Crash!
The glass shattered on the floor.
I was seething.
"Are you all done with this circus?!"
Everyone turned to stare at me in shock.
My breath came in sharp bursts.
I pointed at my uncle. "You—you lent him a hundred thousand for his surgery, didn't you?"
My uncle froze.
I swung my finger toward my aunt. "And you lent him two hundred thousand."
Then I turned to my second aunt. "You gave him the hundred and fifty thousand you'd saved to build your son a house. Am I wrong?!"
My father's face went white. "Merlin! Shut your mouth!"
"Do you all know he's sitting on ten million dollars? He just refuses to spend a cent of it—because he's saving every last penny for Harry!"
"What?!"
Every head in the room snapped toward my father.
He waved his hands frantically, trying to deny it.
I let out a cold laugh.
"The reason he never told you? He was planning to dump all these debts on me. But I've already been bled dry for him. You won't see a dime of that money for the next ten years—if ever!"
The color drained from every relative's face.
I pressed on. "You all felt sorry for him. You thought he was broke, so you scraped together your savings to keep him alive. But he never considered any of you family."
"Daryl!" My uncle shot to his feet. "Is what he's saying true?!"
"Yeah—when Merlin's mother died in the line of duty, there was compensation. We never asked about it. How much was it really?!"
"I... that's..."
My father couldn't get a single word out.
"If this is how you've treated us, then Merlin did nothing wrong!"
"Someone like you deserves to rot at home alone!"
One by one, the relatives stormed toward the door.
"Let me make this clear—if you can't pay us back, we're going after Harry. Not Merlin. Figure it out yourself!"
"You—all of you—!"
My father watched helplessly as everyone left.
Finally, his desperate gaze landed on me.
I turned away without a word.
It didn't take long to pack my bags.
"I'm going back to Portwell for work. Take care of yourself."
"If you leave, what's going to happen to your father?!"
"That's your problem."
I shut the door behind me.
These past few years, I'd lost my car. Lost my savings.
But at least I still had her—the woman I'd been with for five years. My fiancée.
Over the past three years, I'd burned through everything I had. She'd quietly transferred me half a million dollars to keep me afloat.
This time, when I got back, we were finally getting married.
When Melanie Butler saw how worn down I looked, she pulled me into a tight embrace.
"It's okay. From now on, I'm your family. I'll be the wife you deserve."
Even with gold prices at an all-time high, she insisted on doubling the gold jewelry in her dowry.
Her parents welcomed me into their home and cooked a feast.
It was the kind of thing my own parents had never done for me.
Tears slipped down my face. For the first time in three years, I posted something online:
Finally found you.
After dinner, I noticed my father had called dozens of times.
The moment I picked up, he launched into a tirade.
"You're out there living it up while I'm suffering in the hospital! Who do you think you are?! Get back here! Your brother's getting married—you're the older one, you should be helping out! Stop only thinking about yourself!"
I laughed—a cold, hollow sound.
I hung up.
Blocked his number.
I was done with that family. Completely done.
If they refused to treat me like one of their own, then fine—I'd become a stranger for good.
But then, while I was picking out a suit for the wedding, Melanie burst into the bridal shop.
She snatched the suit right out of my hands.
"You have another fiancée back home—why did you hide this from me?!"
I froze.
"What are you talking about?"
She thrust her phone at me.
On the screen was a wedding invitation—sent from a number I knew all too well.
The groom... Merlin Dickerson?
"Mel! I'm not engaged!" The words tumbled out. "That bride is just someone I went to middle school with. I have no idea how my name ended up on this invitation!"
"Stop pretending!"
Her eyes glistened red.
"Your father called me."
"What..."
I stood rooted to the spot.
"I didn't believe it at first either. But the venue, the officiant, the guest list—even the bride! I saw all of it!
"Your brother told me you two have been together since middle school. He said the only reason you strung me along was because your father got sick and you needed money!"
"Mel..."
I reached for her, but she wrenched her hand away.
"What am I to you?
"The wedding's off. We're done."
She walked away.
Didn't look back once.
I stood alone on the empty street, watching her car shrink into the distance.
My jaw clenched as I dialed that familiar number.
"Dad. Did you tell her I was engaged?"
"Sure did. Since you won't spend money on your own family, don't think you get to keep it all for yourself. The invitation was your brother's—I just swapped in your name. He's not like you. He actually thinks about others."
The line went dead.
I laughed. A cold, hollow sound.
Then I booked a flight home.
So my brother was getting married?
If I couldn't have my wedding, he sure as hell wasn't having his.
