Chapter 5

The details of how my parents died had become so hazy that I could barely picture them anymore.

All I really remembered was that, on a random impulse, I went into the study looking for our family portrait.

There, on the desk, I found a letter Joey had left behind.

After a fight with our parents, he'd decided to move overseas for good, never coming back.

I tried to stop him, my voice rising with worry. "Moving abroad just isn't right. And never coming back? That's even crazier. Don't make a rash decision just because you're mad."

Joey, who was always the calm one, was totally worked up that night.

He knocked over his teacup and snapped at me, "Why not? If I can't leave, am I supposed to just stay here forever, babysitting you?

"Nina, do you not have arms and legs? Can't you live without me? Or what the hell is going on in that head of yours?"

I felt my blood boil as I stared at him, completely stunned. I couldn't believe he'd actually say something like that.

The words felt like a physical blow. I slapped him.

We had a huge blowout, yelling at each other until our voices were hoarse.

When the dust finally settled, the whole study was a mess. Books, cups, and pens were strewn everywhere.

Once I'd finally cooled off, I shot him a cold look and said, "You seriously need to see a psychiatrist. I'll tell Mom and Dad, and have them take you."

Joey glared at me, his eyes bloodshot, but he didn't say another word.

I left the study, realized I'd forgotten my phone at work.

By the time I got it, I had the call about the accident. And on my phone, a text to my mom sent half an hour earlier.

Joey never forgot I'd said I was going to find our parents that night. So for five years, he never believed my denial.

For five years straight, he had been faking a limp, putting on the act of being depressed, and playing broke.

All just so he could sit back and watch me flounder like a clown, getting jerked around and stuck in the muck, struggling to get out.

When I finally snapped out of my thought, Otto had already driven us to his place and set up a bedroom for me.

I couldn't help but ask him if he'd seen Joey's girlfriend while he was in Oakland before coming back.

In the past five years, I had never heard Joey mention that girl again.

Maybe losing our parents was what made Joey break up with her.

Back then, he was willing to move overseas for that girl, never coming back. He must've been head over heels for her.

Otto handed me a cup of coffee, his face going blank for a second. "What girlfriend?"

Guess his memory isn't what it used to be.

I explained, "The girl Joey was seeing five years ago. Weren't they together for years? You knew about her, right?"

Otto's face twisted with something I couldn't quite read. He fell silent for a while, then finally spoke in a soft voice, "Nina, you look exhausted. You should get some rest."

The longer I stared, the more off his expression looked.

Late at night, I lay in bed, everything around me pitch-black and dead quiet.

Thinking about what Otto said, we'd be heading out this weekend.

I opened an app on my phone and booked my ticket.

Just then, my phone buzzed with a new message from Joey. [Nina, come home.]

I stared at the message, and out of nowhere, a random phrase popped into my mind, in Joey's voice.

Standing at the orphanage gate, fifteen-year-old Joey took my hand and said, "Nina, I'm taking you home."

This was crazy.

I had always been a Lancaster, right from the start.

Otto was right. I was probably just tired. I should get some sleep.

Joey was calling again. He probably just couldn't handle me suddenly not listening to him.

I put my phone on silent and tossed it onto the nightstand.

I closed my eyes and was out like a light.

Lost in a jumble of dreams, I found myself back in the old study from years back.

On the desk was a love letter, overflowing with Joey's love for some other girl, and his resolve to whisk her away overseas for a new life together.

Then, out of nowhere, a gust of wind swept the words away, morphing into one sharp, almost haunting line scrawled in Joey's familiar hand. "I hope Joey never leaves Nina's side."

I snapped awake from the dream, my heart racing like crazy.

Outside, the night was icy and silent, and I was soaked in cold sweat.

The dream had been so twisted, it left me dazed for ages, unable to snap out of it. There was no way I could sleep after that.

I just sat there in bed, staring into the darkness, forcing myself to make it till morning.

My phone buzzed with one last message from Joey. [Nina, you're going to regret this.]

For a moment, I was totally lost. But then, all at once, I realized exactly what he was getting at.

When I finished getting ready and headed downstairs, I saw Otto on the phone, his expression tense.

"I've been officially on staff for over a month now. You can't just fire me for no reason. It's illegal," he insisted.

"That's impossible. I never leaked any company secrets. I could take legal action over this," he argued.