Anthony smiled bitterly. "You know I've always considered Shirley as my own daughter," he said. "I'm worried about her. I really need to know if she is okay.
It was my fault. I brought her into this. Sheryl, please. I want to make it up to her. Please let me see her."
"No." She continued, "They told me that she developed autism because of what happened that night. She has totally changed. She won't smile and refuses to talk to anyone. She stays stuck in her room, all day, by herself. I'm her mother. Do you know how hard it is for me to see her like this?"
"I know. I know," Anthony said honestly. "I know I haven't done right. But..."
Sheryl cut him off, "You have no idea what you and your mother have done to her." She took a deep breath and continued, "She was already sick that night. But..."
She pointed at Laura. "What you did here just made it worse. I'd hurt you so badly if I could."
Sheryl glared at Laura, thinking if only her blazing eyes could kill her.
However, Laura wasn't the kind of woman to take accusations in stride, so she fought back, "Don't blame me for your failed marriage or for your child's condition. Surely, why she turned out that way is completely your fault.
I had nothing to do with it, neither did Anthony." Sheryl and Arthur grew furious as they heard her words. If Arthur did not find reason and sense, he may have slapped Laura.
Seeing how angry Arthur was, Carlson dragged Laura close and slapped her without hesitation. He had never hit her since they got married, but she crossed the line, and he was having none of it.
"Will you just stop? Leave!" he raised his voice in anger.
Laura held her cheek in shock. She never thought Carlson could ever hit her.
"Did you just hit me?" The weight of Carlson's action slowly sank into her.
Carlson looked at her, with seething eyes. "Leave. Don't make me hit you again," he warned.
She hesitated, looking at Carlson with disbelief, but nodded. "Fine. I'll go. But remember what you did today, Carlson. I promise, I'll make you pay for it."
Laura left, leaving Anthony and Carlson. Carlson turned to Arthur. "Uncle Arthur, I'm so sorry about that. She's being unreasonable. Please don't mind her," he said apologetically.
"I know that you're mad. Please let me know if I can do anything to make it better," he continued. Carlson slapping Laura was a last resort. Her being there and saying what she wanted didn't do any help and actually made things worse.
Arthur scoffed, "We don't want to see any of you. That's what we want."
Anthony faced Sheryl and asked, "Is that true?" Anthony couldn't help but feel hurt, hearing what Arthur had to say.
"Yes," Sheryl replied simply, her eyes fixed on the floor. "If you and your mother would leave us alone, we'd be fine. We don't want anything to do with you."
For a moment, Sheryl looked at Anthony, who used to be her boyfriend. Back then, they truly trusted each other. But now, she couldn't even tell if he was telling the truth or not.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: His Real Wedded Bride