Filed to story: The Daughter in the Shadows (Yunice) Book by Una Norris
“What?!” Lily and Elsie both let out a wailing cry simultaneously.
Elsie threw herself into Owen’s arms, sobbing uncontrollably. “Yunice didn’t give in? How could she be so cruel, so selfish! You’re her brother!”
Owen closed his eyes heavily, and two silent tears slid down his face. His voice was hoarse. “It’s me who has failed her. Perhaps this is heaven’s punishment for my sins.”
Elsie buried herself in his arms, weeping bitterly while shooting Yunice a venomous glare, as though Yunice were the root of all evil and the one tearing their family apart.
Lily looked at her children, one crying bitterly in the other’s arms. She was trembling with rage, her hands curling into spasms of anger. This was something Yunice could resolve with a single nod. Why did she insist on breaking this family?
In Lily’s eyes, all of this was Yunice’s fault. Hatred filled her to the point her teeth almost shattered from clenching too hard. She stormed into Yunice’s room like a madwoman, pouncing on her and reaching for her neck.
“Is marrying Wyatt so unbearable for you?! Owen only got into trouble because he was standing up for you, and now you just sit back and watch him go to prison?”
Lily was beside herself with rage, so much so that she knocked Yunice over in one blow. The two of them tumbled onto Yunice’s bed. Lily’s hands locked around Yunice’s neck, her voice shaking with resentment as tears fell. “Ever since we brought you back, this house has known no peace. If I had known things would turn out like this, I would rather have left you to rot in that asylum forever!”
Fueled by fury, Lily used all her strength. Yunice’s breath caught. She could not breathe. Her feet kicked helplessly off the edge of the bed. Yet, despite seeing her desperate struggle, not a single person from the living room moved.
Lily’s curses poured on. “You stabbed Elsie, and your brother couldn’t bear to see you suffer, so he risked everything to forge a medical report to send you to the asylum for protection. And how do you repay him? By sending him to prison yourself? Even a snake that bites its savior isn’t as vicious as you!”
Yunice clawed at Lily’s wrists, but her grip was iron-tight, only tightening further. A choking sound rasped from Yunice’s throat. Her head pounded painfully, and Lily’s accusations blurred, muffled like a voice coming through a thick log.
As her consciousness began to fade, Yunice shifted her gaze toward the living room. Her bloodshot eyes were full of a desperate plea for help, but all she saw were indifferent faces.
Elsje’s eyes were filled with hatred, as if Yunice’s suffering at this moment finally soothed the humiliation of not marrying into the Powell family.
Even Luke, calm and detached, pretended to see nothing. His task was simple: Make Yunice agree to marry Wyatt. And what Lily was doing now suited him just fine.
Finally, Yunice looked at Paul, the man she had once protected with all her heart. As a child, Paul had always been trouble. He was always provoking enemies, always getting into fights. Back then, driven by youthful loyalty, when Paul was beaten or bullied, Yunice had stood in front of him, ready to take the blows herself. And Paul would pull her behind him, forcing out a boastful, reckless grin, “This is my girl. Whoever dares touch her will answer to me!”
But now, Paul sat in his wheelchair, frowning at her, neither helping nor opposing, with no intention of interfering. That look… It reminded her of when Wyatt was beaten in the Powell family home; Owen had worn this exact same expression.
Yunice finally understood. To her… Paul was nothing but an outsider now. She looked away. She no longer held out hope for anyone’s rescue.
Her body was limp from lack of oxygen. There was no extra strength left to pry open her hands. But she ground her teeth, summoned every ounce of strength left in her body, bent her knee, and drove her foot hard into Lily’s leg!
Caught completely off guard, Lily stumbled backward several steps, crashing into a chair and falling with it in a heap of embarrassment.
“Mom!” Two voices cried out in unison.
Yunice flipped over, gasping desperately for breath on the bed, but the searing pain in her throat reminded her clearly of just how deeply Lily hated her. But before she could catch her breath, Owen grabbed her roughly and yanked her up!
Already full of resentment, Owen’s fury erupted the moment he saw Yunice dare to fight back and attack their mother. He did not even check if Lily was hurt. He charged directly at Yunice, determined to teach her a lesson.
“I’m not in prison yet, and you already dare to lay hands on our mother? What will you do once I’m gone? Kill Elsie and Mom too?” The more Owen thought about it, the angrier he became. Rage boiling over until he could no longer hold it back. “If that’s the case, then I might as well take care of you now!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, he really lifted his foot and kicked toward Yunice with all the strength of a furious grown man standing well over six feet tall. A kick like that, even a man would struggle to survive.
