Madly Yours (Nora Reed) novel Chapter 636

Liana's temples throbbed violently. The stinging, burning sensation of the slaps from the night before seemed to flare up all over again, igniting her fury.

"Nora, you miserable brat! Are you sitting out here just to mock me?"

Olive closed the distance in three strides and grabbed Liana by the collar. "Say one more word. I dare you."

Liana had learned her lesson the hard way. She knew that despite Olive's cute, petite appearance, she hit like a heavyweight champion. Those tiny hands had nearly knocked her unconscious.

Nora, who was busy perfectly executing her 'depressed wife' routine, frowned slightly. Her gaze lingered on Liana's heavily concealed face for a second before she spoke, her tone cool and indifferent. "You're wrapped up like a mummy. I can't even see your face, so how exactly am I supposed to mock you?"

"You..."

Liana trembled with rage. She lunged forward, trying to push past Olive to get to Nora.

Olive simply threw an arm across her path like an iron gate, refusing to yield a single inch. Her slender wrist was an immovable barrier.

"Touch her. See what happens."

Liana was on the verge of losing her mind.

Even though she was adopted, she carried the Fairchild name. That name alone granted her a level of privilege and respect that ensured she had never suffered a single indignity in her entire life.

But ever since she crossed paths with Nora, she felt like she had been handed a lifetime supply of humiliation.

"Who the hell do you think you are? You're just a dog on a leash! Get out of my way!"

Olive let out a dark chuckle. Just as she was about to show Liana what her hands could really do, a sharp, authoritative voice echoed down the corridor.

"Liana!"

Finnian strode toward them, his face like thunder.

"What are you doing?"

Liana's voice instantly pitched into a pathetic whine. "Finnian! They're bullying me!"

Finnian ignored her completely. His eyes bypassed her and landed squarely on Nora.

She was still seated in the wicker chair, her expression calm, bordering on relaxed, just quietly watching the scene unfold.

Finnian pulled his gaze away and glared at Liana. "Are you quite finished?"

"Me? I'm the one starting it?! Finnian, look what they did to me last night! Did you even look at my face?"

She violently tore off her sunglasses and yanked down her mask, revealing a grotesque mosaic of black and blue bruising.

Her left cheek was swollen tight, the skin around her cheekbone a nasty shade of purple. It truly looked horrifying.

"Why are you asking her that, Finnian? Everyone knows she's the daughter of a maid and a convicted rapist..."

"Liana!" Finnian's voice dropped into a dangerous, lethal register.

But Liana was too worked up to stop. She turned a venomous glare on Nora. "What? Am I wrong? The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. The only reason she managed to crawl into Hudson Lancaster's bed is because she used the same disgusting, cheap tricks her maid mother used to..."

*Smack!*

This slap was significantly harder than the ones Olive had delivered the night before. The sheer force of the blow sent Liana stumbling backward.

A fresh, bright red handprint bloomed across her cheek, overlapping with the dark bruising from last night.

Liana clutched her face, rooted to the spot, completely unable to process what had just happened.

Finnian's chest heaved. His voice was a deadly whisper. "Are you done?"

Tears instantly flooded Liana's eyes. "You hit me? You hit me over a complete stranger?!"

Finnian's voice turned to absolute ice, each word gritted out through clenched teeth. "If you utter one more word of garbage, I will personally throw you on a plane, and you will never step foot in this country again."

Liana's sobbing hitched in her throat.

Staring at Finnian's furious face, she saw a level of cold, absolute disgust she had never seen directed at her before...