Second Chance: Marrying into Wealth Chapter 308

"Why does she keep calling you?" I couldn't help but ask.

Paula rolled her eyes. "She's telling my dad I bullied her, playing the victim, demanding an apology. She just won't let it go. Does she really think I'm still that naive little girl she could push around?"

I could hear the anger in Paula's voice.

Liliana was a master manipulator, always playing the weakling and adapting to every situation. Paula was just a kid back then and suffered a lot because of it.

Paula's mom passed away when she was young.

Liliana came in, acting all sweet and caring, right when Paula needed a mother figure the most. Paula got attached and started listening to her.

At first, Liliana played the perfect stepmom.

She almost always gave Paula whatever she wanted.

When Paula was too young to know right from wrong, Liliana's methods were definitely harmful.

Whenever Paula messed up or bullied other kids, Liliana would apologize on her behalf, saying, "She's just a child, please forgive her. If there's any issue, come to me. I'll make it right..."

But she never made Paula apologize.

This made Paula think she could do whatever she wanted without any consequences.

After all, Liliana would always fix things for her.

This made her even more reckless.

Once, she wanted another kid's doll. When the kid refused, Paula, being stubborn and bossy, threatened, "If you don't give it to me, I'll beat you up!"

The other kid, who was spoiled and pampered, got scared and fell down the stairs.

This incident caused a huge commotion. Liliana, with her gentle demeanor, managed to calm things down, taking all the blame herself.

But Paula still yelled in front of Randy, "I did nothing wrong! She wouldn't let me play with it. I didn't push her down the stairs."

Randy, however, thought Paula had turned into a little tyrant.

He was furious and whipped her harshly.

She cried out in pain, and it took several days for her to recover.

Liliana pretended to comfort her, making Paula feel even more wronged and attached to her.

Randy felt that a child of five or six was already developing their personality, and Paula seemed ruined. He reconsidered his decision to not have children even if he married Liliana.

Soon after, Liliana became pregnant.

When she was four months pregnant, she changed her attitude towards Paula, saying, "The baby in my belly will be your brother. You're a girl, so the inheritance will go to your brother. Randy and I will favor him more, and you must pamper and spoil him..."

Paula instinctively rejected Liliana's words.

She tried to leave, but Liliana grabbed her and then quickly let go as Paula struggled.

Liliana fell to the ground.

"Paula, how could you push me? My belly..."

Liliana's voice was loud, immediately attracting the servants.

Seeing Liliana on the ground, the servants were worried about the baby and hurried to help her up.

Paula looked at Liliana, bewildered and innocent.

She seemed unrepentant.

Liliana put on a show of being generous, "Don't let Randy know Paula pushed me, okay?"

But Randy found out about Paula "pushing" Liliana anyway.

If the previous beating was a small lesson, this time Randy was furious, beating Paula until she was nearly unconscious.

She spent almost a month recovering in bed. She vaguely sensed that Randy and Liliana were different from before.

But being young, she didn't fully grasp the situation.

Under Liliana's orders, the servants deliberately prepared food Paula disliked.

Paula shouted, "I won't eat this, take it away!"

The servants bullied her, saying, "If you don't eat, we'll take it away, and you won't get anything else. Mr. Ellis ordered this."

Paula didn't realize the seriousness and shouted, "Give me something else, I won't eat this."

The servants deliberately threw the food into the trash, "If you throw it away, you don't need to eat."

Then they left, ignoring Paula's angry cries, "I didn't throw it away, you did! You're bad! I want something else!"

She received no response.

She felt abandoned.

Her voice grew hoarse from shouting, and she nearly fainted from hunger, but no one cared.

She survived by drinking water and scavenging the nearly spoiled food from the trash.

The spoiled food almost ruined her stomach, and she was rushed to the hospital.

Since that day, good times were no longer hers.

When she returned home from the hospital, Liliana had already been discharged, but Paula's room was gone, converted into a nursery. She was forced to move to a room in the far corner of the third floor.

Far from Randy.

Randy was busy with work, leaving early and returning late.

Paula's room was far away, and Liliana made sure she always "missed" Randy's presence. Paula went a long time without seeing Randy.

Relationships needed nurturing.

Randy grew closer to Liliana's child and more distant from Paula.

It was as if he had almost forgotten about Paula.

Paula, sensitive, gradually sensed something was wrong.

She held onto a glimmer of hope, thinking the change was due to Liliana's misunderstanding about the push.

She approached Liliana, "I didn't push you that day. Can you forgive me?"

Paula was learning to make amends.

But Liliana's attitude was cold, "You're too young to lie. I'm very disappointed in you."

Paula tried to please her, even learning to draw, hoping to give Liliana a painting.

But she overheard Liliana talking to her mother in her room.

"Mom, your method is brilliant. Not only did I ruin Paula, but that day she didn't push me. I just pretended to fall, and Randy truly believed she did it, thinking she's malicious. He punished her severely, and I successfully moved her to the corner of the third floor."

"You did well. Now you need to win Randy's heart and have him spend more time with your son, building their bond. After all, a son is the true heir!"

Paula was terrified and pale upon hearing their conversation, her body cold.

Their words shattered her young understanding.

She didn't fully grasp some of the content, but she was smart enough to recognize the adults' conspiracy against her. She returned to her room in a daze.