But then I felt warm liquid running down my face—my head had been split open.
As I fell unconscious, I saw Richard’s polished shoes stop in front of me.
I forced a weak smile. “Daddy, I wasn’t bad…”
And Emily burst into loud sobs.
Olivia Grant put on a look of panic, saying my messy, bloodied appearance had frightened her daughter.
“Sophie Foster!”
Richard grew furious.
He said I was pretending to be pitiful, hurting myself on purpose just to win sympathy.
He said I was just like my mom—disgusting and unbearable.
Emily Grant pointed at my bleeding, pathetic state and burst out laughing.
“Daddy, doesn’t Sophie look just like a dog?”
“Daddy, I want to hear her bark like one!”
Those cruel words—I thought Richard would at least frown and refuse.
But instead, he crouched down indulgently and scooped Emily into his arms.
“Now that you mention it, Emily, she does kind of look like one.”
“Then let her bark like a dog.”
The stabbing pain sank deep into my chest. At last, I understood Mom’s humiliation and grief.
I stiffened my neck and refused with all my strength.
Richard exploded with rage and ordered the security guards to throw me into the safari park.
I begged him, “Daddy, I know I was wrong. I’ll bark like a dog. Please don’t send me to that place!”
But Richard’s face stayed cold.
“I gave you a chance earlier. Now it’s too late.”
He spoke with icy detachment:
“You’ve been pampered since childhood. As my daughter, it’s time you toughened up.”
Because of those words, the guards tossed me into the wildlife park.
It was pitch-dark, no one around, only the cries of birds and cicadas, and the low growls of beasts in the distance.
Shivering all over, I clutched my smart watch, begging him to save me.
“Daddy, I know I was wrong. I’ll never disobey again…”
But when I turned around, a snake slithered toward me, tongue flicking in the night.
I was bitten. By the time the ambulance took me to the hospital, they had already called Richard.
“Hello, are you Sophie Foster’s father?”
“Your daughter was bitten by a venomous snake in the wildlife park. She’s in the ER now—you need to come quickly.”
“What?”
Richard shot up, hesitation and a flicker of concern in his eyes.
“I’m on my way.”
But just as he picked up his coat, a piercing scream came from the master bedroom, followed by Emily’s loud sobs.
“Richard, something’s wrong—Emily’s having an episode!”
Olivia cried in a panic.