Chapter 3
Claire came to her senses, shaking her head over and over. "I didn't mean to hurt Ethan. I didn't mean it, really."
She struggled to her feet and moved toward Benjamin and Helena, desperate for comfort, for reassurance.
But Benjamin coldly pushed her down to the floor.
Helena didn't even look at her, all her focus was on Ethan.
Not long after, the paramedics arrived and lifted Ethan onto the stretcher.
In that split second, when they moved him, the torn flesh connecting his arms to the bone gave way completely. There was no dignity left to protect.
Watching his arms come apart with his own eyes was too much.
Ethan let out a horrifying scream and passed out.
The whole family, in tears, got into the ambulance together.
Only Claire was left behind.
She stood there, stunned, still trying to understand why Benjamin had pushed her.
Why, in just a few minutes, her parents' feelings toward her had changed so completely.
It was not until the ambulance doors were about to close that she snapped out of it.
"Mom, Dad, wait for me!" she shouted.
She tried to catch up, hobbling desperately after the ambulance, her ankle twisted from the chase.
Her cries faded into the wind.
Just as the doors slammed shut, she collapsed to the ground in a panic.
Benjamin and Helena stood there, completely indifferent, both turning their faces away from Claire as if she didn't even exist.
That was when I noticed it. There was resentment in their eyes.
Ethan was rushed into emergency surgery.
The doctors said his arms were beyond saving.
When Helena heard the news, she fainted again.
By the time Claire finally got her ankle treated and rushed to the hospital, the surgery was already over.
Ethan was still unconscious, his empty sleeves lying flat on the bed like pieces of paper.
The room was dead silent, not a word spoken, only Helena's quiet sobs breaking the stillness.
Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Claire standing at the doorway. I smirked and walked over to my parents.
"Mom, Dad, you should really eat something. You need to keep your strength up," I said, putting on a look of concern and sadness.
I handed them the food I'd brought.
They finally looked at me properly.
Like after eighteen years, they suddenly realized they still had a biological daughter who could be relied on when things fell apart.
But right now, neither of them had any appetite.
Their only son, the future of the Walker family business, had lost his arms. What were they supposed to do now? The worry was eating them alive.
Helena, tears streaming down her face, pushed the food away. "I don't feel like eating. You should."
Benjamin shook his head, his brows tightly drawn together.
At the door, Claire watched me talk to them. She could not hold it in anymore and called out timidly. "Dad. Mom."
Benjamin and Helena acted like they had not heard her. They glanced at her briefly, then turned back to their own grief.
The deliberate coldness hung in the air, thick and awkward.
Claire did not know what to do. She could not stay, but she could not leave either.
She could tell her parents were really blaming her, and it was hard to breathe in that atmosphere.
She had caused Ethan to lose his arms. Yes, she had made a mistake. But she had not meant to.
The more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt. She started crying softly.
Hearing her sobs, Benjamin and Helena clenched their fists in annoyance, not a trace of sympathy on their faces.
I just watched from the side, totally unmoved.
Wasn't I the one you yelled at for not stopping Ethan from saving Claire?
Didn't you call me cold blooded, heartless, accuse me of sticking my nose where it did not belong?
You were supposed to be such a loving family.
So now your son got exactly what he wanted, and suddenly you are blaming your other daughter?
Turned out it was not just me. Even for the children you loved, there were rankings. How ridiculous.