Chapter 135: Chapter 135

*Reader discretion is advised*

Clara placed the phone right by her side, leaving it on loudspeaker as she ranted and poured out all her emotions and grievances on her daughter. Her mood was a mess! The night before, she had tried everything, but her intelligent son had made her snap!

Deep inside, she regretted that action a bit, but she was getting desperate. James had been in the police station for almost a full twenty-four hours then, and she needed to do anything to get him out. At that time, she realized just how powerless she was. Without James, Clara was nothing! She knew full well that she could not afford to go back to a time like that again!

’How will I survive without him?’ She lamented to herself. She was in this mood when her daughter’s call came in.

For the first time in a long while, Clara did not hold back. There was no one there to see her be the prim and proper, docile woman she had made herself out to be.

The only person she could rely on with enough power to get James out was in the Thornston family and her daughter was married to the most influential one.

To Clara, she did not even have to say this simple fact to Shelby. Shelby should have been the one to get her father out. It was as simple as that, but that daughter of hers just did not understand that!

Clara had spent the better part of the night on this. Initially, she had decided that she did not want to bother Shelby because she was newly married, but then, as the day dragged on into the night and another morning, Clara began to understand that without the firm intervention of an influential person, James would really become convicted and rot behind bars.

Clara had exhausted all of her resources, and none of the rich ladies who had been sucking up to had given her the time of day.

Her face became ugly, and she frowned.

"Curse those bitches!"

"M-um?" Shelby’s voice sounded in the room, making Clara’s frown more pronounced.

Clara seemed to have lost herself as Shelby’s voice became almost like a squeak, reminding her of some time back. A situation that was almost different but similar in so many ways.

About two decades back...

"Why do you want to pass by that house?"

"Stop exaggerating! That’s a grieving mother and her daughter, and you guys are blowing this out of proportion."

Two women walked and headed for the one vendor they had in town. The only path there run by the humble home of a recent widow, Clara and her daughter. A younger-looking Clara had been just by her window and heard all the words.

She sighed, and fresh tears ran down her cheeks. Losing her husband had been so unexpected and heart-wrenching for her. Never in her life had she thought that she would lose him that suddenly.

The two women continued, "Listen to us when we tell you things. You are new to this island and you listen to us on this."

"Our island is very small, and we know each other best. The nearest Island is almost a day away by boat. You know that too. Take it from me, she is not worth your time!"

The other woman who was being warned couldn’t help but sigh and be helplessly drawn away.

"Let me tell you, that woman killed her husband-"

"Come on! There should be a limit to such ridiculousness!"

The two came to a standstill, "I would never lie about something like that! She wanted something from that rumoured witch in the mountains and sacrificed him!"

’There is no need to talk to such people about this! Killed her husband for a ritual? Hmmfp!’ She decided that it was not worth it, but she could not help but look at the forlorn woman who had peeked out the window at them.

"What are you doing? We’ll miss the show! I heard that new people may be coming to our Island today!"

The woman looked long and hard at her friend and then followed her away from the place.

For an island of less than two hundred people, alienated from all other bigger islands by large expanses of water, if one was isolated there as well, she could not imagine the grief that the widow was going through, and the people around her had no sympathy for her.

"M-um? I hungry....."

A very young Shelby staggered with her little legs over to her mother, clutching her tattered dress.

Clara sat down on the floor and pushed Shelby roughly away from her, making the girl fall on her bum.

It had barely been five months since he had passed, but her world had turned upside down. It did not make sense; how could someone who grew up on an island die by drowning?

"Why did you leave me?!" She was not even listening to the demands of her young child, who still could not care for herself. Clara herself was a terrible sight to behold. Her dress was so worn out that it looked like it would tear up with no effort.

Clara hated herself and, sadly, the life of her child as well. This was because she had a child to feed when she did not want to do anything. She loved her baby and had tried her best for her family, but the absence of her husband had changed everything, especially since her precious daughter was the cause!

The little Shelby, not understanding why her mother was like that, got up and wiped the drop of tears. Even at four years, she understood that ’Mummy was sad and should not be disturbed.’ The thing was that Shelby would not have bothered with her mother, but she was hungry, and there was nothing that she could get for herself.

’Daddy would have gotten me something if he were here....’

She already understood that her father would never tuck her into bed again, he would never smile with or at her, he would never hold her up high in his arms ever again! Her mother had already told her all of those grim details the day her father had left.

Clara buried her head in her arms, and tears flew down freely. Her palms and arms hurt from all the tasks she had tried to take over after his death, but it was just not enough, and she had neglected both of them to a very bad degree.

"Mum? I.... hungry..." This time, Shelby said again in an almost whisper, afraid of being reprimanded.

Clara raised her head and angrily wiped her tears.

"Why are you the one who survived?!" She screamed at her, making the small girl stumble and fall again. She opened her mouth wide and let out a deafening scream, crying her heart out but sadly, the only words that came out were, "Muuuuuuummmmmm!!!"

It became a task of who could cry or shout the hardest!

At that time, Clara’s mummy instincts had already been shelved, and she felt no ounce of pity or care for the child in front of her. She had phases like those, especially when she heard of the cruel words of others or she thought back to the lifeless body of her husband, her one sweetheart who made her life worth living.

She knew somewhere at the back of her mind that she was being unfair, but her grief did not make her care, not one bit!

"I hate you! Why did you have to go out to the sea when we told you not to go? What is wrong with you? You killed him!"

Clara held Shelby by her attire and shook her roughly. It was as if doing that would bring back the husband who had been buried.

Clara did not believe that she would ever forget that day when she rushed to the shore with the news that her beloved husband was no more.

No matter the number of times, she pushed her little girl away, Shelby came right back to her. After a while, she let her be, and lowered her head, ignoring her completely.

Her blond hair was then lifeless and dull, her nails broken, her face pale as if it had been a while since she saw the sunlight.

The thing was, Clara did not know how to survive without that man. She had no trade skills nor was she educated. She had no way to survive at all, not to talk of taking care of another human being, even if it were her flesh. Shelby had eventually fallen asleep with her stomach growling of hunger. The occasional coiling and sound from her tiny tummy attested to just how empty the little girl’s stomach was.

Clara was unbothered as she had no food in the house. She herself had not had any food for the whole day. The last of the meal she had in her home, a stale bread, had been given to her daughter that morning.

She could do nothing else, at least, according to her thoughts. She turned to look at the girl who took after her physically, but all of her mannerisms reminded her of the husband who had just passed.

Every action of Shelby reminded her of him, making it so hard to look at her daughter. Clara knew that her daughter would grow up to be a lovely woman just like her, but could she wait that long? Wouldn’t they both be already in the afterlife by then?

She nudged her daughter aside, making her sprawl down on the cold floor, and then stood up, walking out of the house. Clara did not look back, even once. She was frail and weak and needed an out. She had to do anything to survive. The few brain cells she had were still turning rapidly and she came to a conclusion.

Clara only had two options left: find another man or kill herself!

"But what do I do about her?" She asked herself as she walked further and further away from her home.

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