Chapter 4
“Great—then have her apologize to Sophie right now,” Grace said coolly.
Vivian stared at her in stunned disbelief. Her words meant nothing but polite phrases and never expected Grace would actually take it seriously. “What? If you don’t want an apology, then forget it.” Grace’s eyes cut sharp. “Get out of the way.”
“You—” Vivian trembled with anger. When she turned to Ethan, her face instantly crumpled into a pout, looking every bit the innocent soul who had been hurt and wronged. The transformation was quicker than a Sichuan opera performer changing masks.
But today, Ethan felt a rare prickle of guilt and pretended not to see the pleading in Vivian’s eyes. Vivian gritted her teeth. “Then… then I’ll apologize on Daisy’s behalf.”
She bent her knees as if to kneel, yet suddenly reached out a hand and yanked hard at Grace’s calf.
“Ah!” Caught off guard, Grace pitched forward with a scream, losing her balance. Her knees smashed against the edge of a step. When she fell down, her head hit against the marble floor. Pain like a spike pierced her and the world went black at the edges. She reached a hand to her brow and felt it come away sticky with blood.
“Mom…” Sophie stood still for a heartbeat, then burst into wails when she saw her mother on the ground. Thank God—in the instant Grace felt danger she had let go of Sophie’s hand, or she might have dragged the child down the stairs with her.
Grace’s fall brought down Vivian, she rolled down the stairs. “Ethan! It hurts…” Her voice quivered with tears. She clutched her ankle, gazing up at Ethan with wet, shimmering eyes.
Clumsy script, expert acting.
Ethan’s face changed in an instant. He stepped clean over the fallen Grace in a single stride and darted straight to Vivian’s side. He eased her into his arms, his voice frayed with panic and tenderness Grace had never once heard for herself. “Vivian! Where does it hurt? Did you hit anything?”
Cradled in his arms, Vivian wept gracefully. She lifted a shaking hand and pointed at Grace, who still couldn’t stand through the pain. “It was her… she pushed me… I was going to kneel to her, and she pushed me…” She sobbed. “Ethan, my ankle hurts so much…” Then she lifted her face toward Grace. “Grace, I know you hate me, but how could you push me? I just want to be nice. Can’t we turn hostility into peace?”
Grace’s head snapped up, fury and agony making her whole body shake. “She’s the one who pushed me.”
“Grace White!” Ethan cut her off sharply. His eyes were blades dipped in poison, driving straight into her heart. He didn’t even glance at her injuries. “You dare twist the truth? Vivian is kind—she would never push you. You, on the contrary—you’ve been jealous ever since I favored her. I didn’t expect your jealousy to rot into malice.”
“And to hurt someone in front of two children—do you have no bottom line left?” Every word dripped bias and humiliation.
Grace felt flayed alive. The onlookers who’d stopped to watch turned their contempt on her, too.
She didn’t want to argue. Because she saw Sophie on the steps—a small child, with big eyes flooded with tears. Terrified, only now finding her breath, she stumbled toward Grace.
Grace, afraid Sophie would trip on the stairs, forced herself upright to a seated position. She wrung out a smile and opened her arms. Sophie didn’t dare fling herself into that embrace like usual; she was afraid of hurting her mother. She stared at the blood on Grace’s brow and burst into sobs. “Mommy, does it hurt?”
Grace pulled her in tight. “Sweetheart, don’t cry. Just hurts a tiny bit. Blow on it for me and it’ll be fine.”
Sophie scrubbed her tears away, puckered her soft mouth, and blew in little puffs at the wound—careful, careful, as if a stronger breath might cause more pain. Grace’s heart, originally hard heart tightened into a ball
Ethan glanced at them. The blood on Grace’s forehead pricked at his eyes; a trace of heartache flashed—gone a heartbeat later when Vivian’s voice rose, “Ethan, my ankle’s twisted. It hurts so much!”
He scooped her up in his arms, careful as if she were made of glass. “I’m taking you to the hospital.” He turned and walked away without another look at Grace or Sophie.
She had long since run out of hope for him. He had nothing to do with her anymore. But still, the ache came on reflex. Cold as seawater, it surged up and drowned her lungs.
Her knee was skinned raw, her forehead split open. But the pain in her body was nothing to the pain in her heart.
Then a small, warm hand pressed to her cheek. “Mom, don’t cry… Mom, I’ll help you up…” Sophie’s voice had a strong nasal tone. She bit her tiny lip and tried to lift her mother. For all her fierce effort, she was too little to move much at all.
Some bystanders came forward to help, but Sophie’s small body blocked them like a cub bristling to look brave. “Don’t… don’t come over… I’ll help my mama… I can do it…”
