Kate turned to look at Anna, who was trembling and terrified. She gently said, “Don’t be afraid. Tell me what is going on.”
Daisy's heart skipped a beat. She wanted to step forward to stop any from speaking, but if she did, she would be admitting what she had done.
"Sister Daisy sends me to my room at mealtime. I can only eat leftovers, and there is never any meat. The food was so good tonight; I ate a lot, so now I am delighted," Anna sobbed, which was out of character for her. In the past, if she were wrong, she would have vented her anger on everyone, but now she seemed to be suffering.
Kate was angry and turned to scold Daisy, "Is what she said true?"
Daisy, instead of feeling guilty, was still angry. She mocked, "Compared to what her mother and she did to me, what I have done is not even worth mentioning!”
"Daisy, you…" Kate never expected that her kind sister would say and do such cruel things.
Kate had not forgotten about the pain and suffering brought on by Leo, Dora, and Anna, but they received their punishment. Anna now had amnesia, and there was no point in bullying her. And Kate thought, the more they continued to bring up the past, the more misery it would bring to their lives. She hoped that Daisy could forget about the past and live her life.
“I finally understand now, Kate. No matter how deep the friendship between us goes, it can’t compare to the blood relationship between you and Anna. You are half-sisters, even if she has done so many evil things that I can't even count. You can forgive them and continue to be her sister," Daisy's expression was cold, and her words stabbed Kate in the heart.
Kate looked at Daisy, who was acting like a complete stranger. She was terrified of Daisy but said, “You are saying I changed! I think it is you who…”
"Yes, I have changed!" Daisy shouted, and then added, “Perhaps this is just the real me!”
"Kate, even if your mother is dead, and your life is not as good as it was before, you had a childhood. You were protected and loved by your parents; you were a jewel in the palm of their hands. I was nothing more than an unwanted orphan. I was sold as a discounted item since I was seven years old, from one stranger's house to another. I can't even remember how many times I was passed around for money. I went to school, and other kids would push me and make fun of me. Can you even imagine how painful that was?"
Tears ran down Daisy's cheeks, flowing like the resentment she had accumulated after years of abuse. She looked at Kate and said, "If it weren't for my perseverance, I would have been bullied to death by them or forced out of here. Can you imagine feeling unconditional love and then turn around to be mistreated?"
Kate was speechless after hearing Daisy's heartbreaking story. She always knew that Daisy had a painful life before living with them. But with Flora and Kate's help, she grew into a caring, warm person. Kate never realized that she felt so unsafe and hurt.
"I genuinely appreciate what your mother did. She gave loved me as if I was her own daughter. But compared to what you had, I had nothing. Her love for me was out of sympathy and charity. How can that be compared to how she loved you?” Daisy asked Kate.
Daisy smiled coldly and said mercilessly, "Kate, do you pity me, an orphan? Do you honestly look at me as your sister?"
Kate shook her head, "I have never felt bad for you and always regarded you as my sister. And my mother's love for you was not out of sympathy!"
"My mother would often speak about you so highly. When we both got our school marks, you were always praised. When she bought gifts, she bought two. When she went for walks on the grounds, she took you. A lot of the time, she would ask me to care about you more, saying that we are sisters and that we need to take care of each other," Kate could not allow Daisy to misunderstand the way things were growing up or how Flora felt about her. The moment Kate started thinking of her mother, her heart broke again. However, to ease Daisy's mind, Kate had to explain it all.
Daisy clenched her fists and sneered, "So what? She did that out of sympathy and gave me handouts! She was rich and could take care of me!"
Knowing that trying to explain would just be useless, Kate closed her eyes, letting the tears flow down. She hoped that she could release the pain that Daisy’s words caused her.
“Kate, I don’t want to argue with you, but you are a stranger to me. Since you and Joseph became a couple, you are hardly ever home. You leave me here with this insane woman and ask me to take care of her so that you can be with your love. And you gave away your mother's company for love. You really…"
Daisy shook her head in disappointment and laughed, "…disappoint me!”
Kate wiped away her tears, and bluntly asked, "What is your reason for arguing with me? Are you afraid our relationship is fading, or that you will lose this home and Kate Group?"