Reborn To Ruin Her Rivals - Chapter 52: Chapter 52

Meredith suppressed her emotions and put on a gracious facade.
She put on a gentle smile and said, "I came to tell you something. There's a marriage alliance between the Bradford family and the Boone family. Now that you're back, this marriage was meant for you. But..."
Meredith shot her a provocative look and continued, "Gavin said he'll marry no one but me. He even swore that no matter who the other person is or what their status might be, he'd never marry anyone else.
"Oh, sis, I just wanted to give you a heads-up so you wouldn't be too heartbroken."
With no one else around, Meredith dropped her act. Her words, though still soft, turned razor-sharp.
Meredith hated Arielle with a passion. She sneered to herself, 'So you want to sleep? Let's see if you can get a wink of sleep tonight after hearing this news.'
Nothing pleased Meredith more than seeing Arielle break down in anger and misery.
Meredith thought to herself, 'Gavin is the future head of the Boone family. Do you know how many women dream of marrying into our family?
'Too bad for them. They just don't have that kind of luck.'
Meredith put on an innocent face and said sweetly, "Gavin only has eyes for me. What can I do, sis? I really don't mean to steal your man... but his heart is mine now."
Meredith had hoped to see Arielle break down, but was instead met with her biting sarcasm.
Arielle shot her a frosty glare. "Get out! One more word and you'll regret it." Her icy gaze held not a trace of warmth.
Without waiting for Meredith to react, Arielle slammed the door shut in her face.
Arielle couldn't be bothered to listen to any more of Meredith's nonsense.
Arielle thought, 'Shut the hell up!
'If I hadn't time travelled, I would have simply thought this dear sister was always looking out for me.'
Meredith crossed her arms smugly, a triumphant look on her face.
To Meredith, Arielle's reaction was simply anger and jealousy.
Got her' Meredith gloated inwardly. 'This round goes to me.'
Elated, Meredith rushed back to her room and eagerly sent a message to Gavin. [Hey Gavin, are you still up?]
Meanwhile, Gavin was still up, reviewing business documents when his phone buzzed with a message. He glanced at his phone.
Seeing it was a message from Meredith, Gavin picked up his phone, opened it, and replied.
Gavin replied: [Not yet. Why are you still up this late?]
Meredith already saw herself as his future wife. So she thought that it was only natural for her to care about him.
With that thought, Meredith sent Gavin a sweet text. [Miss you, Gavin.]
Several minutes passed before Gavin replied: [Sweetie, go to sleep. You have school tomorrow. See you then.]
Meredith: [Okay, good night.]
Gavin: [Good night.]
At the Dungeon of a mansion in the countryside.
A frail little girl was shackled hand and foot with iron chains.
With even the slightest movement, the iron chains around her limbs clanked sharply and clearly, echoing through the cold, dark room.
She huddled in the corner. Her clothes were in tatters, filthy and stained.
Clad only in a thin, threadbare garment, she was barefoot, her feet a patchwork of scars, some fresh, some long-healed.
Burns and knife cuts covered her feet.
Yet despite her condition, a faint beauty was still discernible on her thin, delicate face.
Her dull, straw-colored hair hung limply, the tangled bangs half-covering her eyes.
The servant who brought her meals tossed a stale toast at her from a distance.
He said, "Damn, what a pain, having to come to this hellhole every single day."
The servant covered his nose against the dungeon's stench.
The servant snapped, "Hurry up and eat. You'll be going upstairs for a bath later."
At the mention of bath, the little girl began to tremble violently.
She knew that a bath meant another beating.
The little girl thought in terror, 'It hurts! It hurts so much!
'I miss my mommy so much...
'Where is my mommy?
'Why isn't Mommy coming for me?'
The little girl picked up the stale toast from the floor and gnawed at it hungrily.
If she didn't eat, she'd starve to death.
Just then, a tiny mouse scurried to her feet.
The little girl broke off a few crumbs and scattered them on the floor.
The little mouse crouched on the floor, nibbling at the crumbs with rapid, tiny bites.
