Where Petals of Vengeance Bloom

Watching Claire walk slowly toward Adah, Mr. Tempest's brow furrowed in concern, while Mrs. Tempest's eyes shone with unshed tears.

Adah, on the other hand, was so overcome with excitement that she hardly knew what to do with herself.

"Claire, have you finally come around? Are you ready to come home with Mom?" she asked eagerly.

"I knew it. My sweet girl would never abandon her mother," she added, her voice trembling with emotion.

Claire looked up at her, her expression cool and detached. "Kneel down," she said quietly.

Adah blinked, caught off guard. "Kneel down?"

Claire nodded. "Yes. Kneel down. There are a few things I want to say to you."

Adah hesitated. Something about Claire's demeanor felt off-she didn't seem at all like someone ready to reconcile. Still, Adah sank slowly to her knees, anticipation flickering in her eyes. "What is it, darling? What do you want to tell Mommy?"

Claire leaned in closer.

Seeing her daughter draw near, Adah's heart nearly burst with joy. She even shot a triumphant glance at Mr. and Mrs. Tempest, as if to say, See? This is a mother's bond. No matter how long we've been apart, Claire still longs for my love—just like she did in our past life.

Mr. and Mrs. Tempest exchanged an uneasy look. They truly cherished Claire, loving her as if she were their own. Yet now, with her birth mother's sudden appearance, Claire seemed to gravitate back to her. Was it simply because they hadn't spent enough time with her? Was their bond not as deep as they'd hoped?

The couple's hearts tightened with anxiety, fearing that Claire might choose to leave them after all.

Adah beamed at her daughter. "What is it, sweetheart? What do you want to tell Mom?"

Claire pressed her lips close to Adah's ear and whispered, so quietly that only the two of them could hear, "Adah, did you really think you were the only one who came back from the dead?"

Adah's body went rigid. She stared at Claire, disbelief etched across her face.

When she met Claire's mocking gaze, her pupils dilated in shock.

"You... you..." Adah stammered.

Claire smirked coldly. "That's right. I came back too. And I returned even earlier than you did. My memories came flooding back the moment you gave birth to me."

“Don't think that just because you've been given a second chance, you can change everything."

"Adah, the truth is, you're no different now than you were before. Back at the children's boutique, before your memories came back, you defended Vanessa and treated me exactly as you did in our previous life."

"To put it plainly, you're selfish, arrogant, hypocritical-a foolish, venomous woman."

"What makes you think someone as despicable as you deserves my forgiveness?"

"Adah, in this life or the last, I will never forgive you. If you truly feel any shame at

all, then stay away from me. Don't ever show your face to me again."

"And as you can see, my real parents love me dearly. Here with the Tempest family, I have a mom, a dad, and a brother who cherish me. I'm no longer the helpless girl you and the Linwoods tormented lam Claire Tempest, the cherished daughter of this family."

"Oh, and you must be dying to know why the Tempests adopted me. Well, I'll let you in on a little

secret they wanted to adopt me in our last life too. But back then,

stayed behind for the sake of

Vincent, that worthless bastard, and turned them down."

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"Looking back now, I can't believe how foolish was-choosing to suffer for someone who didn't deserve me, and missing out on such wonderful parents. If I'd let myself be adopted back then, I never would've been abused and left

disabled by you and your family."

Every word Claire spoke was like a needle, stabbing deep into Adah's heart.noveldrama

Why?

Why did it have to be this way?

It was one thing for fate to grant her a second chance-but why did Claire have to come back too?

Claire would never forgive her.