Chapter 9%
“My daughter deserved to be taught a lesson. It’s nothing!” my mother said hastily, trying to sound righteous
“Please, don’t let this bastard child of ours affect your relationship!” my father added, his voice filled with false sincerity.
Wallace let out a cold, mocking laugh. His gaze swept across the room before finally settling on me.
I was slumped on the floor, bloodied, bruised, my face carved and swollen. My vision was hazy from the pain, but even through the blur, I caught it–a flicker of something rare in Wallace’s eyes.”
Heartache.
It flashed and vanished so quickly I wasn’t sure if I’d imagined it. But for a brief second, I saw the storm in his expression soften.M
Then the coldness returned, sharper than ever. He turned to my parents and sister, his voice like ice:
“Even now, you’re still trying to lie?”
His eyes narrowed.
“Do you really think I, Wallace, am too stupid to recognize my own wife?”
The weight of his words hit the room like a thunderclap.
My sister’s legs gave out. She stumbled back, barely staying upright.”
“I…” she choked, trying to explain, but when her eyes met his, she fell silent. Wallace didn’t blink.
He stepped forward, his gaze locked on her, cold and lethal.
“From the moment you appeared with that face,” he said evenly, “I knew you were a fake.”
His words cut like knives.
“I also knew who the body belonged to–my wife’s. And you, Mary Brown, are the one who killed her.“}
My breath caught.
So he had known.
He had known all along.§
But then… why?”
Why had he let this farce go on? Why had he allowed this woman to walk freely, wearing his wife’s face? Why hadn’t he taken revenge for the woman he once claimed to love more than life itself?
Before I could even begin to make sense of it, my mother suddenly pointed at me and shrieked, her voice shrill with desperation:}} “Mr. Jacobson, this is all a misunderstanding! It was our eldest daughter’s idea!”
“She forced Mary to undergo plastic surgery!” my father echoed, nodding frantically. “Yes, yes! Mary didn’t want to–she was coerced!“}
In the blink of an eye, they pushed all the blame onto me, their blood–stained daughter now discarded like garbage.}
Seeing a sliver of hope, my sister launched into her performance, tears streaming down her face.}
“Mr. Jacobson, I didn’t want to lie to you!” she sobbed. “It was all my sister’s plan!“}
“She knew how much you loved your wife. She knew I looked a bit like her, and she forced me to kill her. Then… then she knocked me out and had someone alter my face while I was unconscious!“M
“I didn’t want this!” she cried, voice trembling with rehearsed emotion. “She said if I didn’t go along with it, she’d kill me!“}
“My sister has always bullied me. I’ve lived under her shadow my whole life! These past few months, spending your money, wearing your wife’s clothes–it wasn’t my idea! She told me to use this to drain your assets!“}
“I’ve been suffering every day,” she whispered. “I didn’t want to hurt you. I didn’t want to lie to you–or hurt Mrs. Jacobson. But I had no choice!”
She clutched her chest as if in anguish.
“She even made me come here today, told me to kill you! Said if you died, everything would be hers. I… I couldn’t take it anymore. That’s why I brought the knife–to stop her!“>
“I was going to confess everything once it was over, I swear!” Her voice cracked, trembling. “Mr. Jacobson… I really did my best. Please… you can’t blame me for this…”
Tears streamed down her face as she stood there like a tragic heroine forced into crime.
And just like that, I–the one covered in blood and bruises–became the mastermind in their twisted tale.
A long silence followed her speech.
Then Wallace’s face darkened. The warmth I thought I had seen earlier disappeared completely. His eyes, black and fathomless, locked on her with quiet fury.
And in them… was murder.}
