The Unlucky Turn by Mark Twain 23
Behind her came Gloria’s hysterical sobbing and cursing. “Don’t you ever appear in front of my daughter again! Or I’ll kill you myself!”
“Bang!”
The ward door was slammed shut. From inside came Gloria’s angry ranting and Yvonne’s timid question: “Mom… who was she?”
“A lunatic! Don’t pay attention to her!”
“Oh… But I felt… she seemed really kind and familiar…”
Walking out of the sanatorium, Leilani stood on the steps, looking up at the gray sky. She wondered what exactly Yvonne had discovered that made Tamara resort to such a vicious attack.
She remembered clearly that before the incident, Yvonne had mysteriously told her, “Leilani! I found out a huge secret about Tamara! Once I have solid evidence, I’m going to expose her!”
At the time, Leilani hadn’t paid much attention. She saw Tamara as nothing more than a manipulative foster sister who liked to play the victim and stir up trouble with Hackett and Zadie to make Leilani’s life miserable. So she had just ruffled Yvonne’s hair and smiled. “Forget about her. Just be careful so she doesn’t trick you.”
She never imagined Tamara would actually try to kill Yvonne. By the time she returned from running an errand, Yvonne had already fallen down the stairs. There was blood everywhere. In the chaos, the Sherwood family couldn’t figure out who had pushed Yvonne. The Sloan family deliberately destroyed the surveillance footage from that day. They pushed Leilani forward to take the blame for Tamara.
Recalling the humiliation of the past, Leilani’s eyes gradually turned cold. What exactly had Yvonne found? It had to be something significant for Tamara to risk her reputation within the Sloan family by committing such a brutal act. That “secret” was definitely not simple.
Leilani stood straight, taking one last look at the white building. She made up her mind. She would uncover the truth. Not just for Yvonne, but to clear her own name.
As for Yvonne, she would make sure she walked again.
…
A few days later, the Watson family banquet arrived as scheduled. The villa was brightly lit. A long red carpet was spread across the garden, and waiters moved among the guests with trays of champagne.
Leilani arrived just before evening. She stood at the entrance, adjusting her hem. She rarely wore dresses, but since this was Tilda’s recovery banquet, out of politeness, she had changed into a simple beige dress paired with a light knit cardigan. She looked softer, shedding some of her usual cold, hard edge.
“My dear!” Tilda spotted her the moment she entered and immediately walked over with a smile, grabbing her hand. “You’re finally here! I was afraid you’d change your mind!”
Leilani smiled faintly. “I promised you. I wouldn’t go back on my word.”
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“Good!” Tilda patted the back of her hand with satisfaction, looking her up and down, her eyes lighting up. “You look wonderful today! Much better than those girls strutting around like peacocks!”
Saying this, she dragged Leilani into the crowd without explanation. “Come, let me introduce you to some old friends!”
For the next half hour, Tilda dragged Leilani around to meet almost every prominent figure in the
venue.
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