A Reborn Bride Pearl Emerging from Dust

"How come she's just fine now, huh? Back then, she was completely helpless! She needed someone, and where were you all?"

"Oh, right, you wouldn't know. Because you never cared. None of you did. All any of you ever cared about was Lisette. Not a single thought for my wife!"

"And of course, that mutt was crawling with disease. She dragged it home on purpose, just to hurt my wife. My wife got a terrible rash that year. It was bad. She was terrified, begged you for help, and you all just ignored her! Her whole room was crawling with fleas, and not one of you lifted a finger! She got through all that by herself! If she hadn't been strong enough, she wouldn't even be alive right now!"

Silas was furious, the anger practically radiating off him. He glared at Zelda, Monty, and the others, his eyes full of accusation and grief. With a bitter laugh, he said, "Clearly, you've all forgotten. Or maybe you never cared to begin with."

"You want to forget? Fine. But since she went through all that, now it's Lisette's turn to face the music! Every bit of pain my wife endured, Lisette can have a taste for herself. Because honestly, most of it started with her!"

He turned to look at Lisette, who had just burst out of her room. She'd started with a rash, but now her whole face was swollen, puffy and red. She almost looked like an alien. She'd always been pretty, but now? Now she was terrifying. No one dared get close.

Zelda recoiled in shock when she saw her.

"Oh my God, Lisette, what happened to you?"

Zelda stepped back, eyes wide in disbelief.

"Mom, I don't know! I don't know what's happening to me, what am I supposed to do?"

Lisette had just seen her reflection, and it nearly gave her a heart attack. She had no idea how she'd suddenly puffed up like a balloon.

But deep down, she knew this was all Silas's doing, and Silas would only ever do something like this for Calliope.

So really, it was all Calliope's fault.

These past few days had been a nightmare. At work, Calliope had been riding her non-stop, making her fix mistakes and piling on the tasks. She'd never been this busy in all her years at the company. She was barely keeping it together. If shenoveldrama

hadn't been scared of losing her job, she would've quit already.

She knew the Jewell family didn't exactly think much of her right now. That's why she'd tried so hard to look good.

But Calliope was relentless, and

Silas? Well, he was just her ow

dog. How else would he even know

about the past? Had to be Calliope feeding it to him, just to torture her.

"Calliope, can you please stop already? I get it, okay? I know I was wrong. I've

been trying to make it up to you, but you just keep putting me through hell!"

"You make my life miserable at work, and then you do this at home too! If you really want me dead, fine, I'll just do it right now!"

Lisette's eyes filled with tears as she sobbed. She turned to Monty and Zelda, voice shaking, "Mom, Dad, I'm sorry. I'm a terrible daughter. Maybe I won't get the chance to make it up to you. If Callie wants me gone so badly, maybe I should just

disappear!"