Filed to story: Eight Uncles Beloved Treasure
“Mommy, can we camp here? I want to play with Lilly!”
Before the girl’s mother could respond, Anthony spoke in an aloof manner, “There are a lot of us here.”
Translation: You’re not welcome.
Tina was left feeling awkward but smiled warmly when she found an open space a short distance away. “That’s alright. We’ll be over there.”
They were in the same area anyway. It was simply more convenient for them.
Thomas, Cheryl’s father, chuckled, “I’ll set up our tent then.”
Cheryl pretended not to notice the way the adults were looking at her and bounded over to Lilly. “What are you doing, Lilly?”
Despite being a child of five or six years old, her staged cuteness felt rather overwhelming.
Lilly didn’t quite understand Cheryl’s intentions but had a feeling that Cheryl was similar to her stepmother, Debbie.
Without saying a word, she fiddled with the hammer and closed the toolbox.
Cheryl kept stealing glances at Drake by the lake. “Can we go there to play? Let’s go.”
Lilly took a step back and pouted. “I don’t want to play with you.”
Then she ran away.
Cheryl was shocked and felt resentful!
She was already being generous and hadn’t even confronted Lilly about taking her spot!
What’s wrong with her?!
Cheryl turned her attention to Hannah instead. “Why don’t you play with me instead? There are pine trees over there. We might see squirrels!”
Her only impression of Hannah was from the night when she stole Lilly’s dress.
This led her to assume that Hannah hated Lilly. Having Hannah by her side would isolate Lilly!
Let’s see what she’s going to do this time!
However, Hannah’s contemptuous response caught Cheryl off guard. “Who said I wanted to play with you? Go away!”
With that, she ran after Lilly.
Cheryl’s eyes welled up with tears.
She rubbed her eyes as she approached the riverbank and sat next to Drake.
“Drake…” She started. “I don’t know what I did wrong. Lilly and Hannah won’t play with me.”
Drake, the object of her affections, didn’t even look up. “Stay away from me and don’t talk to me.”
The girl was left speechless.
She was still a young girl who couldn’t control her temper.
Without hesitation, she asked, “Did Lilly say bad things about me to you? I didn’t do it…”
Tears streamed down her face as she spoke.
This was a skill her mother had taught her. Girls had to act weak to elicit mercy from others.
Drake frowned and put away his book. “If you want to cry so badly, go ahead.”
How annoying. He lost interest and left with his book.
Drake headed down the path that Lilly had taken.
Cheryl bit her lip. Why was everyone being so unfair to her?
Why wouldn’t anyone play with her?!
Cheryl had no other option but to turn back.
Just as she moved away from the meadow, Cheryl suddenly spotted a person concealed in the thick trees and let out a scream of terror!
Winona quickly motioned for the child to be silent. “Can you come here for a moment, Cheryl?”
Cheryl looked around nervously before approaching the woman.
She recognized Winona. Tina had made sure that the girl befriended her during Lilly’s birthday party.
Winona smiled kindly. “I’ve had a disagreement with Mrs. Crawford, Cheryl. Could you do me a favor and ask Hannah to come here? It’ll be like a secret mission.”
Cheryl nodded. “Okay!”
She immediately set off to find Hannah.
Hannah was a short distance away from Lilly, engaged in a playful fight with Polly.
Cheryl hurried over to whisper in her ear. Hannah glanced around and saw her mother waving at her from the woods.
Hannah dropped her tree branch and rushed over.
Winona’s eyes filled with tears as she saw little Hannah running toward her. She had come to Crawford Mansion today hoping to see Hannah, but the Crawfords had gone on a camping trip. Winona remembered a time before Lilly came into the Crawfords’ lives when it was difficult to find any of them together, and now they were going camping together! If they had been this close before, maybe Liam and she wouldn’t have grown apart. They would have been closer than ever today.
“Mommy!” Hannah’s sweet voice interrupted Winona’s thoughts.
She smiled at the sight of her daughter and reached out her arm. “My sweet darling!” she called out. Hannah excitedly ran into her mother’s embrace, as she had been attached to Winona since she was a baby. Tears welled up in Winona’s eyes once again as she hugged her daughter tightly. It had been two days since they last saw each other. Did Hannah miss her as much as she missed her daughter? she wondered.
“Have you been eating well these two days, Hannah? Sleeping well?” Winona asked.
Hannah thought for a moment before shaking her head. “Grandpa and Grandma say I can only eat during lunch and dinner time. After that, there’s no more food.”
“Not even when you’re hungry?” Winona asked in disbelief.
Hannah shook her head again. She had learned the hard way that there would be no food for her if she threw a tantrum, so she always ate her meals on time nowadays.
“How could they do that to you? You’re still a growing child!” Winona’s heart ached for her daughter. “It’s normal not to feel hungry during mealtimes. They shouldn’t starve you! Hannah, let’s leave this place. We’ll go back to Grandma’s house.” Winona was both hurt and angry. She had only been gone for two days, and they were already mistreating Hannah.
However, Hannah turned to look at the Crawford Mansion behind her before looking at her mother again. “Mommy, I don’t want to leave. I want to stay here and play,” she told
Winona.
Winona’s face scrunched up in disbelief. She couldn’t understand why Hannah would want to stay with these people who gave her a hard time at home. She sighed and pulled a sad face. “Hannah, you don’t want Mommy anymore?” She tried to guilt-trip her daughter.
As expected, Hannah vehemently shook her head. “I do!”
“Alright, let’s go then. Mommy will take you to the playground!” Winona coaxed her daughter.
To her surprise, Hannah pouted and refused to budge. “I don’t want to!” Hannah just wanted to stay here and play. Mommy never let her do what she wanted!
“Come on, Hannah, we can come back here again soon, but we have to go now,” Winona tried to persuade her daughter again. She was beginning to feel anxious as she caught sight of Liam and the rest of the Crawfords coming over.
“Noooo, I don’t want to go!” Hannah cried. “I don’t want to go! I want to play here!”
“Winona, are you done causing enough trouble?” Liam’s cold eyes stared at the woman who refused to sign the divorce papers or show up in court. As a result, he could only file for a litigious divorce, which would require at least three months of waiting.
Since Winona couldn’t hide from her ex-husband, she decided to confront him head-on. “What trouble? I can’t even see my own child now?” she challenged as she held onto Hannah’s hand. “Hannah, if you want to stay here and play, I can stay here with you.”
Hannah struggled to free her hand from her mother’s grasp. “I don’t want to play with Mommy! I want to play with Lilly!” she wailed.
Winona stewed in anger as she tried to pull little Hannah toward the lake. Play with Lilly? That kid would only be a bad influence on Hannah! It had only been two days, and now her own daughter refused to go with her! The Crawfords were no better. They must have talked badly about her in front of Hannah so that Hannah would hate her!
