Dawn was loving every moment of it and she wished she could openly snicker with the guests as they scorned Lilah, but she had to at least put on an act to the end.
Be the gentle flower they all believed she was.
"It's not like that. You don't have to be so cruel to my sister's condition. It's not her fault she can't see." Dawn said quite innocently.
And though it looked like she was taking Lilah's side, it was the opposite. If she really wanted to stop them, she would reprimand their words but instead, she let them continue.
She loved it.
She loved that Lilah was the butt of everyone's jokes. She was just a helpless cripple who couldn't move around without her cane going before her.
How dare she steal the attention of the rest of the family? She deserved this.
"Dawn, you're too kind to your sister," one of them said. "What has she ever done for you besides take your mother away?"
Lilah felt her body shudder at their words. So, Dawn went that far to spread rumors, huh? It was typical of her.
"I mean, she's nothing but a crow with that cold and emotionless look on her face. She looks like she's always suffering. Seriously, she's killing the mood."
Dawn's smile faltered for a moment, but she quickly recovered, her expression a mask of concern as she pressed her lips together.
"Please don't say stuff like that. Don't... don't be too hard on Sister Lilah, she's... fragile."
Lilah felt a pang of discomfort as she listened to the exchange. It had been like that from the start. Even the maids mocked her so it wasn't anything new for the people with Sane to kick her as well.
But... it didn't mean it was okay to listen to. It was crushing and she felt her heart being ripped.
The guests continued to taunt her, their words dripping with condescension, and Lilah's anxiety grew, her senses on high alert.
'I can't...' she grabbed her stick and squeezed tightly. 'I can't stay here anymore.'
Her brothers and father were not here but she had no idea of that. She felt they were too busy talking to their guests to pay attention to her.
In the face of opportunity and keeping their reputation, why would they bother with her when they could go off and talk to their reputable guests?
'I'll just go somewhere else to wait for the time when the vampires show up.' she thought.
But just as Lilah decided to excuse herself, someone tripped her and intentionally kicked her stick away.
She stumbled, her hands flailing wildly as she tried to regain her balance. She could not tell where she was going or if there was someone in front of her.
And then, she crashed into the table, and the champagne pyramid that had been so beautifully stacked came crumbling on her.
The sound of shattering glass and laughter filled the air and caught everyone's attention.
"Oh my, she's not just a killjoy but a clumsy fool as well? She's all in one." They laughed more.
Lilah was on the floor, her entire body bathed in champagne and broken chards of glass underneath her.
She was wounded under her palms, but that pain was nothing compared with the humiliation she was facing.
Dawn... Had she planned this?
How... Just how could she be so cruel?
Well, it's not much of a surprise. Since she was capable of pushing her down the stairs even when she was still hated, this little was something she could definitely afford to do for revenge.
Her eyes teared up.
It was just a few hours more so why couldn't they just let her be before the vampires took her away?
Why did Danw have to remind her over and over again that her existence was nothing short of pathetic?
"I'm sorry," she apologized, nevertheless.
No matter what, she has disrupted the party.
Would her family be angry that she had caused such a commotion in front of so many people? So many important people.
She knew she wasn't at fault, but would they believe her when there was no evidence?
The only evidence there was that she had crashed into the champagne pyramid and caused a commotion because she wasn't very careful.
As she struggled to get, she heard their mockery and laughter even more vividly.
Her hair was soaked, and her hands had begun to sting.
'Just hold on a few more hours.' She told herself but just then, someone's voice resounded like thunder as they yelled,
"What in the world is going on?!"
It was Harry's voice. His voice caused everyone to go silent and then the sound of his footsteps approaching Lilah told her he was headed towards her.
He sounded angry but there was more than one footstep.
Patrick was with him as well. She could tell from the way they walked. She could tell a person through the way they walked.
Patrick and Harry, who had not been in the hall, heard the commotion and quietly rushed to the hall, only to find their sister on the floor and people laughing while talking bad about her.
Their expressions twisted even more when they saw Dawn among the people who were laughing at Lilah.
How could she join others to make fun of her own sister? Had she no shame?
"What happened here?" Harry's voice was low and menacing as he stood before Lilah.
Patrick quickly squatted to help Lilah up, and then he saw her bleeding palms. His face squeezed in and he yelled, equally furious.
"Bastards! Who's responsible for this?" The room fell silent, the guests exchanging nervous glances.
Dawn's expression turned innocent once more as she said,
"I'm sorry, brothers. I didn't watch over Sister Lilah carefully." She said innocently, but Lilah could sense the triumph beneath her facade. "It was my fault."
She was under the impression that no matter what happened, as long as there was no one to speak up and say Lilah was tripped then it was fine.
She didn't believe Lilah had the guts to say the truth anyway.
Things went easier than she thought.