Yunice was small and thin. Owen’s kick landed squarely in her stomach, sending her flying backward like a ragdoll. It happened so fast that no one reacted in time. Both Luke and Paul froze, breath caught in their throats. Lily, still stunned from her own fall, was helped up by Elsie. All the strength had drained from her body. Only now did she seem to realize she’d just tried to strangle Yunice to death. Her face turned pale. Even if she hated Yunice, she was still her mother. Doing that in front of everyone-what had she been thinking?
But the second she stood up, she saw Yunice curled on the floor, her body trembling in pain. Owen’s anger hadn’t subsided. He was about to lunge forward again. Lily panicked. Ignoring her own aching leg, she rushed over and threw her arms around him. Tears streamed down her face as she shook her head. “Owen, listen to me. Let’s stop fighting. You’re both my dearest kids. It hurts me to see either of you get hurt.”
Owen’s eyes were bloodshot, his fists clenched so tightly the bones stood out beneath his skin. If Lily hadn’t stopped him, he really might have charged at Yunice again. Elsie ran up in tears, pointing at Yunice. “Yunice, I can’t defend you this time. Owen is always such a gentle person. Look what you’ve turned him into. If he hadn’t stood up for you, he wouldn’t be in this legal mess. This time, it really is your fault!”
Yunice stayed on the floor for a long while, unable to get up. Her throat tasted faintly of blood, and every breath sent sharp pain through her abdomen. The edges of her vision pulsed dark. But she could still hear them. One accusation after another. No one offered her a hand. No one asked if she was in pain. It was like all the years she’d spent giving her heart to them meant absolutely nothing.
Paul seemed to waver for a moment. His brow furrowed. He did think Yunice had made mistakes-but he also couldn’t stand the sight of her being beaten like that. Just as he opened his mouth to say something, Elsie’s voice rang out again. “And don’t forget-you’ve always had a thing for Wyatt. You even helped him bully Paul. Don’t act like you don’t want to marry him. You’re just doing this to get back at Owen. You want him in jail!”
With a single sentence, Elsie hit two targets at once. Paul and Owen both froze. That’s right. Yunice had shown favor toward Wyatt. She’d helped him. Even stood on his side. Paul remembered her letting him suffer in silence, refusing to give him pain meds. He remembered her calmly saying Wyatt was better than him in every way.
She didn’t hate the match; she just wanted to disgust them. She wanted Owen behind bars. Owen didn’t feel guilty anymore. If Yunice wanted to see him in prison, then he was going to make sure she didn’t get what she wanted. He stepped toward her and demanded, “So are you marrying him or not?”
The pain in her body made it hard to move, but Yunice managed to sit up. Her arms trembled as she propped herself off the floor. She looked up at all the people pressuring her. At Owen, who glared like he was ready to kill her. But she didn’t see Wyatt-who had just stepped through the Saunders family’s front door. Her eyes swept across every angry, self-righteous face in the room. And something in her snapped.
“I’m not marrying him,” she growled. “I don’t care how much it hurts. I’d rather die than marry him. You can beat me to death if you want-but after today, we’re done. You’re not my brother, and I’m not your sister.”
Owen was stunned. “You think I’m forcing you into this? If you hadn’t gone chasing after Wyatt and stuck up for him in front of Mr. Jackson, none of this would’ve happened!” He kept going. “Because you couldn’t stay in your lane, I’m in trouble. Elsie’s engagement fell through. You don’t see us complaining. What gives you the right to act like the victim?”
Yunice’s voice dripped with scorn. “So all of you helping the devil is fine, but me helping Wyatt is wrong?” Just because they took a different side, that made her disobedient? Yes, she had helped Wyatt-but that didn’t mean she loved him. And it sure as hell didn’t mean she had to marry him. Marriage wasn’t what made a life whole. A woman didn’t need to get married just to prove her worth. Whether or not she had feelings for Wyatt had nothing to do with whether she was willing to marry him.
She’d stayed in the Saunders house because she had no legal identity. Without documents, she couldn’t go anywhere. She wanted her name back. She wanted out of this family. She didn’t want to be dragged into the Powell family’s chaos-didn’t want to waste her life caught between Wyatt and Mr. Jackson’s games. Lily didn’t want her son in prison. She didn’t want to make enemies with the Powells either. And now, she finally saw the truth that this whole mess started with Yunice. And the one who tied the knot had to be the one to untie it. If they really beat Yunice to death, who would marry Wyatt then?
