Chapter 95

Alec caught the sting of sarcasm in Verena's words, his facial muscles twitching as though struck by asudden chil. Though embarrassment gnawed at him, he stubbornly wore a mask of kindness and sincerity.

"Verena, l know why you refuse to come home. That troublesome girl, Kaia, has been spreading rumorsabout you, making others whisper behind your back. l am well aware of all the bad things she has done toyou."

At that moment, Laura didn't bother to shield her once-cherished younger daughter. She quickly nodded inagreement. "Exactly! Your sister is reckless and immature. Once we return, we'll make sure to discipline herproperly."

With a thunderous expression, Alec unleashed a torrent of harsh words at Kaia. "| never imagined that giricould wear suc a convincing mask, Before we brought you back, she always seemed obedient. But themoment you appeared, her narrow heart was laid bare, and now she has become nothing more than ajealous villain.

Seeing Verena remain silent, Alec assumed he had struck a chord, Pretending to wrestle down his anger, hesoftened his voice as though offering comfort. "Verena, don't worry. When you come home with me, !'lmake sure to give her a stern lecture right in your presence, and she will apologize."

Like actors reading from the same script, Alec and Laura steered the conversation until Kaia bore the fullblame for拓 every wrong.

Vena dar eyes stayed fixed on them, her gaze as cold and sharp as a blade, carrying disdain and achilling detachment.

In that moment, she finally understood the roots of Kaia's hostility

The love Alec and Laura dispensed was like shifting sand-unreliable and transient, here one moment andgone the next.

When Verena had first arrived in Shoildon, everyone treated her as a simple country girl, looking at her with indifference.

Alec and Laura were no exceptions.

In their minds, her worth was limited to one thing-replacing Kaia to marry Isaac, thereby completing a marriage of convenience with the Bennett family.

So when Kaia aimed her arrows at her, even though Alec and Laura knew the truth, they turned a blind eye.

Even when quarrels broke out between the sisters, their instinct was always to shield Kaia first.

But times had changed.

Now they realized that, beyond the marriage arrangement, Verena had other values greater than Kaia's.With thatrevelation, they shifted their stance with practiced ease-flattering Verena, appeasing her, and harshly chastising the very daughter they once swore to protect.

Their love was indeed no more solid than smoke in the wind.

No wonder Kaia felt fear and insecurity. She dreaded that Verena's appearance in their lives would steal what little affection remained in their parents' wavering hearts.

Thus,she tried every trick in the book to push Verena away.

Growing up under such a roof, Kaia was, in Verena's eyes, both pitiful and pathetic.

"You two truly are willing to stop at nothing to get what you want." The mocking smile on Verena's lips faded, replaced by sheer disgust in her eyes. "Words like insincere and filthy fall short of describing you.You're not bringing me back to the Willis family for my sake. You only realized the closure of the club was Isaac standing up for me. Then, when you saw Slater's social media post clearing my name,you finally understood I hold value-considerable value. That's why you're now willing to disparage Kaia just to win me back. If not for these two incidents, no matter how much Kaia wronged me, you'd still be twisting yourselves to cover for her instead of pretending to fight for me. Kaia turned out this way because of you both."

At those words, Alec and Laura were visibly flustered.