I wiped my tears, straightened my back. "Aster, I will never kneel to your mistress and say sorry. Unless I die."
Aster narrowed her eyes. With a wave of her hand, bodyguards came forward and pushed down on my shoulders.
A hard kick struck my leg and made me drop to my knees before Sean.
Before they shoved my head lower, voices broke out around us.
"Wow, the once proud heir of the Lawson family kneels to a third party. Shame on him."
"Yeah. Better off dead, living like this is a stain. Old Benjamin Lawson, in his tomb, would jump with anger."
I forced my head up, muscles shaking, veins burning red as I looked at Aster. "Aster, how can you lose the vow under the sycamore tree?"
Her look turned cold like metal.
She caught my chin. "Finley, I never once lost it. You keep pushing, wanting Sean and the babies gone. Today, you need to learn a lesson."
She pushed my head down and drove it toward the ground. Blood ran from my brow into my eyes, turning everything blurry.
Right when she aimed to push me down again, a slim figure dashed over.
A fist struck her face hard.
"Don’t bully my brother!"
Through my blurred sight, I saw my little sister Cassandra Lawson shaking, holding her arms wide in front of me.
Aster steadied herself, brushed blood from her mouth, voice cold, "Move.”
"No!"
"Sister Aster, you can’t treat my brother like this. You promised you’d care for him forever, so why make him bow to that scumbag?"
Aster’s eyes narrowed with danger. "Cassandra, you’re still young, you don’t get it. I’m doing this for your brother, so he won’t lash out at others carelessly."
"You’re lying! Brother would never harm anyone. You’re the one who wronged him!"
"Aster, I’m already eighteen, not a kid. If you won’t stand by my brother, then I will."
Her young face turned with pain and anger. She caught me and tried to pull me aside.
Aster lifted her hand. Bodyguards stopped us.
"Finley, you made a wrong move; you must bear responsibility. You haven’t apologized to Sean.”
My sister tried pushing through the guards but was held in place.
Watching them seize me, she screamed, voice breaking. "Don’t lay a hand on my brother! I’ll say sorry for him. Hit me, yell at me, I’ll accept it!"
With a dull sound, she knelt.
She lowered herself toward Sean again and again. "I kneel to you to make up for it, just don’t shame my brother! He’s a man, don’t force him like this, please, please…"
Her tears hit the floor. My chest tightened in pain.
I kicked a guard's legs, rushed forward, and pulled Cassandra into my embrace.
"Cassandra… forgive me. I caused this… your brother is worthless… forgive me…"
Her crying ran down my neck, hot, like sparks.
Her rough voice shook through sobs. "Brother, I'm only hurting you. I don’t want to go to school anymore. Let’s leave."
Faces around us changed, pity, shock, unease.
The wealthy were clever and guarded; everyone knew about the Lawsons, but stayed quiet. No one dared offend a business partner.
As the tension grew tight, Dad walked forward, voice booming. “What a shame! A good day spoiled by jealousy!”
He lifted his hand and struck Cassandra on the head.
"You are a girl, yet instead of calming your brother, you add to his chaos. How will the Lawson Group pass to the next generation one day?"
"If you had even half your brother’s sense, I could die peacefully."
