Chapter 2 I Have To Protect Them

• Meanwhile, my father's irate shouts echoed from outside the door.
• “Delilah! I swear, I'm going to kill you! You useless waste of space, you better tell me right now where you've stashed the money!”
• He barged in through the door, only to be stopped by the tall and robust eldest son of the Lavigne family.
• My father was livid.
• “I'm disciplining my own daughter. What does it have to do with the Lavigne family?”
• Greta was someone with a sharp tongue, and her son was the key figure managing affairs in the village. They were far more imposing than my gambling-addicted father.
• Her eyebrows shot up as she held onto me.
• “Neville, you unlucky b*stard, after exhausting your wife to death, you even think of beating your eldest daughter. You're nothing but a lazy good-for-nothing. You're poor as dirt and stingy. You're fifty years old and still acting like a hopeless gambler! Aren't you ashamed, asking such a young girl for money! Your wife was barely in her coffin, and you're already acting like this. Aren't you afraid she'll come seeking revenge in the middle of the night?”
• My father had spent his entire life being gently appeased by my mother, and my younger siblings dared not defy him. No one had ever dared to berate him like this.
• However, given Greta's status and with her eldest son keeping a close watch, he dared not make a move.
• He shot me a menacing look and snarled, “If you're so capable, then don't bother coming back!”
• Having said that, he left in a huff.
• Before he left, Greta picked up a shoe and hurled it at the back of his head.
• “Delilah will stay with us! I dare you to come to my house, you shameless jerk!”
• While coughing, I tugged at Greta's sleeve.
• “Thank you, Mrs. Lavigne. But I must return home to take care of my younger siblings. They can't manage on their own. They need me at home.”
• Greta sighed and cautiously asked me, “Does your father always hit you like this?”
• I didn't utter a word. As if recalling something terrifying, I rubbed my arms and backed away.
• With tears staining my eyes a deep red, I gently took hold of Greta's hand.
• “My father said my younger brother is the man of the house, and we'd have to rely on him in the future. My younger sister is beautiful, and she could marry into a good family. I have to protect them. According to my father, it's right for me to take a beating since good women are shaped through hardship.”
• Greta was so outraged that she couldn't help but lash out in anger.
• “What kind of nonsense is this!”
• Hearing that, I was genuinely distressed this time.