Family on Their Knees Heart Turned to Ice novel Chapter 768

Ethan had just finished pacifying the room and was turning to leave when Dolores suddenly dashed forward and threw her arms around his leg.

"Mister! Mister, can you take me to see Auntie Bella? I miss her so much. Mommy said if we came here, I'd get to see Auntie Bella, and that she would let me go to school, just like my brother!"

Before she could even finish her sentence, Emily yanked the little girl back by the arm.

Emily shot Ethan a sickeningly sweet, apologetic smile. "Don't mind her, Mr. Hayes. Just a stupid country brat with no manners. She's a nuisance. Please, go on about your business."

The moment she turned away, Emily dragged Dolores forcefully and began viciously berating her. "You worthless leech! What school? If you go to school, who's going to earn that five thousand dollars a month for us?

You stay right where you are and make me money.

Five thousand bucks... I couldn't even sell you for that much!

You ungrateful burden. I should've drowned you in a bucket the day you were born."

Ethan froze, horrified by the barrage of venom. In this entire lineage of Bennetts, there was actually one child who wanted an education—and she was strictly forbidden.

Her only purpose was to be a cash cow.

Not even worth five thousand dollars if sold? Had they trafficked their own kids before?

"You worthless waste of space..."

Emily continued to screech, but Ethan forced himself not to intervene in their domestic abuse.

Getting involved now would only complicate things, and risking Lillian's master plan over a passing comment wasn't worth the fallout.

He simply walked away, the sounds of the shouting fading behind him.

Dolores sobbed under her mother's blows, only for the rest of the family to join in on the scolding.

They mocked her for being ungrateful when she had endless food and a guaranteed monthly allowance of five thousand dollars ahead of her.

But Ethan was already gone, unable to hear the rest.

Celia sighed, her voice heavy with bitter resignation. "Yes, she's another exploited placeholder. They gave her my old name.

They thought that since I made something of myself, my name carried a special luck that would finally bring a baby boy into the family.

Dolores doesn't understand that the name isn't a blessing. It's not luck; it's a curse. It's a heavy shackle.

She is just like me, maybe even worse off.

At least I caught a lucky break when I was chosen by a sponsor to get an education.

The only reason they let me attend was because the school gave them a stipend.

Otherwise, they would have kept me locked in the house.

But Dolores didn't get that chance. For her, school is an impossible dream.

However, they did realize that education has perks—they saw that I made something of myself, that I make good money, and that I can support them."