Now They Want My Forgiveness - Chapter 200: Chapter 200

Mary subconsciously looked over at Eleanor.
Eleanor said, "Let's go inside."
Mary understood—Eleanor just didn't want to interfere.
It wasn't that Eleanor didn't care, but she felt these people had gone way too far, treating Stella like she wasn't even human. She thought, 'Now that their problems are surfacing, they should torment each other and get a taste of what Stella went through.
'Of course, just a beating is nothing compared to what Stella suffered. My poor Stella, she had it rough.'
Even inside the room, Mary and Eleanor could still hear Fiona's screams.
Mary didn't feel the slightest bit sorry for Fiona. She glanced at Eleanor, noticing a flicker of emotion on her face. She was sure that it wasn't for Fiona. Most likely, Eleanor was thinking about Stella.
Eleanor said, "Back then, I went back to my hometown for my old friend's grandson's wedding, and that's when Silas took advantage of the situation. If only I hadn't gone."
Normally, Eleanor would be at home, able to shield Stella from some of the trouble.
Back then, she thought attending a wedding wouldn't be for long, but once she got back to her hometown, everyone missed her so much that they convinced her to stay for over a month.
That was when everything happened to Stella.
Mary said, "Don't beat yourself up, Mrs. Hayes. It's not your fault. If you could see the future, none of this would have happened. You love Stella so much—there's no way you would've let something like that happen to her."
"How can I not blame myself? Just look at that child now," Eleanor replied. Every time she remembered how Stella walked now, her heart twisted with pain. She thought, 'Stella should have had a bright future, but now it's all gone.'
Mary said, "Look, she's back now, isn't she? Jordan treats her so well, and he's always been good to you, too."
Eleanor replied, "Yeah, he's great. But the two of them lied to me. Don't think I don't know what's going on."
Mary shot her a confused look.
Eleanor explained, "Stella said they've known each other for ages, and I believe that. But when she claimed Jordan was her boyfriend? How am I supposed to buy that?
"If they were that close, Jordan would've shown up at our house looking for her back then."
Mary felt sorry for Eleanor. She thought, 'It turns out Eleanor knows the whole truth, yet she still has to feign ignorance in front of Stella.'
Eleanor continued, "But seeing how Jordan treats Stella, better than anyone else ever could, that puts my mind at ease."
"But he still hasn't introduced us to his family," Mary said.
"That doesn't matter. He must have his own reasons. We just have to trust him," Eleanor replied.
Mary nodded.
In the living room, Fiona kept screaming, begging Andrew to let her go. But the more she begged for mercy, the harder Andrew beat her. Now and then, the whip would end up hitting Fiona right in the face.
Fiona was in so much pain she didn't know what to do. Her voice was hoarse from screaming.
Anna just stood there, watching silently, showing no intention of helping.
Fiona slowly crawled over and grabbed Anna's leg, but Anna immediately recoiled in disgust.
Fiona wailed, "Anna, I'm your mother. How can you just stand there and do nothing? Please, go beg your dad for me. If you say something, I know he'll let me go."
Anna replied coldly, "Mom, what do you expect me to say? Dad's already done more than enough for your family, and you still went behind his back and pulled this stunt. I know he shouldn't be hitting you, but honestly, you pushed him too far.
"You took my jewelry without even telling me. You knew I wouldn't have agreed. Sure, you want to help your family, but Silas just keeps gambling over and over—how can you keep covering for him like this?"