Chapter 3
Another three days slipped by.
My family got tons of calls about me, but every single one was ignored or sent straight to voicemail.
They were sure I was faking it. No one even bothered to come see me.
Lillian asked, "System, you're absolutely sure Audrey isn't dead, right?"
Her System replied, "Absolutely. Her fortune is still there. I can feel it."
Lillian sneered to herself. "Perfect. If she just died like that, it'd be way too easy for her."
She finally felt at ease.
Almost instantly, she started scheming again. "System, hack her phone and text me. Say that if I don't come over, she'll kill herself."
Her System jumped right on it.
Lillian immediately turned on the waterworks. She ran out the door crying, clutching her phone tightly.
She started banging on Ethan's door, crying. "Ethan, Ethan, please help Audrey. She's going to die."
The door swung open in a flash.
Ethan held her shoulders, trying to steady her. "Hey, don't panic, Lillian. What's going on? Just take a breath and tell me."
Lillian, still sobbing, shoved her phone into Ethan's hands.
Ethan read the message, a vein bulging in his forehead. "Here we go again. Fine. Let's just see how she's going to do it."
Lillian tugged at his sleeve with a pout, looking hurt. "Ethan, let's bring Ryan too. She'd probably want him there."
"After all she's done, you still worry about her?" Ethan gave her a worried look. "Lillian, you don't have to put yourself through this."
Lillian bit her lip and shook her head, like she'd been so unfairly treated. It made Ethan's heart ache even more.
I was floating coldly nearby and shot Lillian a fierce glare. Trying to play both of them for affection at the same time? Don't bite off more than you could chew.
They raced over to my place. Or really, the place where they kept me locked up.
The house was in a somewhat rundown old neighborhood, its front door shut tight.
Ethan unlocked the door and kicked it open in anger. "Audrey!"
The place was silent.
He flipped on the lights and glanced around. Suddenly, a wave of panic hit him.
It didn't look like anyone had ever lived here at all.
Ethan stormed in and shoved open the bedroom door. "Audrey, enough with the games. You're not a child anymore."
He didn't even notice the slight tremor in his own voice.
He pushed open the bathroom door after searching the whole place.
This was where it all ended for me.
Pill bottles and pills littered the floor. Brown, dried blood stained the edge of the bathtub. All of it screamed that I was really gone.
Ethan fumbled for his phone, panic written all over his face as he dialed.
After a couple of rings, someone finally picked up.
"Audrey, are you ever going to stop? This isn't funny," Ethan snapped.
"Hello, is this Audrey Parker's family? She died six days ago. We've tried contacting you multiple times. If you don't come to claim the body, we'll dispose of it ourselves." Then the other side hung up.
Ethan's eyes blazed with fury. He didn't even have time for Lillian, grabbed his keys, and rushed out the door.
An older lady was standing at the door, peering inside. Ethan rushed out and almost bumped into her.
She dropped her anger and got nosy. "Are you a family member of that little girl who lived here?"
Ethan grabbed onto her like she was his last lifeline. "I'm her brother. Do you know where she went?"
The older lady shot him a look of pure disdain. "So you really are her family. That girl's been dead for almost a week. What were you all doing?
"When the police found her, her body had already started to smell. When they carried her out, her face was all pale and bluish.
"Where have you been all this time? Brother, huh?" She let out a loud tsk. "How could you just leave her here? Poor girl, stuck with a family like yours."
She rolled her eyes and walked off.
Ethan arrived at the police station, pale and completely out of it.
My body had been kept in the morgue freezer for days. My eyelashes and face were coated with a layer of white frost.
An elderly officer led Ethan to claim my body. He kept rambling the whole way there. "When we found her, her stomach was empty, just stuffed full of pills. Her wrists were slashed, blood all over the floor.
"She really meant it. Didn't leave herself a single chance.
"Just a kid, 18 or 19, so skinny her legs were like sticks. Her family didn't give a damn about her."
After Ethan claimed my body, the elderly officer handed him the suicide note I'd left behind.
He tore it open right away.
It read: [Scatter my ashes into the sea. If there's another life, I never want to see any of you again. Dad, Mom, Ethan, Ryan, goodbye forever.]
Tears poured down Ethan's face. He squatted down, held his head, and wailed at the top of his lungs.
Lillian anxiously asked her System, "Didn't you say she wasn't dead?"
Her System was also confused. "Her fortune is still there. Maybe the one who died wasn't Audrey?"
Lillian's eyes flashed with sudden inspiration.
She quickly tugged Ethan's hand away. "Ethan, this isn't her. It's just someone who happens to look like her."
The elderly officer couldn't take it any longer. "Watch your words, young lady. The dead deserve respect. Don't throw baseless accusations at her."
Ethan pushed her hand away and slapped her hard. "Lillian, Audrey has been dead for days. Who sent you that message?"