Died On Stepsister and Boyfriend's Wedding Day

Lilith and Dorian's wedding was grand.

On the stage, my stepfather, Rayden Klein, and my mother repeatedly gave tearful reminders to Lilith while Clyde made jokes about Dorian's threats, creating a seemingly warm atmosphere.

The audience below the stage erupted in constant applause.

My soul drifted in the opposite direction, observing all of this in a daze.

Strangely, I didn't feel any pain at all.

Perhaps I should thank that murderer for his actions had numbed my broken heart, making it no longer unable to bear any pain.

With the wedding successfully concluded, Rayden and my mother saw off the remaining relatives.

As they were preparing to leave, a relative couldn't help but inquire, "Why is Adeline not present on such a joyous day?"

I saw my mother’s smile instantly vanish.

She explained, "Adeline was unhappy upon hearing that she was expected to give tens of thousands of dollars as a wedding gift. Clyde and I called her many times, but she just refused to come.

"She cares too much about money and even neglects her own family."

Belittling me seemed to have become my mother's subconscious habit.

What she asked me for wasn't just ten thousand dollars! It was two hundred thousand dollars!

These two hundred thousand dollars represented all the savings I had diligently accumulated over many years of hard work.

They all had a home, but I didn't.

So I wanted to use this money to buy a small house for myself in the city where I worked.

However, my mother asked me to give the money to Lilith to win herself a good reputation.

There was no way I would give this money to a demon who had ruined my life.

Why did you always have to sacrifice me, Mom? I was your own daughter!

The relative's face turned embarrassed, and she responded with empathy, "Sometimes, you have to be tough on her. Otherwise, she might believe she can do as she pleases without any consequences."

Due to my mother frequently speaking negatively about me, I was perceived as a misbehaved child in the eyes of my relatives.

I had gained a rather notorious reputation.

Actually, when my father was still alive and I was younger than five years old, his relatives were quite nice to me.

During Clyde's childhood, his playful nature led to an unfortunate incident where he accidentally caused a fire while playing with fire at home.

Tragically, my father died in the fire while trying to save Clyde and me who was sleeping in the room.

Later, in order to conceal the truth and protect Clyde, my mother asserted to everyone, "It was Adeline who insisted on playing with fire at home, resulting in the house catching fire. Kareem died because of saving her."

In tears, I desperately tried to defend myself, but no one would believe a five-year-old child.

They naturally assumed that I had chosen to lie in order to avoid accountability.

No one would question what my mother said, and everyone agreed that I was responsible for my father's death.

Since then, my mother might have felt a little guilty towards me, but this guilt did not last long.

Living as a woman with two children was undoubtedly challenging.

So, the hardships of life soon diminished the trace of guilt she carried.

On an ordinary evening, as I made my way to the bathroom, I unexpectedly saw my mother sitting on the balcony, silently shedding tears.

I ran over and hugged her from behind, hoping to provide some comfort.

However, in the next moment, she abruptly threw me to the floor and grabbed the nearby mop from the balcony, repeatedly striking me with it.

As the stick struck me, my mother's voice resonated with hysteria and resentment, piercing my heart with each word.

"It's all your fault. You were the one who caused your grandfather's death, and now Clyde has lost his father because of you. Why wasn't you the one who died? Why wasn't you!" she screamed.

I clutched onto myself, seeking solace but finding nowhere to hide. I dared not even utter a cry out loud.

No one would care about me anymore.

That was the case at that time.

A similar feeling of helplessness engulfed me when that man was strangling and assaulting me in the woods.