Rosalie never had wild ideas. She would never dream of asking Jacob to carry her on his shoulders. To Jacob, Rosalie was his true daughter—his obedient little girl who never defied him. Natalie, though, was too much like Scarlett. She looked smart and capable, but in reality, she was scheming and disrespectful. She never cared about rank or manners. The last time Rosalie saw Natalie at the floating market, Natalie had sent a message back. When Jacob heard it, he nearly blew a vein. Natalie had called him a "cheap dad" and said she would always look down on him. What kind of curse of a child was she? Where did her arrogance even come from? Why did she think she had the right to look down on me? If it weren't for me giving her life, would she have lived so many years as a rich young lady? Ungrateful trash! Jacob believed Natalie wasn't just picking on Rosalie today. She was challenging his authority as a father. His face twisted with rage as he sat on the couch. Rosalie sobbed beside him. "Yes, Dad, that's exactly how she treated me." Then she exaggerated the story, even adding things that never happened. "I told her you'd be upset if she said those things, and she just laughed and said it would be better if you died from anger!" "What?" Jacob exploded. "She's gone too far! That girl deserves to be punished!"He jumped to his feet, ready to storm off and confront Natalie. Lillian's heart skipped a beat. She rushed to block him. Is he insane? Natalie isn't playing around anymore—she is armed and dangerous. And he still wants to "teach her a lesson"? He might be ready to die, but she wasn't! Lillian shot a sharp glare at Rosalie. This stupid child—couldn't she see how dangerous things were now? Yes, she had taught Rosalie to stir up conflict between Natalie and Jacob when it was useful. But that was before. Right now, pushing Jacob into Natalie's path was nothing but trouble. Is Rosalie trying to test Natalie's limits? Idiot! Not at all like me. Lillian held on tight to Jacob's arm, ready to talk sense into him. But before she could, a harsh voice shouted down from the stairs. "That bitch has some nerve! She actually cursed her own dad? Jacob, you'd better teach her a lesson! Otherwise, where's your dignity as a father?" Everyone turned to see Maisie, her bad leg forgotten as she hurried down the steps, furious. Maisie had been shaken by the gunfire the night before. She hadn't slept at all, waiting for Rosalie to bring back news. The moment she spotted Rosalie running home, she rushed downstairs, eager to hear what had happened. But hearing that the killer she had feared all night was actually her own granddaughter was too much for her to bear.That girl had even cursed her own father. Maisie just couldn't accept it. Her rage burned away her aches. She wanted nothing more than to storm over and beat some sense into Natalie. Maisie had never liked Natalie. In their family, girls were expected to start working early to pay for the boys' schooling. Once old enough, they were married off quickly, bringing wedding gift back so their brothers could afford wives. No girl had ever lived in comfort like Natalie. Maisie had been "lucky" when her first pregnancy gave her Jacob, the only son. But she never managed to give him a sister. With no daughters to help, Maisie and her husband had slaved away in the fields, borrowing money just to put Jacob through school. At least Jacob had been successful. He got into college, even grad school, and married without needing his family to pay for the wedding gift. Maisie thought her hard life was finally over. She dreamed of resting once Jacob married Scarlett. But Scarlett, spoiled by money, refused to cook or clean. Worse, she didn't live with them or take care of them. Instead, she stayed in the city, enjoying her rich life. Aside from letting the kid keep the Ashford name, Scarlett went against the family in every other way. When Natalie was born, Maisie had traveled all the way to the city to demand Scarlett to have another baby. But Scarlett said she only wanted one child—and she planned to pour all her love and attention into Natalie.Maisie had been outraged. That was against everything she believed in. A girl couldn't have all the love and wealth of a family. And if the Kellers had money, how could it all go to Natalie? Impossible. So while Maisie disliked Rosalie for being "just another girl," she hated Natalie far more. She believed Natalie's bad luck was the reason the Ashfords had no son to carry on the family line. Maisie's outburst only fueled Jacob's anger. Together, Maisie and Jacob moved toward the door in lockstep. Just moments ago, they had been afraid of the armed new neighbor. But once they knew it was Natalie, their sense of superiority kicked in—and suddenly, they were bold.