Chapter 13- Against You and Them
Emelia’s POV
Why was Lily here?
Had I no safe haven away from her?
And how did she know my mother–in–law, Bernadette? Why was she hiding behind her like a child?
Bernadette smiled at Victor as she ushered Lily through the floor. She pushed her way past me, and bumped into my shoulder while doing so.
It was like I was invisible.
Unfortunately this was her typical treatment of me. She made it painfully clear how much she disliked me. For whatever reason, she always thought I was unworthy of her son–no matter how much I proved my love and no matter what he said in my defense.
As I closed the door behind them, I noticed how Bernadette linked her arm with Lily’s. She even stroked her hair out her face like a mother would a daughter. There was love in her eyes and she wore an easy smile.
Did Lily have her claws in Bernadette too?
“What brings you two here?” Victor asked casually.
Bernadette placed her hands on her hips and looked at Victor with a disapproving expression. “I’m here so you and that wife of yours don’t bully innocent Lily!!
“Bully? What are you talking about?” Victor raised a brow.
“You’ve been neglecting Lily for the past three weeks! It’s like you’ve completely forgotten that she’s existed!” Bernadette scolded..
“Well, I told you that Emelia got in a bad wreck, so I’ve been taking care of her.”
It warmed my heart to hear Victor take a stance to shield me from his mother. I just hated that he even had to explain himself to her in the first place.
“Please, she’s a grown woman! And it’s been three weeks. She should be perfectly fine and not leeching off your kind heart.”
I took a deep breath to suppress my scoff.
How ironic that she views me as the leech when one clings to her arm.
Besides it’s all her fault Lily’s in such poor health!” Bernadette wagged a finger in my face. “If Emily hadn’t been such a mean and vindictive woman, Lily wouldn’t be like this!”
“Emelia.” I corrected as I took a step back.
“What are you on about now?” Bernadette snapped.
“My name is Emelia, not Emily.”
“Whatever,” Bernadette waved me off. “It doesn’t matter anyway. What matters is that you need to learn some damn manners! Lily is Victor’s best friend, and a very sweet woman. You’d do well to treat her with some respect!”
Even after all these years, she hardly cared to
my name night.
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Chapter 1 15–Agawet You and Them
Hypocrite! You can’t even respect me enough to call me by my name!
The only thing I could do was shrug her off, despite wanting to defend myself. She was still Victor’s mother, and 1 didn’t want to embarrass him.
But speaking with my mother–in–law now made me realize just how similar her and Lily were. They liked to ignore facts. Somehow they thought their delusions mattered more than the truth.
I flexed my jaw in frustration and felt a headache starting to build. I prayed that this “visit” wasn’t going to last long.
“Mom, please.” Victor spoke calmly. “Yes, Emelia is getting better but she has a long road to recovery. She needs me.”
“And how can you be so sure that she isn’t simply taking advantage of you? Stop making excuses for her! She looks perfectly fine! She doesn’t need you!”
I had to clench my fists. Hard.
It still hurts for me to walk! Who are you to talk about how I feel and question me taking advantage of my own husband?!
“Mom, please don’t talk about Emelia like that.” Victor tensed as his eyebrows furrowed. “She’s been through enough-”
“I’ve been through a lot too, you know!” Lily interrupted and pouted. “You know my leg still gives me trouble, even though our accident was from so many years ago! Emelia’s not the only one that’s gone through things
She peeked her head from behind Bernadette like a toddler hiding behind their mother. “I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean to cause an issue between you and mom… I just really haven’t been feeling well, so I called her because I didn’t know what to do.”
Victor’s shoulders immediately relaxed and his features were painted with a gentle concern. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
My body tensed at Victor’s immediate change in demeanor, How was it that when it came to Lily, he was ready to drop everything, including defending his own wife, from a hateful mother–in–law?
“Please don’t be mad at mom.” Lily pleaded. “She’s just being her loving and kind self–just like she’s always been.”
The two shared an affectionate smile and it made me want to scream.
“But I’ve had a bad cough and a fever these last few days…” Lily explained. “I wanted to call you, I really did… I could hardly get out of bed. But you were mad at me and I didn’t want to make it worse, so I held back.”
Guilt washed over Victor as his posture slouched like the weight of Lily’s words were heavy on him.
so we
“I’m so sorry, Lily. I wasn’t mad at you, I promise.” Victor assured her. “I just wanted us to have time apart so could clear our heads. The accident was hard on all of us. You should’ve called me. I would’ve been there.”
I had to bite the inside of my cheek to stop me from saying something I’d regret. The heat of anger was making my face hot.
The accident was hard on Lily? The one she so blatantly ignored and lied about? Nothing about what happened to me was hard on her! She doesn’t even like me!
It was honestly pathetic how much Lily depended on Victor She really was incapable of doing anything for herself. How in the world did she survive life abroad without him? Was her ex–husband just as indulgent?
+25 BONUS
Chapter 13- Against You and Tem
“I didn’t raise you to treat your friends this way–especially your best friend.” Bernadette huffed. “Our families. are still close, and now that Lily’s parents live so far away, you’re responsible for her!”
It was at that moment a lightbulb switched on in my head. I finally understood why Victor indulged Lily so much. It was always hard for him to resist his mother’s influence.
I’d been biting and holding my tongue this entire time. It was almost physically hurting that I couldn’t get any words in!
All of them were treating me like I was invisible, not even caring that I had an input in all of this. It was like I was being dragged out of paradise and into whatever version of hell this was supposed to be.
Bernadette clapped her hands which got my attention. “How about–to make things easier for you and Lily–that she can just move in with you? That way, you can continue to fulfill your responsibilities to her!”
