Part 2The Stutter Girl Who Became a Heiress

My mother would never have another baby. I muttered the words silently in my head.

It was an agreement she made with Paul before the wedding. I had heard them talking about it late at night.

Abby hung up and walked back to me. The warmth in her eyes had cooled significantly. With a soft sigh, she looked at me. "Lily, play here for a bit. I need to go change my dress."

I nodded, knowing she was actually going to find Rowan.

Less than five minutes after she left, the heavy oak door swung open. Three girls, all roughly Abby's age and dressed in obnoxious, glittering party dresses, strolled into the room.

"Where is Abby? I thought they said she was hiding in here."

The girl leading the pack scanned the room and locked eyes on me sitting on the rug.

"Who is this kid? Hey, where did Abby go? Do you know?"

I sat perfectly still as the three of them surrounded me, looking down at me like I was a stray dog.

I pressed my lips together, shook my head, and pointed toward the door Abby had just walked through.

"Why aren't you answering? Whose kid are you?" one of them demanded, her eyes wide with intrusive curiosity.

"This is the private family wing. What's your connection to Abby?"

Another girl gasped. "Look at her dress. It's the same designer collection Abby is wearing."

"Wait, I heard Abby's new stepmom brought a kid with her. Is that you?" The realization hit them, and all three covered their mouths, giggling as if my existence was the punchline to a hilarious joke.

Their laughter made my skin crawl. I dropped my wooden block, hopped off the rug, and headed for the door to find my mother.

"Hey, don't run away, little baggage." They grabbed the back of my collar, yanking me backward.

They didn't realize their own strength. The stiff lace of my collar tightened like a noose around my windpipe. My eyes rolled back, and an uncontrollable, strangled gasp tore from my throat.

Right at that moment, Abby walked back in. Seeing me choking and dangling by my dress, the color drained from her face. She rushed forward, violently shoving the girls away and pulling me into her arms. "Lily! Are you okay?"

The three girls panicked, immediately backing up. "We didn't mean to."

I coughed hard, my chest burning. I patted Abby's hand to let her know I was breathing.

Seeing the physical tears of pain welling in my eyes, Abby's face twisted in pure rage. "You come into my home as guests, and you attack my little sister? What exactly are you trying to do?"

"We just said it was an accident. Stop screaming at us," the lead girl retorted, crossing her arms.

"Is she actually your sister? Why doesn't she make a sound? Is she a retard?"

It was obvious these girls were not Abby's friends. They were rivals.

Abby glared at them. "That is none of your business. You have zero manners. Get out of my room."

Normally, a kid being choked would scream or cry. The fact that I remained completely silent made the girls exchange malicious, knowing looks. They snickered.

"Wow, Abby. Sucks to be you. Your dad gets a new wife and forces a disabled freak of a sister onto you. It's embarrassing."

"Nobody in our circle has a defective sibling."

"You always act so high and mighty at school. Let's see you try to act superior now."

Abby held me tighter, taking a deep, shaky breath. "Is this the elite upbringing your parents paid for? Let me be clear. Whether my sister has a disability or not, who gave you the right to look down on her?"

"There are security cameras in this room. I'm going to have the estate manager pull the footage and send it directly to your parents."

"You better prepare yourselves to come back here and beg my sister for forgiveness."