Chapter 3

Because of a botched kidney surgery, I got a full-blown infection.

And just like that, I died.

Pathetically. Quietly. Alone.

It was right around that time that Millie saw the messages Maria, Griffin, and Joseph had sent me.

She was pissed. She didn't even care I was literally a corpse—she started yelling at me anyway.

"Are you freaking insane? Why the hell do you still have their numbers saved? They don't deserve a spot in your contacts! How the hell did you even survive all these years? Honestly, you should've died way earlier, like, before you were even born," she shouted.

She kept going, ranting. So much that even I, floating there dead, got annoyed.

I sighed. I'd never liked seeing people cry for me, so my ghostly form drifted somewhere else.

Next thing I knew, something pulled me toward my parent's house.

They were sitting on the couch, watching TV in silence.

They didn't speak at all. There was no joy on their faces, even though Naomi was about to get married.

I figured maybe they were just emotional about Naomi marrying.

After a while, Maria finally broke the silence. "Once Naomi's married, I want to tell her the truth."

Griffin looked startled. "Is that really necessary? It's been so many years…"

Maria clenched her jaw. "Of course it's necessary. Look at what we've done to our real daughter for Naomi. Hannah's missing a kidney. Her husband left her. What the hell did she get out of all this?"

And then Maria started crying. "All these years, you gave everything to Naomi. But did you ever stop to think about Hannah? She is our real daughter. And just because you feel responsible, you sacrificed everything that belonged to her. Do you really think that's fair?"

I froze when I heard that.

I was their biological daughter? Naomi wasn't? I was confused.

As they kept talking, the truth finally unraveled. The "sister" who tormented me for over twenty years wasn't even my real sister.

Naomi was the daughter of Griffin's army captain, Abel Brooks.

Abel had died saving Griffin during an accident, and Griffin took it upon himself to care for Abel's widow and daughter.

But the widow ran off a few years later, leaving Naomi behind.

And so Griffin raised her for over two decades.

Out of guilt, he spoiled Naomi like a man possessed.

Maria was soft. She just went along with it.

And me? I was stuck in this messed-up family where I never even knew I was their actual daughter.

I had once thought I was the adopted one.

At one point, I had gotten so paranoid that I got a DNA test. I took my hair and theirs, ran it quietly. I had thought that if I wasn't biological, maybe I could accept how badly they treated me. But the results came back, stating I was theirs.

That truth nearly destroyed me. After that, something dark started growing inside me.

I started pushing everyone away.

Thus, every time Naomi tried to start drama, she knew exactly how to trigger me. She'd hit my weak spots, and I'd blow up. Every time, she got exactly what she wanted.

But it didn't matter anymore.

I was dead.

And honestly, I didn't feel much for anything now.

Maria kept crying.

Griffin continued sighing, chain-smoking cigarettes. Finally, he said, "We'll tell Naomi after the wedding. Let her get married and be happy. After that, we'll draw a clear line with her. As for Hannah, we'll find a way to make it up to her."

Maria nodded, then hesitantly asked, "What about Naomi asking us to sell this place so she and Elias can buy a bigger house?"

Griffin shook his head. "This is the only home we've got. If we sell it, where do we go? Besides, I want to leave it for Hannah."

They wanted to leave the house to me. I hadn't expected that.

Maria sighed. "We don't even know how Hannah's doing right now. I'm so worried. I want to bring her back."

Griffin agreed. "Go on then. Try Millie. She probably knows where Hannah went."

Maria glanced at the clock. "I'll go first thing in the morning."

Dad added, "After Naomi's wedding, everything will be better. Hannah took on the debt I owed her. She paid Abel's life back. I'll use the rest of my life to make it up to her, I swear."

It was the first time I'd ever heard something so raw, so sincere.

If this had been before, I probably would've cried.

But now? It was too late.

I couldn't feel any warmth anymore.