Chapter 1

My sister, Sophie Shaw, was kidnapped, and after she came back, she developed severe PTSD.

She looked at my fiancé, Daniel Reed, and became convinced he was her boyfriend.

Daniel went along with it and stayed by Sophie's hospital bed day and night.

He held her hand and told her, "Sophie, don't be scared. I'll always be here with you."

My parents, Wesley and Amanda, kicked me out of the house.

Amanda crossed her arms and said, "Sophie's condition is unstable right now. She doesn't remember having a sister, so you need to move out for a while. And don't come to the hospital anymore. We can't risk upsetting her."

I moved into a rundown apartment in a sketchy part of town, the place they'd found for me.

A few weeks later, someone broke into my apartment, and I was taken. I managed to grab my phone and call them for help.

But Wesley, Amanda, and Daniel were all convinced I was faking it.

Wesley's voice came through the phone, cold and angry. "Emily, your sister just went through a kidnapping and you're pulling this kind of stunt? Do you have any conscience at all? Can't you stand to see Sophie doing well?"

Amanda cut in before I could respond. "If you keep making up these ridiculous lies for attention, you're not welcome in this family anymore."

The line went dead.

I got what they wanted. I never made it home.

*****

It was my third time visiting the hospital since Sophie was diagnosed with PTSD.

I wasn't really visiting, though.

I stood outside her hospital room for almost half an hour before Amanda noticed me.

Amanda opened the door and stepped out. "What are you doing here?" she asked, keeping her voice low so she wouldn't disturb the happy scene inside the room.

"I told you not to come to the hospital right now," she continued. "Sophie doesn't recognize you anymore. You being here won't help and it'll just upset her."

I tried to explain. "I called you guys but no one picked up."

Amanda made an annoyed sound. "We've been busy taking care of Sophie. We don't have time to check our phones."

"Mom, I'm here because I need the realtor's contact information," I said. "I want to find a different apartment."

After Sophie was kidnapped, the trauma scrambled her memories when she woke up. She thought my fiancé was her boyfriend, and she didn't even remember that I was her sister.

Wesley and Amanda were afraid that seeing me would be too much for Sophie to handle, so they found a realtor and rented an apartment for me. They packed up all my things overnight and moved me to the rental.

"Why are you asking about that?" Amanda frowned at me, clearly irritated. "We already found you an apartment and paid the rent.

"The place isn't great but you won't be there long," she added. "You can't even handle a little discomfort?"

I hesitated. "It's not that. The apartment is in a really rough neighborhood. The area feels unsafe.

"I keep feeling like someone's following me," I said. "I'm scared."

Amanda looked at me like I'd lost my mind. "You're being paranoid," she said. "Who would waste their time following you around? If you break your lease now, you'll lose your deposit and the extra rent you paid. You'd be throwing money away."

Her eyes narrowed as she studied me. "You're not making this up to get our attention, are you?

"Emily, Sophie is sick right now," Amanda continued. "Your father and I are already worried sick about her. Can you stop making things worse?

"You're her older sister. Can't you be more understanding? Do you have to be so petty?"

I opened my mouth to explain, but hesitated and stopped myself.

"I'll transfer you the deposit and the extra rent," I said, changing tactics. "Let me stay at the wedding apartment for a while."

"No!' Amanda's face changed instantly. "You can't stay at the wedding apartment either."

*****

Something felt wrong. I was about to ask why when Daniel walked out of the hospital room.

"Emily, I changed the passcode to the apartment," Daniel said.

I frowned at him. "What do you mean?"

Daniel let out a heavy sigh. His eyes were ringed with exhaustion.

"You know Sophie's condition," he said. "She thinks I'm her boyfriend. When she gets discharged, she wants to live with me."

I stared at him in disbelief and let out a bitter laugh. "Do you hear yourself right now? You're my fiancé, but you want to move into our wedding apartment and play house with Sophie? Daniel, who exactly are you planning to marry?"

Daniel rubbed his temples and sighed. "Emily, can you stop being so difficult? Sophie's different from you. She needs me right now."

"What about me?" My eyes stung with tears. "Don't I need you too? Do you have any idea how scared and helpless I was out there alone these past two weeks?"