When the adoptive parents finally found their real daughter, I figured it was time for me to leave.
I started making arrangements to move out, just to another villa, nothing dramatic. But when she found out, she got teary-eyed and said, "I came back to be part of this family, not to break it apart."
And honestly, that got to me. I stayed.
Big mistake. It didn’t take long before she started pulling little tricks. Making things up. Playing the poor, innocent victim.
And the worst part, Jada and Wyatt believed her. Every time.
That was when it finally clicked, she didn’t stop me from leaving because she cared. She just didn’t want me to take anything with me. She wanted me gone and empty-handed.
So I packed some bags. Well, not mine. Theirs. Because this place, this whole manor, was mine.
——
A short scream woke me up in the middle of the night. I grabbed a coat and stepped into the hallway.
Right away, Jada came storming over and her face... she looked furious. I had never seen her like that before. She had always been calm, soft-spoken, almost too gentle.
But now, she was livid.
"Susanna," she said sharply, "how could you treat Florence like that? She spent more than ten years out there, finally came home and this is how you act?"
I just looked at her, completely blank. "What did I even do to her?"
My answer only seemed to push her further over the edge.
Wyatt stood nearby, silent but clearly disappointed. The nanny, Anna Watson, looked like she wanted to step in but didn’t dare. She just clenched her hands and kept her mouth shut.
And Florence was behind Jada, crying like she had just been betrayed by the world. "Mom... don't be mad at my sister... it’s my fault..." she sobbed.
And that, of course, made things worse. Jada shot me a look like I had just kicked a puppy. "Look at her, she’s still standing up for you! I raised you for over a decade and this is how you treat your sister?"
Before I even had a chance to speak, Jada turned around and gently patted Florence’s back. "Florence, I know you're a kind girl. You’re saying all this just to keep the peace.
“But sweetheart, this is your home too. You don’t need to keep quiet or back down. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure this gets handled properly today."
Then she shot Wyatt a sharp look and snapped, "What’s wrong with you? Your daughter is being treated like this and you just stand there doing nothing?"
I was already annoyed. It was five in the morning. I hadn’t even had the chance to open my eyes properly and now they were putting on this dramatic scene like it was prime-time television. My patience ran out.
"What exactly happened?" I asked, not bothering to hide the edge in my voice. "Just say it. Don't stand here acting like I’m supposed to read your mind."
Anna, who had been standing awkwardly in the background, finally couldn’t hold it in and rushed out the words in one breath. "Miss Florence said you made her sleep in the utility room. Madam heard noises while out for her morning walk and went to check... and found her there."
I blinked, trying not to roll my eyes too hard. Great. Now I was living in a plot twist straight out of a cheesy webnovel.
Still, I knew better than to lose it. The more I snapped, the worse it would look. So I kept my cool. "I set up the second bedroom for you, Florence. You know, the one with the big windows and sunlight all day? Same size as the master. Since when did I ever tell you to sleep in a utility room?"
Florence looked at me with wide, watery eyes, playing her part like a pro.
"It’s all my fault," she said quickly. "I chose to stay there. Please don’t blame my sister. Mom, Dad, don’t get mad at her, or else..."
