“Are you happy now?” Thomas asked.
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With all the guests gone, Thomas stared at Natasha, his face full of exhaustion and disappointment, while Natasha remained cold and distant.
Their bond waspletely broken. Even if the rk family wanted <i>to </i>object, with Alexei standing firmly behind Natasha, no one dared to say a word.
Besides, Natasha had made her position crystal clear tonight, airing the family’s dirtyundry for everyone to see.
Whether the ties were officially cut or not, outsiders already saw it as done.
By tomorrow, the rk family’s mess would be all anyone talked about in their social circle.
Thomas asked, “Was it really necessary to go this far?
“I know you
situation?
hold a grudge, and I get it. But how can you force Mom and Dad into this
“We could’ve talked things out in a much gentler way.”
Natasha said, her lips twisting in sarcasm, “I tried to be gentle. But did any of you ever actually listen to me?
“The only reason I can stand here and talk to you today is because I fought back.
“If I didn’t have the strength to resist, I’d be the one everyone despises, forced to marry man who hurt me, betrayed andughed at all over again.
the
“Would any of you have <i>stood </i>up for me then?”
“And how can you be so sure we wouldn’t?” Thomas pressed, his voice tinged with frustration.
Natasha met his eyes, calm and sharp. “Because you’ve all made it painfully clear to me over and over again.”
Thomas was left speechless, pain etched across his handsome face.
He thought, ‘Yeah, why did we never go after the ones who hurt her? Instead, we kept trying to control and pressure her at every turn.
‘It used to be different.
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If it were Olivia in the same situation, would we still expect her to marry her fiancé and be understanding toward Natasha?
‘No, chances are, the moment Lucas walked out in the middle of his proposal, we would’ve stormed over to the Wright family demanding answers.
When the livestream started tonight, Thomas could easily picture their parents rushing over to p Natasha and call her malicious.
He knew they would not stand up for her and try to make things right.
Watching the self–doubt, regret, and sadness flicker across his face, Natasha let out a wry. relievedugh.
She no longer needed her family to stand up for her.
Let’s go,‘ she said, reaching out to take Alexei’s hand and shing him a small smile.
Alexei gently patted her head.
He thought. If the soil isn’t right, how can a rose ever truly flourish?
But that doesn’t matter anymore. From now on, she will grow under my care
They turned and walked away from this ce that could no longer be called home to Natasha
But just as they were about to leave, Madeline, who had finally caught her breath, suddenly
rushed after them.
She grabbed Natasha’s hand, tears streaming down her face. “No, you can’t cut ties with us!
“Natasha, I’m your mother. Are you really going to turn your back on your mom?“
Natasha slowly but firmly pulled her hand away. “You were the one who gave up on me.”
“No, that’s not true. Natasha, I care more about Olivia because she’s not well.
30 not that I don’t love you. And we were just trying to make things right for you-”
“Mrs. rk“” Alcant’s dorp,manding voice interrupted her emotional outburst.
His cold gaze swept over the rk family, eyes sharp with warning
He said, “Some things are pointless to keep repeating, and honestly, I’ve had enough.
“When someone dies in a car ident, the bust person you should be rning is the driver.
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“Pushing the me onto a six–year–old girl is the biggest joke I’ve ever heard.
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“If that’s how you want to reason, then shouldn’t you be questioning the parents for failing to protect their six–year–old daughter?
“Let’s say, just for argument’s sake, Natasha really was the one who caused that ident all those years ago.
“Thew would’ve let a six–year–old go free. But you, as her parents, wanted to hold it over her head for the rest of her life?
“As far as I know, Miss Sutton’s father is an abusive gambler doing time in prison, and her mother’s just a regr housewife with no real skills.
“Getting adopted by your family was nothing short of a miracle for her. Itpletely turned her fate around.
“Money, parents, siblings–she’s got way more than Natasha ever did.
“Hell, some of it was supposed to be Natasha’s in the first ce. So tell me, where’s the injustice Olivia’s supposedly suffering?
“But your real daughter is the one who’s been left with absolutely nothing.”
Putting a price tag on a human life might sound heartless, but honestly, there was some truth to Alexei’s words.
If some regr person died, the payout their family would receive probably wouldn’t even be enough to buy one of Olivia’s designer purses.
‘Mr. Turner!” Olivia stepped forward and yelled angrily.
Tears clung to hershes, her face a striking blend of sorrow and stubborn pride. She looked pretty even when she was in pain.
She said, “I won’t say anything about you favoring Natasha. I don’t me her for that. But to belittle my mother’s life like this is just too arrogant.
“If I could, I’d give up everything I have just to bring her back. You have no idea how much I
love her!”
Her grief–stricken yet unwavering defense of her mother could move anyone who saw it.
Even the rk family, whose beliefs had just been shaken by Alexei, felt a pang of sympathy
for her.
<b>3/5 </b>
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Of course, people thought Alexei was so cold because he was a monster who didn’t associate with his family.
The rk family felt that it was inappropriate for Alexei to downy Olivia’s pain of losing her mother just because she’d gained something else.
Olivia felt that Natasha and the rk family both owed her.
Olivia kept saying she’d give everything up, but in reality, she clung to what she had tighter than anyone.
Alexei had seen way too many women like her. They would put on an act, always scheming and calcting.
He didn’t even think she was worth talking to.
Shooting a look of disgust at Olivia, who was still crying, he turned his gaze straight to Andrew, who was supporting Madeline.
He said, “Whether you’re doing this to make Natasha atone for her so–called sins or just trying to save your reputation, you know the answer better than anyone.
‘Mr. rk, I don’t want to hear another word about Natasha’s sins from your family.”
For the first time ever, Olivia waspletely ignored. She felt that she was burning with humiliation.
Andrew’s eyes widened in shock.
There was something about Alexei that made him feel ufortably exposed, as if Alexei could see right through him.
He hated to admit it, but the reason he treated Olivia better than Natasha was that he was
afraid.
He was afraid that people would say he’d abandoned Emilia, and that Natasha was to me for her death.
None of that was true, but the weight of public opinion was terrifying.
Madeline, who was always soft–hearted, already felt guilty about Emilia, so she tried even harder to make it up to Olivia.
They were just trying to protect their reputation.
As time went on, watching Olivia–so sweet, sensible, and always shining–while Natasha
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grew quieter, more rebellious, and harder to like, their favoritism just became a habit.
The ones who were truly despicable were always the adults.
“Natasha!” Madeline suddenly broke down, sobbing uncontrobly.
Andrew wrapped his arm around her, stopping her from running over to hug Natasha, his expression just as heartbroken.
But he knew that Alexei had justid down the final ultimatum. <fnead8> Newest update provided by find~novel</fnead8>
No matter how much they tried to make up for it, they had lost Natasha for good.
Morality was just a cage for those who let themselves be trapped.
Watching Natasha walk away, her hand firmly held in Alexei’s, the rk family stood there in
silence.
Noel felt a heavy weight in his chest. He used to think Olivia was so pitiful for losing her mom, and that Natasha was just cruel for always bullying her.
But he’d never realized Natasha had lost so much.
It seemed that no one in the rk family had ever stood by her side.
“Hey, Natasha, are you evering back?” he suddenly shouted, his voice breaking the silence.
<b>But </b>she didn’t answer. She didn’t even look back.
Noel kicked a stone hard across the ground, frustration bubbling inside him.
Honestly, I didn’t really hate her all that much, Noel admitted to himself.
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