“You hide behind your family’s influence, acting like everyone else is beneath you. You insult and smear people whenever you feel like it. You call Bexley lowly, but the truth is the two of you are utterly rotten.”
She leaned closer, her voice sharp.
“Rotten, right down to your souls.”
Her words settled heavily. Edgar, Elsie, Kaleb, and Jenifer all turned to look at her, their eyes filled with new respect. None of them had expected this young “man” to carry himself with such quiet strength—steady in chaos, sharp enough to calm a storm, and guided by a firm sense of right and wrong. He didn’t stand there like just a doctor but like someone born to lead, someone hiding many skills behind a calm face. Edgar felt his admiration deepen with every passing moment. A thought even drifted through his mind: if only this young “man” belonged to the Thompson family, it would be a blessing. Rita watched from the side, pride warming her chest. Her daughter never failed to surprise her.
Elliana ignored the stares and fixed her eyes on Amilia and Karlee.
“If I hadn’t witnessed this myself, I would have stayed out of it. But I did. So I have to speak up.” She pointed at Rita.
“She deserves an apology from you—on your knees.”
Her words sparked no remorse or shame in Amilia and Karlee. Instead, they only fanned the fire in the two women’s hearts.
“Yes. I insulted her. Big deal!” Karlee snapped.
“And I slandered her. What of it? She’s a lowly servant. She just has to bear whatever I do to her!”
“Exactly!” Amilia echoed, her temper rising.
“People would kill for the chance to work for the Thompsons! She works for my parents and even gets to attend to them personally—she’s been blessed beyond measure. A simple scolding is nothing. If she wants to stay here, she should learn to crawl at my feet like a dog.”
Elliana laughed, cold and sharp.
“Sometimes your shallowness is so thorough it almost passes for depth. You think you’re superior, but you’re probably a prehistoric imbecile.”
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Edgar and Kaleb shifted uneasily. Elsie’s face burned with shame. Amilia’s and Karlee’s absurd thinking brought disgrace on the family and had no place among them.
Elliana continued, her voice firm and clear, “Everyone is born equal. You don’t even have the right to insult a beggar in the street. Today I’ll teach you the basic respect you somehow missed during your upbringing. And you’ll taste what it feels like to be treated the way you treat others.”
Amilia scoffed.
“Hah! And who exactly would dare force me to apologize to Bexley?”
Karlee glared at Elliana and huffed in anger.
A slow smile curved Elliana’s lips.
“I suppose no one would force you.” As a Thompson by blood, Amilia lived wrapped in layers of protection no one dared cross.
“But I’d like to make you a deal.”
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