Chapter 553 Too Little, Too Late
Turns out, when a man is pushed to the edge, his pride can shatter too.
But Stella knew better–this collapse, this softness? It was just an act.
Because the moment he realized begging didn’t work, he’d show his true face again.
She narrowed her eyes, voice dripping with mockery. “Begging me?”
–
“How rare. I never thought I’d see the day someone from the Reed family actually begged.”
What were the Reeds like in Rivermount?
Arrogant. Dismissive. Looking down their noses at everyone.
But now Jonathan was reduced to the word please, crawling with humiliation.
Stella let the cold laughter linger. It was intentional.
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Once upon a time, they had trampled her beneath their feet–so now she would grind that same weight into their backs. Let them taste it. Let them choke on it.
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Jonathan exhaled shakily. “We know the whole truth now. I’ve already kicked Lilian out of the Reed family -for you. To avenge you.”
Stella let out a cold, dry laugh. “For me? That’s rich.”
Now they made it sound like everything was for her.
As if she didn’t know exactly who they were.
“You always knew the truth, didn’t you?”
Before he could respond, she cut in, voice colder than ice
And just like that, the line went silent–only Jonathan’s strained breathing remained.
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Yes. Stella believed they had known all along.
The
If they really thought Lilian had done nothing, why did they rush to send her away back then?
The truth was, deep down, they had always known.
The
Jonathan had nothing to say.
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Stella went on, voice slicing through the silence. “Don’t flatter yourselves. You’re not avenging me–you’re cleaning up your own mess.”
Pretending it was for her.
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Chapter 553 Too Little, Too Late
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Please. Did they think she was someone who could be moved by empty gestures?
She never had been–and especially not when it came to people who meant nothing to her.
Jonathan’s voice trembled. “Stella, you-
She cut him off again: “What? Afraid I’ll bring up the part where her aunt gave your father a pair of twins?”
“Juicy, isn’t it?” she laughed, bitter and amused.
Outside the prison, Jonathan stood like a ghost–slumped, empty.
He’d just seen Susan.
Her sentencing had been swift: attempted murder. A long sentence. No legal trick or favor had worked.
And now, Stella’s gleeful laughter echoed through the line, twisting the knife in deeper.
Jonathan’s hands clenched into fists. “That woman destroyed your family too!”
“Oh? My family?” Stella’s voice went sharp. “You don’t remember what you said the first time we met, do you?”
Jonathan’s face froze.
What had he said?
That day, Lilian had cried her eyes out, claiming she was afraid Stella would be upset about her “taking her place.” Said she wanted to leave.
So Jonathan, filled with guilt and sympathy, had gone straight to Stella and told her:
“Even if you’re the Reed family’s real daughter, Lilian grew up here. She’ll always be one of us.”
“If you behave yourself, you’ll get everything that’s due to a Reed daughter. But if you stir trouble and try to fight her, just remember–she’s closer to all of us than you are.”
He hadn’t said it outright, but the meaning was clear enough: push comes to shove, you are the outsider.
Stella: “Remember now?”
Jonathan didn’t reply. He was too stunned, too ashamed.
But more than anything, he was angry.
Angry that she dared to talk to him this way.
He gritted his teeth, eyes shut tight. “I’m sorry. I’m really sorry. I hurt you–I know that. But please, don’t make Mom pay the price.”
Apology after apology poured down the line like heavy blows.
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Chapter 553 Too Little, Too Late
But Stella only laughed colder. “Too bad. Your apologies mean nothing to me.”
“And I’m not the one punishing her–the law is.”
She added calmly, “I can’t help you.”
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“Stella-!”
Jonathan’s breath hitched–he was unraveling.
She knew exactly why he was calling. This wasn’t just about guilt.
He wanted her to help get his mother out.
He’d gone to Patrick.
But who would’ve thought–even his own father had cut him off completely.
Patrick had shifted all his attention to others now, left him in the cold.
And now Stella’s icy tone was breaking him: “Stella, that’s your mother. Her place in this world has been stolen by another woman. How can you stand by and watch-?”
Stella’s light chuckle cut through the line.
“The one who gave her place away… was Lilian.”
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Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: The Wrong Girl and the Wronged Girl (Stella and Ethan)
Ch 489 Doesn’t this prove that Dan doesn’t actually have amnesia? Why would he go to the island with a strange woman and why would he steal from Derrick? He doesn’t know them....
Ch 488 I feel like this is going to be what Stella stole in his study in Pagenda or wherever his estate was....
Ch 485 I thought it was going to be the Reed family mine that she robbed, thus taking the Keenes product and leaving them in that situation....
Ch 483 o then, how did the Reeds fine her? How did they not know where she was from?...
Ch 477 Definitely hidden pedo in here, referring to tiny women as little girls in every way possible....
Ch 468 How could Stella inherit her adopted father’s weak stomach constitution?...
Ch 468 Abraham and Marie’s mother has been called Evelyn, Diane and Loretta.. which is it? Evelyn has been the most used....
Ch 465 She still doesn’t know the mistress is Lillian’s aunt?...
Ch 464 Why didn’t she kick her out herself be for she went to attack the mistress…...
Ch 463 This is stupid now. I understand being scared in his presence enough to not think straight, but she’s a lone more often than not and has plenty of time to think things through, especially if she has time to get gossip from Rivermount and report to Stella....