"You little bastard, you're despicable!" Kelly lunged forward, yanked the clothes rod out of Hilary's hands with a violent pull. Hilary wasn't strong enough to resist, and the rod was snatched away in an instant.
Without hesitation, Kelly swung it at the two children.
"Hilary, watch out!" Adam rushed forward, shielding Hilary behind him. The rod came down hard, landing squarely on his back.
"Brother!" Hilary screamed in terror, bursting into tears.
A searing pain spread from Adam's shoulder down to his arm, but he didn't have time to care. Gritting his teeth, he shouted, "You wicked witch! I'm going to report you for child abuse and have you thrown in jail!"
"Oh? What a clever little brat. Too bad you three, your mom and the two of you don't have the power to bring me down," Kelly sneered, raising the rod to strike again.
Just then, the door burst open from outside.
Claire stepped in with a bag of fresh groceries.
