Meridel’s POV
I hit my head so hard I nearly blacked out, but at last, my niece’s innocence was cleared.
Milton drove me home and locked the door behind me.
“Schandra needs rest. You should stay home for the next few days and reflect on yourself.”
I didn’t resist. Instead, I used the time to quietly pack my things.
Thirty years—too many traces of me lingered in this villa.
It took three full days to sort through everything, and whatever I didn’t need, I set aflame.
When the fire reached the framed X-ray film, a message buzzed on my phone—my withdrawal request had been approved. The funds would be in my bank in three days.
At the same time, I heard Milton’s voice behind me. There was a faint tremor in it.
“Why are you burning that?”
That X-ray captured the moment of our first meeting.
Back then, his car sped by, splashing me with dirty water. I chased after him, and in the chaos, he broke a leg. That was the scan from that day.
When we married, he said we had fought before we knew each other, and this X-ray would serve as our eternal keepsake.
But now, he had changed, and things like this had lost their meaning.
“I felt like burning it. That’s all. No reason,” I said flatly.
His face darkened. He seemed about to speak, but Schandra, who had come back with him, cut in at just the right moment.
“Milton, my wound hurts…”
Milton turned instantly to tend to her.
I lifted my eyes and met the wary stares of our children.
The sight was nothing but ironic.
Stepping past them without a word, I headed upstairs. For once, Milton explained.
“Schandra’s injured. It’s inconvenient for her to be alone at home, so she’ll stay here for a few days. Once she recovers, she’ll leave.”
I only murmured a noncommittal, “Mm.”
Something in that tone obviously set him off. He snapped, “I told you—Schandra is only staying temporarily. Why the long face? Who are you trying to show it to?!”
Honestly, I didn’t get him.
Before, when he and Schandra flaunted their closeness, I raised hell, and he grew furious.
Now that they put on this ‘deep sibling affection’ act, and I didn’t react at all, he was still not happy.
I couldn’t be bothered to argue with him.
Schandra tugged at his sleeve, her voice sweet but barbed as she turned to me.
“Meridel, my brother and I have lived together since we were young. I’m used to having him around. Now that I’m all alone, he worries about me, so he asked me to stay a few days. Surely, you won’t take issue with that, will you?”
I replied coldly. “Stay as long as you want. It has nothing to do with me.”
That made Milton’s expression grow even darker.
Schandra forced a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “That’s good to hear,” she said, though her gaze flashed with hatred.
It was clear she had no intention of leaving in just a few days.
The next morning, I slept until the sun was high before I finally got up.
Schandra was in the living room, cracking sunflower seeds. I glanced at her—just one glance—before fury surged straight to the crown of my head.
“Hey! Who told you you could use that plate as a trash bin?!”
The plate in front of her, the one she was tossing shells into, was no ordinary dish. It was a piece my mother had handcrafted for me.
When my parents died, I polished it every single day, treating it like a treasure. No one else was ever allowed to touch it.
But now, Schandra—that criminal—was using it as a garbage dish?!
She even lifted it lightly, casually saying, “I know it’s your precious keepsake. That’s why I made sure to use it—to ruin it on purpose.”
The next second, she let her fingers slip.
“Don’t—”
