The air frose instantly,
A burted secret finally came to light, leaving everyone completely stunned.
The Harrington people had stopped that psycho when he tried to break into the care facility to attack Marcusa parents acpod tree. They mus another tragedy from happening.
And the person pulling the strings was quickly exposed by his confession–it was the “beloved daughter” the Ashford family had tradered the men a decade. Lily.
“Why?! Why the hell why?” Marcus stared at the evidence spread out at his feet, totally crushed, yelling at Lily to explain
Lily, who’d been “mute” for over ten years, looked down at the handcuffs around her wrists. She pulled her lips into a smile and let out a hoarse sound
“Because I fucking hate them.”
Lily wasn’t mute at all.
And her real age? She was actually ten years older than she’d been pretending to be.
According to the medical reports, she had some growth hormone thing that screwed up her development, made her look different from normal people.
Before the Ashfords took her in, she’d already been adopted once before.
That family died in a house fire two yea
after they brought her home. Nobody made it out.
She hated every single happy, picture–perfect family out there. And she got off on destroying them, watching them completely fall apart.
She’s a lunatic hiding in the crowd–really good at playing pretend, really good at killing people.
“But I love you,” Lily said, looking up at Marcus with that sweet, innocent/smile that made your skin crawl.
“So anyone who gets in my way? Yeah, I have to destroy them.”
Marcus should have figured it out a long time ago.
The way Lily sometimes looked at him–that wasn’t how a little sister ten years younger should look at her brother.
She hadn’t made her move sooner only because of that sick, twisted love she felt.
Me and Marcus’s parents? We were just roadblocks in her way.
In my past life, she tortured and framed me like that just to get Marcus’s attention.
But then Marcus turned down her confession.
So she figured, might as well take him down, then.
Using her favorite trick–getting some mental patient to do her dirty work.
She just never expected me to throw myself in front of Marcus like that.
But she ended up getting killed by the monster/she’d created herself, dying so easily.
And he, Marcus, never noticed any of this.
He blinded himself and teamed up with that psycho to turn the knife on me–Elena.
Then he went and killed the one person–other than his parents–who loved him more than anyone else in the world.
His sister.
35.19
- Cave Hor
Ely was giggling like a maniac as the cops dragged her away
I didn’t stick around either, Dylan had rushed over when he heard what happened, and we left locutor
“Wait, Elena, Elena Marcus suddenly scrambled up from the floor like some crazy perasa, grabbing at my clothes
*I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I know, I know you’re Elena…” He was crying his eyes out, barely making senso. “I screwed up, I’ts pare bonne failed you.”
“What kind of brother do you think you are…” Dylan was pissed and about to kick his ass, but I stopped him.
I said I wanted to talk to Marcus alone,
Just one last time.
“Marcus.” In the corner of the hospital hallway, I looked down at ldin kneeling on the floor, shaking like a leaf
“In this life, I guess I did one good thing–I saved your parents‘ lives.” I really laid into those last three words “If you have any conrience left, ga hems. And don’t show your damn face here again.”
“No, no…” Marcus shook his head helplessly:
“Let me stay here. I won’t bother you, I just want to make amends…”
“Stay?” I laughed bitterly:
“Mr. Ashford, that’s the fucking last thing I need from you.”
“You know what? In both our lives, there’s only one thing about you that ever made me happy-”
“It was that day we got our second chance, when you dropped me and carried Lily away instead.”
Marcus broke down completely.
“I could never forgive a murderer, and I don’t want his redemption.”
“I’m not asking for your life in return. Just disappearing from my sight, is the biggest mercy you’ll ever get from me.”
I watched him cry like a pathetic mess, then turned and walked toward the people waiting for me at the end of the hall.
Dylan was there, and Ethan, and my parents who’d rushed over from work to be with me.
They were my real family.
My final home after two lifetimes.
I never saw Marcus again.
I heard he went back home, got his parents settled, then went to live in a monastery by himself.
Nobody knew why a young man in his prime would become a monk.Nobody could figure out why a guy in his twenties would just throw his life away like that.
Nobody knew who he was praying for every single day, on his knees in front of that Buddha statue.
Or what sins he was trying to wash away.
Five years later, when Ethan and I had our first kid, I received this letter.
The nurse said it was from a man who’d just died of lung cancer yesterday. He’d been staying in another inpatient building.
When I opened the envelope, Ethan was holding our baby and cooing softly. My parents and elder brother Dylan were bustling around my hospital bed. It was a quiet yet happy afternoon
The letter wasn’t signed, but I knew Marcus had written it.
After pages of the same old sorry bullshit, he wrapped up with
“Elena, I knelt before Buddha for over a thousand days, but I still can’t wash the blood off my hands.”
“Thank God I’m finally paying you back with this worthless life of mine.”
“Even though I know you couldn’t care less.”
“I know I owe you everything. I just hope that if there’s a next life, you won’t get stuck with a piece of trash like me for a brother
“I should come back as some animal and suffer for a hundred lifetimes.”
“I wish you peace and happiness in this life.”
“Who’s sending you letter?” Ethan set the baby down and asked, not really paying attention.
“Oh, just some old friend from high school. So old–fashioned, still writing actual letters.” I smiled and folded the letter, setting it aside. “I just tear him next time.”
Ethan just nodded.
I turned back to stroke our baby’s soft cheek, feeling totally at peace.
Whatever the hell happens next time around, Marcus can stay out of my story.
This life, everything I can see and touch right here-
Is the happiness that belongs to me.
