Chapter 2 - Chapter 2: The Golden Child
Ryan had been called special since he was old enough to understand praise.When he broke something, Margaret said he was energetic. When he lied, Charles said he was creative. When he failed, the family blamed someone else.Emily, on the other hand, had always been the responsible one.She helped her father in the family’s small real estate office after school. She looked after Ryan when their parents were busy. She remembered birthdays, paid bills when money was tight, and kept quiet when Ryan took credit for things she had done.Their father, Walter Parker, had noticed.Before he passed away, he had told Emily something she never forgot.“You are stronger than they let you believe.”But after Walter died, everything changed.Margaret and Charles insisted that Ryan should handle the family business because he was “the son.” Emily was pushed aside, especially after she became a widow and raised Lily alone.Ryan learned to use that.At family dinners, he made jokes about Emily’s old car. At holidays, he called her dramatic whenever she spoke up. If Lily dropped a spoon, Ryan called the child careless. If Emily defended her daughter, Margaret said, “You’re too sensitive.”Over the years, Emily became the family’s easiest target.And Ryan became the man everyone protected.Until the wedding day.
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