The woman couldn't hold back either and walked over, saying to Mom, "Please don't misunderstand.
"He is just speaking nonsense. We're decent people and would never do such a thing."
Dad's eyes shone as he looked at her, admiration and approval deepening with each word she spoke, making him nod in agreement.
She was well prepared.
I stared at my confused Mom and called out, "Ma'am, aren't you Dad's college girlfriend, Tammy Dunbar? Is your son Dad's illegitimate child?"
Her face flushed slightly. "Please don't slander me. I've always conducted myself properly. How could I have an illegitimate child?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, you're right. He's not really an illegitimate child, just an unwanted bastard. And you, you're just the other woman..."
Before I could finish, Dad jumped out of the coffin and slapped me hard.
"How dare you talk to Ms. Dunbar like that, you're too disrespectful!"
His slap was forceful, and my face instantly swelled.
The ringing in my ears filled my head with a buzzing sound.
It took me a long time to recover.
Mom burst into tears, rushing to my side and holding me, glaring at Dad.
"How could you hit your daughter so hard!"
Dad only comforted his true love, completely ignoring us.
I always knew he was a heartless man, unworthy of being my father.
I wanted Mom to see that with this slap.
"I was teaching her to behave. You didn't raise her well!"
Dad scolded Mom instead.
I held Mom's hand and said, "Mom, you see, Dad doesn't love us. He only cares about Ms. Dunbar and their child. He's been lying to us all along."
Mom lowered her head, biting her lip. "I know."
I was surprised that she knew.
In my previous life, I thought Mom was unaware of all this.
It turned out she always knew that Dad never loved us.
While everyone was still confused by this family drama, a group of thugs burst into the chapel, armed with iron bars and covered in tattoos.
They began smashing and throwing things around, shouting, "Where is Antony Thomas? Pay us back!"
In my previous life, at this moment, Dad was comfortably lying in the coffin while Mom dealt with these thugs alone.
They saw Dad as deceased and demanded that Mom repay the debt.
Mom then discovered that before he died, Dad had borrowed five million dollars in high-interest loans.