Chapter 1

Overnight, everyone could hear the fake heiress's inner thoughts.

She called my mom an old hag and an ugly monster.

She pitied my dad for being henpecked.

She mocked my brother as a sissy, saying he was clingy and wimpy.

She even coveted the school hunk in front of her boyfriend.

Everybody exchanged uneasy glances, utterly sickened by her cutesy act.

*****

I was the Sharpe family's true heiress, separated from them for eighteen years.

On my first day back, Emily Sharpe fell down the stairs and accused me of pushing her.

Right then, my mom, Millicent Sharpe, slapped me across the face.

My dad, Brogan Sharpe, glared and scolded me, while my brother, Milo Sharpe, cursed me viciously.

Even Sharon Zamora, the housekeeper, held a grudge against me, and from then on, she stopped providing me with meals.

I thought this must be rock bottom. My life couldn't possibly get worse.

However, I didn't expect Emily to spread rumors at school, making me a bullying target.

They cornered me in the restrooms, forcing me to bow my head.

My desk was perpetually drenched in cooking oil waste, reeking of rotting food.

I drank toilet water and swallowed sludge from the gutter.

They cut my hair, which became scraggly. My clothes were torn to shreds.

I sought help from my family, hoping to find understanding and support.

However, to my dismay, they thought I had persecution paranoia, convinced that I was just jealous of Emily and having a mental breakdown.

"Jocelyn, no matter how you hurt me, I've always defended you in front of classmates, teachers, and family. But look what you've done to me," Emily complained.

Her eyes reddened slightly, and her soft and fragile look instantly won everyone's sympathy.

I clutched my emptied bank card that Emily had secretly drained as my tears streamed down my face.

I wanted to explain, but nobody gave me the chance.

Millicent said, "You claim Emily stole your card and spent the 650 dollars you saved from part-time work? That's ridiculous. Emily gets a monthly allowance of 6,500 dollars. Why would she care about your petty cash?"

Brogan declared, "We never gave you allowance, and you're in Grade 12, buried in schoolwork. Where did you find time to earn 650 dollars? Stop this petty scheme against Emily."

Milo sneered, "Two years in the Sharpe family and two years of constant drama. Your reputation is trash at school, and you've disgraced our home. You really inherited your foster parents' cruelty and greed. Why don't you just leave our family?"

Emily sniffled, tugging Milo's sleeve. "Don't be harsh. Jocelyn wants your love too much. I'm fine, really."

Her words, accompanied by tears streaming down her cheeks, only fueled Brogan, Millicent, and Milo's verbal attack on me even more.

Milo told me to get lost.

Millicent then said the Sharpe family could no longer keep me.

Brogan took a deep breath and said they'd send me back to my adoptive parents the next day.

But I'd rather die than go back to my greedy adoptive parents.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, locking away every trace of emotion.

I bowed deeply to them and said, "Mr. Brogan Sharpe, Mrs. Millicent Sharpe, Mr. Milo Sharpe, Ms. Emily Sharpe, and Sharon, thank you for sheltering me these two years. I'll leave tomorrow."

With that, I went upstairs to my room, which was converted from the attic.

I buried myself under the blanket, crying while listening to their gentle murmurs downstairs.

"Emily, don't feel bad. She's so ungrateful. Even though she's our daughter, we won't keep her anymore," Brogan said.

"Don't blame yourself. She's inherently greedy and selfish. With her gone, our home will have one less problem," Millicent added.

"Emily, from now on, you'll be the only young lady of the Sharpe family," Millo assured her.