mouth again? You’re really acting out now that Joshua’s away. It looks like I need to teach you a lesson today!”
Once she was done speaking, she grabbed the broom beside her and tried to hit me. I reacted quickly, picking Natalie up and running to hide behind the village elders.
After living under the same roof for two lifetimes, I knew exactly what kind of person Samantha was. She was trying to divert everyone’s attention by causing a scene.
What she didn’t realize was that everyone had already figured out the truth.
Samantha grew angrier when she was held back by the others.
Perhaps it was because she knew that they were about to move away soon, so she didn’t have to care about keeping up appearances with the neighbors anymore.
She raised the broom and snapped, “I’m warning you all–stay out of my business, or I’ll hit all of you the same!”
Samantha didn’t seem satisfied even after threatening them. She started lashing out at the crowd. “If you’ve got that much time to spare, maybe you should worry about your own affairs first!
“Some of you can’t even keep your own husbands in line. Everyone in the village knows how they’re cheating out there! And let’s not forget about those who couldn’t bear sons. Now suddenly, you’re after mine? Who knows what they’re really here for
today!
I stood in place, stunned, as Samantha continued to spill secrets after secrets.
In a village like ours, nothing stayed secret for long. People loved to gossip, but it was rarely malicious. What she was doing now, though, was clearly crossing the line with everyone.
Samantha seemed to be oblivious to the way everyone’s faces had darkened and kept going.
རང་བ
Chapter 5
Unfortunately, patience had its limits.
Samantha had barely gotten her first word out when the elder in front of me slapped her.
“Don’t push it, Samantha! You really thought we didn’t know? Joseph has been dead for a while. The one standing here is clearly Joshua!” the older woman snapped.