Tears welled in her eyes as she whispered, “Yunny, we’re not trying to hurt you. But Mr. Jackson isn’t someone we can afford to cross. Even if we let you go, do you think he will?”
Lily’s tears spilled first, and Owen felt a sting behind his own eyes. His voice was hoarse as he said to Yunice, “So you’re really going to drag the whole family down with you? Even if I go to jail, Mom cries herself to sleep, Elsie’s future gets destroyed, and Oscar’s world falls apart-you’d still refuse to marry him!”
Yunice tilted her head back, her throat moving as she swallowed. Two tears slipped down her cheeks as she whispered, “So even if I live a miserable life, you’d still force me to marry?”
Owen kept asking her to think of the family. But who had ever considered her?
Then she spoke again, her voice soft but firm. “You promised me. You said you’d never force me to marry anyone. You said I could stay with the family for the rest of my life.”
Owen’s eyes trembled. A wave of guilt slammed into him, heavy and suffocating, like two soaked cotton balls lodged in his chest. He couldn’t get a word out. Yunice was his baby sister. He had watched her grow up. How could he not hurt when she cried?
Looking at her now, crumpled on the ground after his own kick, something inside him panicked. What was he doing! Hadn’t he gone to Quinton to fight for her? So why was everyone crying now-including her? If he had really caused this mess?
As Owen’s gaze darted in confusion, Yunice slowly drew in a breath and said, “Fine. I’ll marry him. But after that, I have nothing to do with any of you ever again.”
Lily and Owen stared at her in shock. Why was she so determined to cut ties with her family? Marrying Wyatt didn’t mean she had to stop being part of the Saunders family.
Yunice turned to Luke. “Is the tailor still here? I can get measured now.”
Luke looked her up and down. With all the injuries she’d suffered, could she even stand? But that wasn’t his concern. If they could wrap this up, all the better. He gave the tailor a subtle nod, and the woman stepped forward.
Owen wanted to stop them but was held back by Lily, who was crying and shaking her head like she was telling him, “This is the best outcome. Don’t make it worse.”
Elsie clung to his arm, tears streaking down her face. “Owen, Yunice didn’t mean what she said. We’re her family. Where else could she go? Once she calms down, she’ll understand.”
“Yeah,” Owen murmured, eyes flickering. That gave him something to hold onto. This was still her home. She’d come back eventually. Blood ties couldn’t just be severed. They were siblings. No matter what she said, that wouldn’t change. He stepped back silently, letting the tailor approach.
They had heard everything from beginning to end-how Yunice had been pressured into this marriage after resisting for so long. This was not the moment for Wyatt to appear. If he had any sense, he’d turn and walk away quietly. No one would even know he’d been here.
But instead, Wyatt stepped inside. Yunice’s tiny room was packed. The tailor tried to lift her up-she needed to stand for an accurate measurement. But Yunice winced in pain. Even after a few tries, she couldn’t get up.
Owen’s heart clenched. He almost stepped forward to help her, but Paul beat him to it, his voice bitter. “You’re really going to marry Wyatt?”
It was the first thing he’d said to her all day. Watching her push through pain just to stand and be measured, something inside him twisted with jealousy.
Yunice raised her eyes and looked at him like he was an idiot. She scoffed. “When I was being forced into this, you said nothing. Now that I’ve agreed, suddenly you have something to say?”
Elsie glanced at Paul nervously. She knew he still hadn’t fully let go of Yunice, and she was terrified he might try to stop the wedding.
Paul didn’t reply. After a pause, he muttered resentfully, “I told you to stay away from Wyatt. You didn’t listen. Now look where that got you. Do you even know what kind of person he is?”
“Mr. Paul,” Luke’s face darkened as he cut him off. Then Wyatt’s voice rang out. “Talking behind people’s backs isn’t exactly a good habit.”
Paul stiffened. He whipped his head around and saw Wyatt and Jordan standing at the door. Wyatt’s gaze flicked past him lazily. “When I run into people like that, I usually rip out their tongues. Makes it easier to shut them up.”
Paul went rigid, knees throbbing with phantom pain. Wyatt wasn’t joking-he’d do it. Paul’s face went pale. He didn’t dare say another word.
Wyatt stepped past him and walked over to Yunice. He reached out and gently pulled her upright. Yunice couldn’t even stay on her feet. Her whole body ached, and nearly all her weight fell into Wyatt’s. She was afraid of dragging him down.
Wyatt lowered his gaze to her. “Can you still move your arms?”