Chapter 79 : Teach Her A Lesson
When they were young, Ronan had always been a troublemaker. He was constantly provoking others and getting into fights. Back then, out of youthful loyalty, whenever Ronan was beaten or bullied, Allison would stand in front of him, ready to take the blows for him.
Then, Ronan would pull her behind him, forcing out a reckless, boastful grin. “This is my little wife. Whoever dares touch her will answer to me!”
But now, Ronan sat in his wheelchair, frowning at her. He neither helped nor objected. He had no intention of interfering.
That expression made her think of the time Jareth was beaten in the Lopez family home. Nigel had worn the same look then.
Allison finally understood. To her, Ronan was nothing more than an outsider now.
She looked away. She no longer expected anyone to come to help her at this moment.
Her body was weak from lack of oxygen. She had no strength left to pull Ruth’s hands away. But she would never let Ruth strangle her to death there.
Grinding her teeth, Allison gathered every bit of strength she had left. She bent her knee and slammed her foot hard into Ruth’s leg.
Startled, Ruth staggered backward, crashed into a chair, and fell with it in a humiliating heap.
“Mom!” Two voices cried out together.
Allison rolled onto her side, gasping desperately for air on the bed. The burning pain in her throat made it painfully clear just how much Ruth hated her.
Before she could even calm her breathing, Nigel grabbed her roughly and yanked her up.
Already consumed by resentment, Nigel’s fury exploded the moment he saw Allison fight back and strike their mother.
He did not even bother to check whether Ruth was hurt.
Instead, he rushed straight at Allison, determined to teach her a lesson.
“I’m not even in prison yet, and you already dare to hit our mother? What will you do after I’m gone? Kill Sherrie and Mom, too?” The more he talked, the angrier he became. His rage boiled over until he could no longer control it. “If that’s the case, then I might as well deal with you right now!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he lifted his foot and kicked at Allison with all the strength of a fully grown man standing well over six feet tall.
A kick like that was something even a man might not survive.
Allison was small and thin. Nigel’s kick landed squarely in her stomach, sending her flying backward like a rag doll.
It happened so fast that no one reacted in time.
Luke and Ronan were both stunned, their breath caught in their throats.
Still shaken from her fall, Ruth was helped to her feet by Sherrie. All the strength had drained from her body.
Only then did she seem to realize she had almost strangled Allison to death. Her face turned pale. Even if she hated Allison, she was still her daughter. Doing something like that in front of everyone, what had she been thinking?
But the moment she stood up, she saw Allison curled up on the floor, her body shaking in pain.
Nigel’s anger had not faded. He was about to rush forward again. Ruth panicked. Ignoring the pain in her own leg, she hurried over and wrapped her arms around him.
Tears streamed down her face as she shook her head. “Nigel, listen to me. Let’s stop fighting. You are both my dearest children. It hurts me to see either of you get hurt.”
Nigel’s eyes were bloodshot. His fists were clenched so tightly that the bones stood out beneath his skin. If Ruth hadn't stopped him, he really might have attacked Allison again.
Sherrie ran over in tears and pointed at Allison. “Allison, I can’t defend you this time. Nigel has always been such a gentle person. Look at what you’ve done to him. If he hadn’t stood up for you, he wouldn’t be in this legal mess. This time, it really is your fault!”
Allison stayed on the floor for a long while, unable to get up. Her throat carried a faint taste of blood, and every breath sent sharp pain through her abdomen. Darkness crept in at the edges of her sight.
But she could still hear them. One accusation after another.
No one offered her a hand. No one asked if she was in pain. It was as if all the years she had spent giving her heart to them meant absolutely nothing.
Ronan hesitated for a moment. His brow furrowed. He did think Allison had made mistakes, but he couldn't stand seeing her being beaten like that.
Just as he opened his mouth to say something, Sherrie’s voice rang out again.
“And don’t forget, you’ve always had a thing for Jareth. You even helped him bully Ronan. Don’t act like you don’t want to marry him. You’re just doing this to get back at Nigel. You want him in jail!”
With a single sentence, Sherrie struck two targets together.
Ronan and Nigel were both baffled.
That was right. Allison had shown favoritism toward Jareth. She had helped him. She had even stood on his side.
Ronan remembered how she had let him suffer in silence because she didn’t give him the pain medication. He remembered how she had calmly said that Jareth was better than him in every way.
How could she not want to marry him? Of course she did.
She didn't hate the match. She just wanted to annoy them. She wanted Nigel behind bars.
Nigel no longer felt guilty. If Allison wanted to see him in prison, then he would make sure she didn't get what she wanted.
He walked toward her and demanded, “So are you marrying him or not?”
Despite the intense pain all over her body, Allison still managed to sit up.
Her arms trembled as she pushed herself off the floor.
She looked up at the people forcing her from all sides. At Nigel, who glared at her like he was ready to kill her.
But she didn't see Jareth, who had just arrived at the front door of the Rogers family home.
Her eyes moved from one angry, self-righteous face to another. She finally exploded.
“I’m not marrying him,” she growled. “I don’t care how much it hurts. I would rather die than marry him. You can beat me to death if you want, but after today, we’re done. You’re not my brother, and I’m not your sister anymore.”