Chapter 52
Maya White couldn't help but smirk when Luna White agreed. She discreetly touched the money pouch hidden in her clothes, its weight bringing her comfort. With this sum, her future was finally secure.
The thought of Jack White and Clara White's reactions when they discovered the missing money made Maya uneasy. But she quickly straightened her back—after all, her brothers were the favorites in the family. As a daughter, she had always been dispensable. If not for Luna, an outsider, standing in the way, she might not even have had this much presence.
"When trouble comes, Father and Mother will always protect their sons first," Maya thought, biting her lip. "I won't just sit around and wait for disaster."
She refused to marry that gambler, Frank Harris, and spend her life trapped in a backwater village. This time, she would fight for herself.
As for Luna... A shadow of malice flickered in Maya's eyes.
After the bus arrived at its stop, Luna politely bid farewell to Mayor George Clark and his wife. Maya followed closely behind, carrying a bulky bundle on her back.
Luna held only an old cloth bag. In this era, plastic bags were still a rarity, and villagers mostly used handwoven bamboo baskets.
Standing by the roadside, Luna felt lost. She hadn’t been to town since Iris White's wedding. She only vaguely remembered that Iris's husband, Henry Cooper, was a carpenter who lived near the market.
"What are you spacing out for?" Maya snapped impatiently, eyeing Luna with suspicion.
"Do you know the way?" Luna shot back.
"N-No!"
"Then why the rush?" Luna scoffed. It was laughable how Maya still acted so superior.
"Can’t you ask for directions? What’s the point of having a mouth?" Maya retorted out of habit.
Luna ignored her and walked away. If not for the need to extract information, she wouldn’t have traveled with Maya in the first place.
"Wait for me!" Maya hurried after her.
After confirming the market’s location, Luna spotted a row of neat single-story houses. In this era, most town residences were cave-style dwellings like these—only government offices had multi-story buildings.
"Excuse me, ma'am, could you tell me where Iris White lives?" Luna stopped a woman pouring water outside.
"Third row, middle—sixth or seventh house, I think," the woman kindly pointed out.
Luna’s heart tightened with nervousness. It had been two lifetimes since she’d last seen her second sister. The only memory left was Iris smiling at her with a thick braid swaying.
"Quit dawdling!" Maya shoved her abruptly.
"Touch me again and see what happens!" Luna snapped. If not for her drained supernatural ability, Maya would’ve regretted it.
Only then did Maya remember Luna wasn’t the same pushover anymore. She withdrew her hand resentfully.
As they approached the row of houses, loud commotion reached them. A crowd had gathered, and from within came a child’s cries and a woman’s furious shouting.
"That Mrs. Laura Taylor is too much!"
"Iris is just too soft-hearted..."
"Without a man at home, she’s at a disadvantage."
The murmurs rose and fell. Luna’s chest clenched. She pushed through the crowd to see what was happening.