Chapter 2

Even though Cecilia's voice was barely a whisper, the recorder's quality was too good. It had survived a dunk in water and still played the audio crystal clear. When I played it the first time, Mom's and Dad's faces turned grim. They didn't say a word. "Dad, Mom, maybe you didn't catch that. Let's listen again." I pressed play once more. This time, the reporters finally caught on, shoving their microphones in my direction. The second round finished, and my parents were still silent. I figured a third time would make it sink in, but before I could press the button, someone snatched the recorder right out of my hand. "That's enough, Yelena. We heard it. This was Cecilia's fault. We're glad we found you. You're our biological daughter, and no one has the right to drive you out of the Turner family," Dad said, his tone weary. He stressed the words "biological daughter". Cecilia's face went even paler. Dad rubbed his temples. "Cecilia was joking with you. I'll make her apologize. Don't take it to heart, alright?" We were in public, and my parents were people of status. Of course, they didn't want the scene to turn uglier. I understood when to stop pushing. Cowards like me never knew how to fight back. An apology was more than enough. So, even though Cecilia's apology sounded forced and hollow, I forgave her. However, the recording spread online. The perfect image she had built for years shattered overnight. When we left the orphanage, even the same reporters who had fawned over her earlier looked at her with disgust. Cecilia's face burned with humiliation. After the reunion, I was brought back to the Turner estate. It was a mansion nestled in the city's most exclusive neighborhood. The moment I stepped in, I saw several familiar faces, people I would only ever seen on TV. Due to what happened earlier, my parents were in a bad mood. As soon as we arrived, they told me to explore on my own and called Cecilia into the study room. So, I did as I was told. As I wandered upstairs, a bright, lavish room caught my eye. It resembled a princess' bedroom straight out of a TV drama. The walls were covered in beautiful paintings, and a white piano gleamed in the corner. I walked toward it and reached out to touch the keys, but before my fingers made contact, someone shoved me hard from behind. "Don't touch Cecilia's stuff!" The force sent me crashing to the floor. My head hit the corner of the piano, and warm blood immediately streamed down my face. I looked up. A boy who looked about 70 percent like me glared down, eyes filled with fury. There was no doubt that this was my brother, Jack Turner. He froze for a second when he saw the blood, then pulled out a tissue only to wipe the piano. "Do you have any idea how expensive this is? You couldn't pay for it even if we sold you." I opened my mouth to speak, but just then, Cecilia's voice rang out. "Jack, you're back." The moment he turned and saw her tear-streaked face, all his anger melted. "Cecilia, who bullied you?" "No one," she said softly, then gasped dramatically when her eyes landed on me. "Yelena, your forehead! What happened?" At that, Jack turned back to me. "So, you're Yelena?" I nodded. He stepped forward and slapped me across the face. "I heard what you did. You humiliated Cecilia during the reunion. How can you be so manipulative at your age? You ruined her reputation with your cheap tricks! "What are you sneaking around for? Are you trying to plant something and frame her? Let me make this clear—as long as I'm here, you'll never hurt her. Mom and Dad might accept you as part of this family, but I don't. You're trash. You don't deserve to be my sister!" Only then did I realize why he hadn't shown up to the reunion. He'd had an exam. The moment he finished, he must have rushed home after getting the news about Cecilia. "Jack, stop. She'll just run to Mom and Dad again," Cecilia said gently, pretending to hold him back. However, her eyes glinted with triumph when she glanced at me. Jack pointed at me. "Try telling on me. I'll hit you every time you do!" The words sounded too familiar. Without thinking, I dropped to my knees, sobbing. "I'm sorry, Jack. Please don't hit me. It hurts so much. I promise I'll behave." He faltered, clearly thrown off by how pathetic I looked. The blood on my face probably helped, too. "As long as you behave from now on. Does your head hurt? Should I–" Before he could finish, Cecilia let out a sharp yelp. Jack spun around. There was a smear of blood on her arm. Panicked, he asked, "Cecilia, what happened?" Cecilia's voice trembled. "It's nothing. I just brushed against Yelena when I came in." Just like that, the switch flipped. Jack kicked me square in the chest. "Why did you hurt her? You monster! Why can't you leave us alone? Why didn't the traffickers just kill you when they had the chance?" My face and chest burned. I was furious, but cowards like me wouldn't fight back. I could only say, "You're right, Jack. I shouldn't have come back. I'll leave. I won't bother you anymore." Jack was confused as I turned and ran out of the house. Outside the gate, I paused. There was one problem—how could I head back to the orphanage if I didn't even have the money for a bus ride? Well, cowards like me would always beg. So, I went next door, knocked, and when the door opened, I dropped to my knees. "Hello, sir, ma'am. I'm Yelena, the daughter the Turner family lost 16 years ago. They found me, but don't want me anymore. "I have to go back to the orphanage, but I don't have money for the trip. Could you please help me? I just need a little for the fare." However, this was a luxury neighborhood. The people here had manners, but they also had boundaries. Seeing a bloodied young lady on their doorstep, they panicked and shut the door. It didn't matter. Someone once told me that if I begged a few more times, someone would open their doors for me. So, I kept begging, house after house, all around the Turner estate. By the time I reached the third one, my parents found me. Seeing me in my pathetic state, they didn't care about their image anymore, shouting like mad, "Yelena! Stop begging already!"