Chapter 7
Usually, my mom wouldn't even dare to raise her voice at Ashlyn.
But today, she totally lost it.
My dad's eyes nearly popped out of his head in shock.
"Are you out of your mind? What the hell are you doing?" he snapped.
But my mom wasn't backing down anymore.
She raised her hand and gave Ashlyn another slap.
My mom said, "She's just a homewrecker who clawed her way up, and she's got the nerve to bawl her eyes out?
"My daughter's been wronged so badly. Who am I supposed to turn to for justice?
"Today, I'm gonna beat this bitch to death and make her pay for my daughter!"
My dad shot up, about to swing his foot and kick my mom.
But I was faster. I grabbed her and pulled her aside just in time.
My mom gazed at me with affection in her eyes.
"My precious girl, I know I've let you suffer so much all these years," she said.
My tears started pouring down.
My mom never had much of an education.
With my dad being a college grad, she had always kept her head down around him.
From the tiniest decisions, like how many onions to buy, to everything else, my dad always had the final say.
Ever since I was a kid, he always looked out for my cousin.
He'd always say his brother was the one who footed the bill for his college.
So of course he had to be good to Ashlyn.
Ashlyn grew up in the countryside.
After we bought a house in the city, my dad had Ashlyn move in with us so she could attend middle school here.
That was when everything shifted.
Suddenly, we had two daughters in the house.
My dad insisted my mom raise Ashlyn as if she were her own.
Anything I had, Ashlyn had it too.
She even had things I didn't.
Eventually, my dad would buy her brand-new clothes, while I had to wear her old ones.
To my dad, it was just how things were.
He would say, "Ashlyn's a grown girl now. If she goes around looking all shabby, what will people say about our family?
"You're her little sister. What's wrong with wearing her hand-me-downs?"
My mom couldn't take it anymore, so she went behind my dad's back and bought me a brand-new dress.
But Ashlyn saw it, burst into tears, and ran straight back to her home in the village.
She said, "She buys nice things for her own daughter, but never for me.
"I'm just extra in that place.
"I don't want to be stuck living in someone else's house. I want my real mom and dad."
So my dad beat my mom so badly he broke her leg, and she was stuck in bed for months.
He even cut off her allowance after that.
And just because of that whole mess, everyone started saying he was the kind of guy who always paid back his debts and never forgot a favor.
He let his own wife and daughter suffer, all so he could play the part of the noble, stand-up man.
After that, whenever I felt hurt, I kept it to myself. I didn't dare tell my mom anymore.
She couldn't stand up for herself, and if I said anything, she'd be the one to suffer for it.
My dad forced me to file for divorce with Clifford today.
My mom went ballistic, kicking and screaming at Dad.
My mom, who had spent her whole life with her head down, seemed to have become someone else overnight.
She was fierce, her words sharp and unyielding.
She said, "Is that little tramp your secret love child with your brother's wife?
"Why else would you treat her better than your own daughter?"
My dad's face turned beet red, his eyes looked like they might pop out of his head from sheer rage.
"Why are you screeching like a lunatic, you damn shrew?" he roared.
He charged at my mom, fists raised, ready to strike her again.
But this time, the cops showed up just in time and stopped him.
"Stop right there!" one of the officers barked.
From the moment they showed up at our door, I knew Ashlyn wasn't going to back down until she got what she wanted.
So I had called the cops ahead of time.