Chapter 3
I glanced down at the massive red burn spreading across my arm.
Before I could even open my mouth, my dad slammed his fork down onto the table.
"Halle!" his voice rang out cold and harsh. "Who are you giving that attitude to?
"Emma was just trying to be nice to you, and you purposefully bumped into her hand while she was holding the bowl?
"Bringing your manipulative little mind games into this house. You have absolutely no class!"
Lilian set her fork down with deliberate slowness.
"I guess it's true," she remarked dryly. "Let a feral stray indoors and she'll just tear the house apart."
She lifted her gaze, letting her malice bleed through. "Is that really all your mother taught you? No wonder your father couldn't stand her."
On her deathbed, Mom entrusted me to him.
She desperately hoped that, since I was his biological flesh and blood, he might actually treat me with a shred of decency.
To secure my future, she fought through agonizing pain to beg the very man who abandoned her to take me in.
And this was my reward.
My arm was practically on fire.
But looking at the blatant favoritism and raw disgust in their eyes, the physical burn felt like nothing.
Emma stood beside me, her eyes rimmed with red.
[Trash acting. Way too forced.
[Instead of putting on this ridiculous show, she should probably figure out how to cover up that three-million-dollar deficit in her personal charity foundation.]
Emma's pathetic sobs choked off instantly. All the color drained from her face.
Dad and Lilian looked like they were both simultaneously choking on air.
Their harsh lectures died on their tongues as they stared at Emma in pure shock.
"What the hell are you babbling about?!" A second later, Dad vaulted out of his chair and shielded Emma behind his back.
"Lilian and I raised Emma! We know exactly what kind of girl she is!" he roared. "You obviously learned absolutely zero morals from your mother. You have no right to judge Emma!"
[Whatever.]
I simply nodded.
Dropping my fork, I stood up and walked silently up the stairs without another word. I headed straight back to the dingy guest room that wasn't even half the size of Emma's walk-in closet.
Out in the hallway, I could faintly hear Dad soothing her. "Don't worry, sweetie. Mom and Dad are right here.
"This house will always be yours. Nobody is ever going to take that away from you."
Leaning against the heavy door, I listened to his pathetic promises. I felt absolutely nothing.
He was right. This had always been their home.
My battlefield wasn't here.
*****
When registration opened for the National High School STEM Innovation Challenge, I submitted a proposal for "Stability Optimization in Next-Gen Photovoltaic Materials."
But when the official roster was posted, the name representing our academy was Emma.
Her supposedly groundbreaking project was a ridiculous aromatherapy diffuser that claimed to sync with human brainwaves.
"Why?" I asked deadpan, standing in my homeroom teacher's office.
Mike Harris pushed up his glasses, completely brushing me off. "Look, Halle. The administration had to look at the big picture.
"Emma needs this to pad her college apps way more than you do. You already have top grades.
"You're an exceptional student. Missing one little competition won't kill you, right?
"You need to be a team player. Let the opportunities go to the students who actually need them."
I let out a bitter, mocking laugh.
[Be a team player?
[Hand over my spot for that absolute garbage project she plagiarized from three different sources?]
Mike's face instantly went stiff.
Right on cue, my phone started buzzing.
The second I answered, Dad's icy voice bled through the speaker. "Do I look like I have free time for your tantrums, Halle?
"My secretary just told me you're throwing a massive fit at school over some stupid science fair. Have you no shame?
"Let me make this crystal clear. We gave that spot to Emma. She's younger and she needs the accolade.
"Pack your crap and get your ass home right now. If I catch wind of you causing any more drama, consider yourself disowned."
The line went dead with a harsh click.
I pocketed my phone and locked eyes with Mike. It all made perfect sense now.
The administration's so-called "big picture" was just them kissing up to the family and saving face for their precious little princess.
The moment I stepped out of the office, I ran straight into Shaun.
He was leaning casually against the hallway wall, looking like he'd been waiting forever.
"Just drop it," he said. "There's literally zero point fighting for something that never belonged to you in the first place."
An arrogant smirk played on Shaun's lips. "Yeah, fine, I'll admit it. If your mother hadn't bailed us out back in the day, my family probably wouldn't have survived that financial crisis.
"My grandfather never forgot that favor, which is the only reason this ridiculous engagement exists.
"Morally speaking, it would look incredibly bad for us to be the ones to break it off. But don't get it twisted. That piece of paper doesn't mean you're actually getting anything out of us."
He looked me up and down, his eyes dripping with contempt. "A girl who has to rely on a dead woman's promise to trap a guy. Don't you think that's pathetic?
"Look at yourself. You look like absolute trash. What part of you is remotely worthy of being my wife?"
[If you despise this arranged marriage so much, why didn't you grow a spine and reject it yourself?]
[Milking my mother's favor while acting like you're on a moral high ground. Your family really loves having their cake and eating it too, don't they?]
"You little bitch!" Shaun choked out, his ears burning a violent shade of red.