Chapter 23

Logan smiled at Elysia and gestured to the empty seat beside him. "Hey, Elysia, come sit here," he said.

Emma watched, her jealousy simmering. Earlier, Logan had offered no comfort when she complained. Now, his enthusiastic greeting of Elysia felt like blatant favoritism.

As Elysia approached, Bella scoffed, "What terrible manners!"

Elysia frowned. "I have no manners because I've been an orphan my whole life. You should reflect on what your parents owned too," she retorted.

Scott intervened, "Bella, that's out of line."

Bella bristled, ready to reply, when Scott shouted, "Enough!"

Silence fell over the living room.

Tears welled in Emma's eyes. "Dad"

Scott's brow furrowed. "What exactly is going on?"

Panicked, Emma stammered, "Dad, the truth it's just like I told you."

"Unrepentant!" Scott snapped, turning to the butler. "Paul, get the whip."

Emma trembled. "Dad, please believe me."

Bella's expression darkened. "Scott, what did Emma do to deserve that?"

Paul hesitated; the punishment seemed excessive. Scott ignored Bella, glaring at Paul. "What? Am I not being taken seriously?"

Paul, sweating, stammered, "I'll get it right away," and hurried out.

Emma felt even more flustered as Paul left. Elysia, in contrast, seemed unfazed, almost enjoying the drama. She hadn't expected Scott to use a whip on Emma—a harsh lesson was coming.

Logan leaned close to Elysia, asking cautiously, "What did Emma do to make Scott so angry?"

"A big mistake," Elysia replied.

Logan rolled his eyes. That was unhelpful. The severity of the situation was clear.

Before he could ask further, Paul returned with a tray bearing the whip.

Emma's stomach dropped. Nervously, she slid off the couch and knelt before Scott. "Dad, I was wrong. Please forgive me."

Tears streamed down her face as she turned to Bella. "Mom, please ask Dad to forgive me."

Bella, distressed, wept. "Scott, Emma's been pampered. How can she handle this?"

Elysia scoffed silently. If she were facing punishment, Bella would show no such compassion.

Elysia envied Emma's genuine and protective motherly love; a love Elysia had never known.

Scott, irritated, looked at the sobbing Emma. "What did you do wrong?"

Emma felt conflicted. Too little, and she wouldn't escape punishment; too much, and she might say the wrong thing. She gambled. "I I shouldn't have lied."

"Keep talking!" Scott's voice was sharp.

Emma wiped her tears. "I shouldn't have deceived you. The necklace wasn't in my bag because of Elysia. I put it there myself. I thought it would be a joke. I didn't mean for it to end up in my bag. Out of anger, I lied to you."

Emma attempted to downplay her actions, but everyone knew better. She had crossed a line.

Bella frowned, but didn't blame Emma entirely. She felt Emma's behavior stemmed from Elysia's return. If Elysia hadn't returned, Emma would still be "sweet and innocent." Bella wished Elysia had never come back.

Logan, upset, shouted, "Is that supposed to be funny?"

He hadn't liked Emma before, mainly due to her constant crying. Even her negative comments about Elysia seemed like typical girl drama. But this deliberate act of harming his sister was unforgivable. He turned to Scott. "You're right. She deserves the whip."

Emma felt despair. How could Logan betray me? This is all Elysia's fault!

Scott hesitated, concerned about permanent scarring. He'd worked hard to raise Emma.

Yet, Logan's words and his recollection of Elysia's earlier comments swayed him. He paused, then looked at Emma. "Given your confession, you'll receive two light lashes as a warning."

Emma collapsed. How could Dad still punish me after everything? This is all Elysia's fault!

Bella's face paled. "Scott, maybe we should drop this."

Scott glared coldly. "She's like this because of you, yet you won't even consider it." He snatched the whip from Paul and gestured to two servants. "Bring her here."

The servants dragged Emma forward. She stood before Scott, biting her lip.

Scott brought the whip down hard. Blood splattered on Emma's clothes. But as he raised the whip for a second lash, Bella rushed forward, shielding Emma. The whip struck Bella instead. Tears streamed down her face. "You blame me for her upbringing. Then I should bear this punishment for her."