Chapter 51

Cassandra thought bitterly, "A stranger…" She wanted to smile, but her lips felt as heavy as lead, refusing to lift. When she had been on that hospital bed, she had still been able to hear everything around her. She remembered how, when Noelle first learned to talk, she had asked Gregory more than once, "Why is Mommy lying there? Doesn't she want us anymore?" Gregory would either remain silent or brush her off gently, saying she would understand when she grew older. Olivia had gone even further. Cassandra would never forget how Olivia had told Noelle in that soft, syrupy voice of hers, "Elle, since your real mommy is lying here and doesn't want you anymore, then we don't want her either, okay?" Every time she remembered those words, Cassandra felt as if her heart were being torn apart. Gregory and Olivia, those despicable people, had conspired to steal the love her two children were meant to have for her. In the past five years, if Gregory had even once told Noelle and Ashton