Wan was half–lying on the couch, his shirt
unbuttoned.
Jenny froze. Her face was terrified.
Then, she saw me.
She grabbed my hand.
“Sister, help me. I don’t want to be here.”
“Help me pay Blake back. You have money,
right?”
Jenny was clinging to me, her hand like ice.
She thought money was the problem.
Money was nothing for Blake.
Even if he wasn’t owed money, he’d find a
way to force Jenny to do what he wanted.
I looked at her face, saying, “Isn’t this what
you wanted, being with Blake?”
“No, I don’t want this,” Jenny whispered,
<
“Sister, I was wrong. Can you forgive me?”
“I’ll be ruined.”
“You have to help me. My mentor can set me
up with another rich guy. I promise I’ll pay you
back.”
Jenny trusted her mentor. But she and her
mentor both only cared about making money.
I pried Jenny’s fingers off my hand.
The last time, after she hit me, she kicked my
phone away, leaving me to die in the street.
I still remembered that pain.
“You made your choice.”
く
“You could have had a good life. But you
wanted to be rich.
“You’re obsessed with Blake.”
I stood up and left.
I heard her screams behind me.
“You’re gonna die! I’m telling Mom and Dad,
they won’t let you get away with this!”
She blamed me, again.
This time, she couldn’t hurt me.
As I left, Blake was waiting for me.
“Let me take you home.”
He held open the car door for me.
I didn’t move.
He laughed a little. “Don’t you think Blake
hates me for not saving you?”
“Get in. I’m your client.”
There was a faded photo on the dashboard.
A boy and girl were standing outside a house.
The boy looked like Blake. The girl was
familiar.
Blake glanced at the photo and said, “That’s
my last picture with my sister.”
“She was found at the beach the povt
<
“She was found at the beach the next
morning.”
“She’d be almost thirty now.”
I stared at the girl in the picture, realizing she
looked a little like me.
Blake looked at the red light and started
talking.
“My dad started out selling vegetables. He
married the mayor’s daughter, then he got
rich. He got a divorce, then married the bank
director’s daughter.”
“When he was the richest man in the state, he divorced again and married my mom.”
“My dad had three sons with his oy wives and
“My dad had three sons with his ex wives and
we all lived in the same house. They hated my
mom, my sister and me.”
Blake put his hand out, straightening the
photo.
“My mom was beautiful, and my dad loved us.
He said he would give me the company.”
“They heard that. They tried to poison me,
but my sister drank the poisoned water.”
“My sister died, and my dad threw her body in
the ocean and told everyone she drowned.
“I wanted revenge, but the were bigger and
almost cut my throat with a knife.”
Blake unbuttoned his shirt.
The light turned green.
Blake gripped the wheel and stepped on the
gas.
“They’re watching me. Clear Creek has to
succeed.”
I heard the anger and determination in his
voice.
When we got to my building, Blake looked at
the building.
I felt like he was looking at me.
I smiled and ignored him.
That night, Dad kept calling, demanding
money. He said Jenny was in the hospital and
needed money.
I blocked him.
The next morning, I saw him and Wendy
waiting for me outside the office.
The office was so packed with workers.
I called my boss and told him I wouldn’t be in.
I had an outside meeting with Blake.
I turned around. Wendy chased me, grabbing my hair.
“You did this to Jenny!”
