Chapter 5
Lynn's POV
I didn't want to engage. I didn't even spare her a glance, simply moving to step past her.
The moment we brushed shoulders, Melissa said with apparent regret,
"Anna's angelic little face, with those two dimples when she smiled. Thinking about such an adorable child just gone like that. It's truly a pity."
I thought I'd gone numb from the pain, but hearing these words, thinking of my daughter's face, my heart still couldn't help but clench.
I stopped and looked at Melissa.
"You never planned to save her, did you? From beginning to end, you were just toying with me, wanting to watch me get hope then experience even more painful despair, weren't you?"
"So what if I was?"
Melissa raised an eyebrow languidly, lifting a cold smile.
"Adrian and I are truly in love. You're just a tool the Blackwood family used to silence outsiders. The child you gave birth to was never supposed to exist. A child who never should have been born."
"Melissa!!"
Bastard?
Deserved to die?
In an instant, all my remaining rationality was destroyed.
Furious, I raised my hand and slapped Melissa hard across the face.
Melissa staggered backward from the blow.
"You..."
She covered her face, now bearing a clear handprint, but abnormally showed no anger. Instead, tears instantly welled up as a flash of triumph passed through her eyes.
"What are you doing!"
A harsh rebuke came from behind.
The next moment, a large hand clamped on my shoulder, roughly and angrily pulling me away.
The force made me lose balance. Caught off guard, I crashed into the wall.
My head hit the hard wall heavily. Stars immediately burst before my eyes, and intense dizziness struck, nearly making me unable to stand.
Perhaps realizing belatedly that he'd used too much force, Adrian's expression froze.
"You-"
Just then, the massive decorative oil painting hanging on the wall behind me made an unusual sound.
Immediately after, the entire painting suddenly loosened and fell directly down.
"Watch out!"
Adrian's pupils contracted sharply. His body reacted on instinct before his brain could process.
Not knowing what was happening, I saw his expression turn horrified as he pulled Melissa into his arms and quickly turned, his back toward me.
The next instant.
Standing beneath the huge oil painting, I took the full impact.
I didn't even feel the pain before darkness swallowed my consciousness. I was knocked unconscious on the spot.
When I regained consciousness and opened my eyes, I saw the white ceiling of a hospital room.
Then my head felt like it was exploding with pain, my body like it had been run over by wheels.
"You're awake?"
Adrian's concerned voice came from beside me, carrying barely perceptible relief.
But I just stared at the ceiling without even moving my eyes.
"Are you uncomfortable anywhere else? Are you dizzy? The doctor said you have a mild concussion, with multiple contusions on your back and legs. You need to stay in the hospital for observation for a few days..."
He reached out, wanting to touch my forehead.
I tilted my head slightly, avoiding his touch.
Adrian's hand froze in midair. Displeasure flashed in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.
He withdrew his hand, his tone growing heavier.
"Even if you hate Melissa, you shouldn't have hit her. You left her face all red. How could you strike so hard?"
Ha...
Remembering how he'd protected Melissa in his arms before I was knocked unconscious, I wasn't at all surprised to be questioned like this when I woke.
I pulled at the corner of my mouth, wanting to laugh but unable to.
I turned my gaze to look at him.
"Do you know what she said to me?"
"What could she say?"
Adrian frowned deeply.
"She just wanted to apologize to you, said something about Anna that made you sad. I know you're hurting inside, but Melissa-"
"She said,"
I interrupted him,
"that Anna was a bastard who never should have come into this world, and deserved to die."
Hearing this, Adrian's form trembled, his expression freezing.
"Adrian, was our daughter a bastard? Do you also think she deserved to die?"