9
<
The man who raped, murdered, and
dismembered me also took my phone. Zach
didn’t realize what had happened. He just told
Dad coldly, “Ashley won’t even answer my
calls. She had her boyfriend tell me she thinks
our whole family is disgusting.”
Dad was furious. He slammed his fist on the
table and called me a monster. Businessmen
are often superstitious. He favored Chloe
because his business boomed after she was
born, his assets tripling in two years. After I
was born, his factory almost went bankrupt.
He resented me, thought I was bad luck. It
made sense.
Dad controlled the family finances. That’s why
<
Chloe could attend a private university that
cost a fortune, why Zach could have tutoring
sessions that cost hundreds of dollars an
hour. While I, studying in a major city, got a
measly allowance every month.
For the next few days, I stayed in the house,
watching them live their normal lives. I
watched Mom call Chloe, asking what she
wanted to eat for their post–wedding family
dinner. Chloe said she wanted seafood.
At the market, Mom ran into our old neighbor,
Mrs. Miller, and her daughter, Melissa.
Melissa and I had been classmates since
kindergarten and now worked at the same
company. We weren’t close friends, but we
く
knew each other.
Mom said enviously, “You’re so lucky to have
such a thoughtful daughter. Melissa helps you
with the groceries. Not like our Ashley. She
didn’t even come home for her sister’s
wedding, and then she has her boyfriend call
us names.”
“Huh?” Melissa looked surprised. “Ashley
doesn’t have a boyfriend, Mrs. Ashworth.”
Mom stared at her, dumbfounded. “She’s in
the Marketing department next to mine. She’s always so busy with work, she doesn’t have time for a boyfriend,” Melissa continued. “Besides, Ashley’s very thoughtful towards
VOU last month after she got her honus
WO
く
you. Last month, after she got her bonus, we
went shopping, and she bought you a gold
bracelet. She said she’d give it to you when
she came home for Chloe’s wedding.”
A flicker of confusion crossed Mom’s face,
quickly replaced by the familiar icy disdain.
“Ashley just puts on a good show for
outsiders. You don’t know how she treats us
at home.”
Mrs. Miller and Melissa couldn’t say anything
more and politely excused themselves. Mom
bought a lot of Chloe’s favorite seafood and
carried the heavy bags home. At the door, she
fumbled for her keys. Her phone rang. It was
my number.
L
“Is this Mrs. Ashworth? We’ve apprehended a
suspect in a series of brutal murders. We
found this phone on him, and the contact
name suggests you’re the owner’s mother.‘
“The suspect has confessed to the burial
location. Could you and your family come to
Brookhaven?”
