother!”

If Damien weren’t disabled and unremarkable, Eleanor might have forced herself to accept him. But in the end… Damien was just a poor man with no future and no real capabilities. To this day, she couldn’t accept him as her son-in-law.

Damien said nothing. When he started to turn his wheelchair around to leave, someone suddenly grabbed his arm, stopping him from moving.