From Forgotten Wife To Fierce Queen - Chapter 258: Chapter 258

"You sure talk big." Max's cool, detached voice echoed near Christopher's ear.
Christopher's back stiffened. He met Max's unreadable gaze and forced an awkward smile.
Even though Max was Tyson's adopted son, he had been raised as the heir. In the company, the matters Max handled and the power he held far exceeded Christopher's.
Max cast a glance at Christopher before striding over to Paisley's side, making it clear whose side he was on. He just stood there, his deep eyes sweeping over the people from the second branch of the family.
Without a word, Max's presence alone made everything clear.
Paisley chuckled and beckoned Florence with her finger. "Come with me."
Florence had no idea what was going on but followed Paisley anyway. She thought, 'With so many people watching, she wouldn't actually hit me, right?'
Just as she was thinking that, Paisley grabbed her and led her onto the carousel.
"What are you doing?" she asked, confused.
"Nothing. Just sit down and get comfortable," Paisley said softly, her smile never fading.
The way she gently pulled Florence along created a strange illusion.
Florence actually believed that Paisley meant no harm and simply wanted her to sit on the carousel. But the next second, everything changed.
Paisley's smile vanished in an instant. Without warning, she grabbed the back of Florence's neck with one hand, pressing down on a pressure point.
Florence felt a sudden sharp pain in her neck. It was as if some invisible force had locked her spine in place. Every time she struggled, the pain in her neck and back grew worse.
In mere moments, her forehead was drenched in sweat, and her face turned deathly pale. The pain was unbearable.
"Let go—" Before Florence could finish speaking, Paisley twisted her arm and used her elbow to exert force. In one swift motion, she yanked Florence by the neck and flung her to the ground with brutal precision.
Just a second ago, Florence had been grimacing in pain, drenched in sweat. The next, she lost control of her body and plummeted downward, face-first.
Florence had no time to react. All she could do was scream.
Under everyone's stunned gaze, Florence crashed to the ground like a lifeless puppet, her rigid body smashing face-first onto the floor.
The artificial grass scraped her face, leaving thin, red scratches.
It all happened so fast that no one had time to react. By the time they snapped out of it, Florence was already sprawled on the ground, wailing in pain. Her cries were just as loud and miserable as Bella's had been.
"Florence!" Christopher shouted in alarm. He wanted to rush forward to help Florence, but he was still holding their daughter.
He could only turn to the servants behind him and roar, "What are you standing there for? Help her up!"
Lily and the other maids hurried forward to lift Florence up. But even now, the pain in Florence's neck and back refused to fade. The scratches on her face stung sharply as well.
In all her life, Florence had never suffered such humiliation. Even after she stood up, she couldn't stop crying. She stood there, fists clenched, eyes shut tight, sobbing uncontrollably.
No matter how much the people around her tried to console her, Florence couldn't hear them. She just kept crying.
To top it all off, a piece of artificial grass was stuck messily in her disheveled hair, making her look even more pathetic.
Edmond turned pale with anger when he saw the scene. He felt that Florence had embarrassed him. But what enraged him the most was Paisley, the one responsible for all this.
"Get that thing off her head already!" Edmond shouted.
Lily, who was standing next to Florence, reacted quickly and pulled the grass off her head.
"Stop crying! What do you think you look like?" Edmond barked at Florence.
Florence was startled, but she just couldn't stop crying. The best she could do was open her eyes, shut her mouth, and force herself to hold it in. But that only made her start hiccuping uncontrollably, as if she were about to pass out.
Edmond was speechless. He just wanted to get out of there.
Seeing Florence crying so miserably, Bella started crying too. But since Christopher was covering her mouth, her sobs weren't too loud.
Christopher watched as Florence and Bella cried together, and then turned to Paisley with fury in his eyes. "Paisley, don't you think you've gone too far? Florence may have spoken harshly before, but that was because of a misunderstanding! It wasn't intentional—so why did you have to hurt her?"
He was truly angry now. He didn't even call her "Cousin" anymore.
"Watch your tone!" Tyson snapped, fully intent on defending Paisley.
Max glanced at Christopher with a smirk. "What? You want to end up like your wife too?"
As he spoke, he started cracking his knuckles.
Christopher's face turned pale, and he instinctively took a step back. He knew exactly how skilled Max was. Before his severe injury, Max had been just as strong as a special forces soldier.
Even now, though Max's body had weakened, dealing with Christopher would be effortless.
Christopher gritted his teeth, seething inside. "Uncle, Max, are you seriously just letting Cousin bully Florence like this? She actually hit her. Look at how much pain Florence is in!"
Not that he really cared that much about Florence. But she was still his wife, and if Paisley hit her, that was basically the same as hitting him.
Christopher thought, 'My own wife, in my own house, is getting beaten and left crying by a cousin who has only just rejoined the family. If word gets out, how am I supposed to save face?'
"Since you all arrived late and didn't see what happened, let me explain." Paisley took Serena from Tyson's arms and pointed at the dirt stains on her clothes from when she had fallen.
"My daughter was playing on her carousel inside the castle garden that her grandfather built for her," she spoke slowly and deliberately, making it clear who the castle and carousel belonged to.
Florence gritted her teeth as she listened through her sobs. She wanted to argue back, but as soon as she opened her mouth, all that came out was a hiccup.
Paisley shot her a lazy glance before continuing. "Then your daughter, Bella, barged in, started yelling at my daughter, Rena, and accused her of stealing. Not only that, but she yanked Rena off the carousel without caring about her safety, causing her to fall and get badly frightened."
"What?" Tyson's face darkened, and he tensed up. "Rena fell? Is she hurt?"
He hurriedly checked Serena over, all the while sneaking glances at Edmond.
His eyes practically screamed, 'If anything happens to my precious granddaughter, none of you in the second branch will have a good time.'