“We couldn’t miss our son’s graduation
party.”
I looked and saw my parents.
I smiled to myself, but I frowned at the village
leader.
He was sweating and smiling nervously.
The villagers gasped when they saw my
<
parents.
Fifteen years ago, those charred bodies were
unforgettable.
But now, here they were.
My parents ignored me and tried to hug my
brother.
My mom touched his face carefully, her eyes
red.
“Brian, it’s Mommy.”
My brother wrinkled his nose and hid behind
- me.
He looked upset.
“Ashley, who are these people? I don’t even
know them!”
I patted my brother’s shoulder and smiled.
My dad was angry because his son didn’t
want to touch him.
“Ashley! Did you say something bad about us
to Brian?”
“Why else wouldn’t he like us?”
く
My mom started crying.
“You never liked your brother. Now you’re
trying to keep us apart!”
I rolled my eyes. He knew it was a long time
ago.
My dad was furious and tried to slap me.
But a strong hand stopped him.
My dad started cursing, but he stopped when
he saw who it was.
“M–Mr. Shaw, what are you doing here?”
“Since when did I give my servants a day
off?”
The man’s voice was cold.
My dad turned pale.
The reporters who came to interview my
brother rushed over.
“Mayor Shaw! Mayor Shaw! Can we interview
you?”
Mayor Shaw glared at them, and they calmed
down.
L
His cold eyes softened when he looked at my
brother and me.
My dad didn’t care about his job anymore. He
yelled at Mayor Shaw.
“Mr. Shaw, you can’t stop me from seeing my
son!”
He smiled.
“Mayor, my son is the top student in the
state!”
Mayor Shaw smiled.
“Your son?”
I raised an eyebrow and smirked.
My parents thought I was raising their
precious Brian.
But I knew he was ungrateful.
They thought I was stupid, but I had been
waiting for fifteen years.
I looked at my dad and finally spoke.
“Actually, Brian…”
Chapter 2
“He’s not your Brian. He’s my little brother.”
My dad grinned, like he’d just won the lottery. “How could Brian not be my son? You’re
crazy!”
“Besides, you say Brian is your brother?
That’s not true. Brian is a legitimate Pearson.
You, though? You’re just a bastard. We gave
you a roof and food or you would’ve died a
long time ago!”
I raised an eyebrow and gave him a look.
I couldn’t help but laugh at his stupidity.
He needed to take a good look at himself.
Did he think mud from the ground could
create the moon in the sky?
My dad didn’t notice. He was lost in his own
thoughts, rambling on.
“All you did was raise Brian for a few years. So…” He pulled out his wallet, took out a
wad of cash, and then threw two crumpled
dollar bills at my face, looking like it
physically pained him.
“Here! It’s a sister’s job to take care of her
brother! And now you’re asking me for
money? You know what I think? Daughters
are ungrateful. They never care about their
parents.”
He muttered to himself, loud enough for
everyone to hear.
Everyone looked at me strangely.
The anger inside me exploded when the two
dollars hit my face.
My brother saw my face and looked at Mayor
Shaw for help.
After living with me for so many years, he
knew what I was like.
But the mayor was just smiling, watching us.
He knew I would handle it.
When my dad threw me the money, my mom
clutched her chest.
<
She picked up the money, since I didn’t.
“She isn’t even worth that much! What is she
even good for?”
“We let you take care of Brian! He is going to
be successful. You would have been eating
well!”
Really?
Too bad the Brian they were counting on was
now a fucking idiot.
Their taunts didn’t faze me, but they pissed
off my brother.