At first, she was terrified when she saw the mouse.
She was so terrified she burst into tears.
As days passed, she noticed the same little mouse would come every day.
The little mouse lingered at her feet, squeaking softly as if asking, "How did your feet get hurt? Why are you here all alone?"
Eventually, the little girl and the mouse became friends.
The little mouse seemed to understand her every word, she thought.
Every time she was dragged back into the dungeon, the little mouse would faithfully stay by her side.
'Through all those endless days and nights in this dungeon, the little mouse was my only companion,' the little girl thought.
Meanwhile, inside the mansion, a woman was examining the newly arrived torture devices, planning to experiment on the little girl later.
"Bring her up here," the woman commanded coldly.
The bodyguard knew instantly who she meant. "Yes, ma'am!"
The bodyguard acknowledged the order and had just turned to leave when he collided with a servant rushing in from outside.
The servant rushed in and urgently reported to Ma'am, "Mrs. Melinda, Mrs. Sally is here!"
Hearing this, Melinda Boone's expression darkened.
Her expression darkened.
'What's she doing here?' Melinda thought.
The bodyguard stood at attention, waiting for Melinda's next instructions.
With Sally Boone here, she felt that today's "experiment" was off.
"Damn lucky for her. She gets a pass today," Melinda said coldly, handing the torture device to the bodyguard.
"Yes, Ma'am."
With that, Melinda hurried upstairs.
As Melinda emerged in clean clothes, Sally arrived.
Melinda instantly plastered on a bright smile and hurried forward.
"Mother, what brings you here today?" Melinda asked with feigned delight.
Melinda helped Sally to her seat as servants brought drinks, fruits, and pastries.
Sally gave Melinda's hand a gentle pat, her face radiating warmth and kindness.
Sally smiled warmly and said, "Am I not welcome here?"
"I'm absolutely delighted you could come. You should have told me earlier, I would have had your favorite dishes ready for you!"
Melinda now looked like a completely different person, a far cry from the murderous intent she had shown just moments earlier.
Sally said with earnest concern, "Don't fuss over the food, I can't eat much anyway. What I really came to say is that you two should start thinking about having a child while you're both still young."
Melinda flushed with discomfort, Sally's words cutting deep.
All she ever wanted was to have a child of her own with her husband, William Boone.
But having a child wasn't something she could decide alone.
'How am I supposed to have a baby when William never even comes home?' Melinda thought bitterly.
Sensing Melinda's predicament, Sally continued.
Sally advised gently, "Men will always have their ways outside. As his wife, you should be understanding and not fuss over every little thing. He'll notice your kindness. When he grows tired of all those butterflies fluttering around him, he'll come back to you eventually."
Hearing Sally's words, Melinda felt a sharp pang of pain, but she kept her expression carefully neutral.
Melinda nodded obediently, masking her inner turmoil.
Seeing that Melinda seemed to have taken her words to heart, Sally felt reassured.
Melinda was seething with rage inside.
It had been so long since she last saw her husband.
She and William were brought together in an arranged marriage between their families.
Not long after Melinda married William, she discovered that he had a long-time lover from before their marriage.
That woman broke up with William before their wedding.
Back then, Melinda didn't give it much thought.
Melinda thought to herself, 'With a man like William, it'd be strange if there weren't women around him,.
'Besides, she was just his ex. Everyone has an ex, right?
But she couldn't have been more wrong.
William never stopped longing for that woman, even in his sleep, he would call out her name.
She had tried to track down that woman, but all her efforts came to nothing.
It wasn't until two years ago that William brought a little girl home.
At first, she simply assumed that since they had no children of their own, he had adopted the little girl from elsewhere.
The more she looked at the little girl, the more she saw William's features in her.
Growing suspicious, she secretly had a paternity test done behind her husband's back.
The moment Melinda saw the results of the paternity test, it felt like her whole world came crashing down.
Suddenly, Melinda thought, "So this girl is that bitch's child.
'The child was conceived after they broke up, so that bitch secretly gave birth to her. Later, William found out and quietly brought the girl home.'