Kendall's Sacrifice

Chapter 41

Emily stated coldly, "When I talk, you listen. You're not allowed to talk back."

"Mrs. Coleman, I won't talk back when you're being reasonable, but if you're being unreasonable, I will defend myself."

"So you do know that I'm Mrs. Coleman. Kendall Parker, haven't you realized your position in this family yet? Dylan didn't bring you back to let you live a pampered life. You're here to make up for your mistakes, and you're nothing more than a housekeeper—an unpaid housekeeper. You need to have a more respectful attitude when you talk to me."

"Dylan didn't say that I'm his housekeeper."

Kendall did not back down.

This was the first time that she butted heads with Emily. If she backed down now, Emily would think that she was a pushover.

Yes, it was humiliating for Dylan when she cut herself to decline his proposal, but that was a mistake she made before her rebirth. She realized the error in her ways now, and she even made up for it by marrying Dylan.

She was willing to stay by his side for the rest of her life.

However, this was not a reason for her to allow Emily to walk all over her.

"You!" Emily glared at Kendall.

Kendall met Emily's furious gaze without any sign of fear or backing down.

After a while, Emily finally suppressed her loathing and uttered plainly, "Forget it. I have no time to argue with you. I have some clothes that I want to wear tomorrow, but they're a little dirty and not easy to wash. If I send it to the dry cleaners, they might not be able to finish it in time. Go and find Mrs. Langston. She's in charge of my wardrobe, and she will give those clothes to you. Wash them for me, and remember to be careful with them. Don't ruin them, but make sure you do a good job cleaning them."

Kendall pursed her lips. She knew that this mother-in-law of hers would be up to no good.

No scoldings, no beatings, but instead, Emily was ordering her around like a servant. This was how Emily paid her back for the way she treated Dylan.

"Mrs. Coleman, your household employs a lot of servants. This is their job."

"You will do as I say. Also, I told you to show me more respect. How can a country bumpkin like you talk to me like that? How ridiculous! This is why you'll always be a country bumpkin. You won't be able to fit in with us at all."

Once Kendall heard what Emily had to say, it finally dawned on her that even without her rejection of Dylan's proposal, Emily would still look down on her.

"What's wrong with being from a village? So what if I grew up in a rural area?"

"How am I a disgrace? Did I take your food and steal your money?"

"How are you inconvenienced just because I grew up in a rural area? If you're going to scoff at villagers like this, then don't eat the food and produce that come from farms in these rural areas. Are you certain that every single one of your ancestors grew up in a wealthy family?"

Emily had grown pale as Kendall's words stabbed at her, but she could not retort.

How could anyone be certain that none of their ancestors had ever been poor?

"So this is how a woman from the upper class behaves, huh? Is that all the civility you have? At least the women from our rural village have the decency to treat others with common courtesy."

Kendall's words were full of mockery.

A truly distinguished woman from the upper class would not need to put down others for the sake of elevating her own status.

"I'm going to say this one last time. Dylan did not bring me back to be the Colemans' housekeeper, so don't expect me to do anything that a housekeeper does. So sorry, but I have other things to attend to. I'll get out of your way and save you from the terrible ordeal of having to look at me. I'd rather not stick around and hear you claim that a country bumpkin like me dirties your house simply by standing in it."

Kendall turned around and left as soon as she finished speaking. She did not even bother waiting for Emily's response.

Emily wanted to refute Kendall's criticisms, but she did not even get her chance to speak.

Kendall fired off like a machine gun when her temper got the best of her. Her words were sharp and biting, and she left no room for rebuttal.

Meanwhile, Amos had been taking it all in from the side.

He thought that Kendall had a weak personality since she often demurred in front of Dylan. However, he was surprised by her show of strength in front of Emily. She had not shown any sign of weakness at all, and Emily failed to sink her claws into her.

"Kendall Parker, you get back here at once!"

Emily snapped out of her daze and leaped to her feet before shrieking after Kendall's retreating figure.

Kendall ignored her and continued walking.

Hopping mad, Emily turned to Amos and said, "Mr. Miller, did you see the way she spoke to me? How dare she take that tone with me? So what if I said that she's a country bumpkin? Am I wrong?"

Amos kept quiet for a moment before asking, "Mrs. Coleman, do you want to hear the truth?"

"Are you planning on lying to me?"

"Of course not. Mrs. Coleman, your attitude and choice of words not only humiliated Miss Kendall, but also every person who came from a rural area."

"...That's only because I dislike her for the way she treated Dylan," Emily said defensively.

"Mrs. Coleman, do forgive me for saying this, but you should stay out of Young Master Dylan's private matters. Even though you're his mother, he does not allow you to get involved. It's best for you to stay out of his relationship with Miss Kendall."

Emily's face darkened. "As his mother, don't I have the right to take revenge on his behalf? If it weren't for the fact that my son got into an accident, how would a woman like Kendall Parker be able to marry my son?"

Emily thought about Dylan, her pride and joy, who was now stuck in a wheelchair and could not perform as a man. All the young women from distinguished families who once dreamt of marrying Dylan had scurried away and rejected forming a marriage alliance with their family. In the end, Old Madam Coleman had to set her eyes on a nobody like Kendall Parker. The thought of this drove knives into Emily's heart.

However, Amos muttered to himself, And yet, the "nobody", Kendall Parker, is the one who's married to Young Master Dylan.

"Go back, Mr. Miller. I'll have a word with Dylan when he comes home."

Emily would not let Kendall get away with this.

"Yes, Mrs. Coleman."

Amos stepped out of the living room, and when he did not spot any sign of Kendall, he hurried off as

fast as he could. Published by Nôv'elD/rama.Org.

Meanwhile, Kendall had not gone straight back to Dylan's house. She chose to take a seat at the pavilion where Dylan usually took his meals.

The sun was steadily moving its way down the sky, and the rays were warm now, unlike how they scorched at noon. They bore down on her like a warm embrace.

There was a gentle breeze that slowly dissipated the boiling anger inside Kendall.

She thought about her previous life. After marrying Jackson, she had not received any respect from the Whittles either. Her mother-in-law, Mrs. Whittle, spoke courteously to her while her parents were alive, but Mrs. Whittle would still impose a lot of rules on her to curtail her freedom. She was not allowed to visit her parents often, and she was not allowed to leave the house whenever she wanted. She was not even allowed to make friends, and she was caged inside the Whittles' residence.

When her parents died, Mrs. Whittle no longer treated her courteously. She began to criticize her, ridicule her, humiliate her, and make life difficult for her. Kendall's life was worse than that of a servant.

She managed to put up with all that because she was deeply in love with Jackson.

In the end…

Kendall tried to hold back her tears as she thought about her daughter, who had died such a horrible death. Her heart felt like it had been ripped to shreds.

This time… she would not be able to reunite with her baby.

She fervently hoped that her baby would be able to have a good family in her next life.

Now that she thought about her precious daughter from her previous life, she somewhat understood why Emily despised her so much. Still, Emily should not have tried to use her rural upbringing against her, and she should not have turned it into a mockery of everyone who grew up in rural areas.