Adah's face turned ashen, her mouth opened as if to protest, yet no words emerged.
Ethan was equally stunned, instinctively glancing at Claire, who remained impassive.
“Every time something happens to Claire, you never hesitate to blame her without understanding the full story. Have you ever truly cared about what she's gone through? Your idea of love is to reprimand and punish her? To push her to her limits and make her suffer? Is that what you call love?” May’s voice quivered with emotion, her eyes tinged red.
Claire looked at May, deeply moved by her fierce loyalty. This warmth brought tears to her eyes.
Over the years, only May had genuinely cared for her and protected her.
Claire gently patted May's hand, a silent plea for her not to get upset.
Getting angry over the Linwood family wasn’t worth it.
Adah seemed to snap back to reality, her voice choked with a shaky defense, “May, how can you say that? We... we only want what’s best for Claire. She's too headstrong, always causing trouble…”
“For her own good?” May laughed bitterly, “Ma’am, look at Miss Claire now and dare to say it’s for her own good? Your favoritism has reached the skies. Can you honestly say you’ve treated Miss Claire like your own daughter?”
“You don’t have to love her—feelings take time, and Claire wasn’t raised by your side, so it’s understandable.”
“But not loving her and then hurting her? How can you be so heartless to someone you gave birth to?”
Adah looked at Claire in panic, but Claire didn’t spare her a glance, instead gazing at May as if she were her mother. Her biological mother seemed as repulsive as a bad smell, not worth a second look.
Any attachment Claire once had to the Linwood family vanished, her longing for a home completely drained.
Memories flashed through her mind like lightning, recalling Claire’s cautious attempts to approach her and the moments she coldly ignored. Now, those memories pierced her heart like sharp thorns, filling her with regret.
For a moment, Adah forgot how to cry.
She realized Claire truly didn’t care about them anymore.
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