1 My brother Leo and I went to his fiancée’s house to pick her up for the wedding, but she refused to come downstairs, deciding to play games instead. “Camille,” she said, her voice dripping with challenge, “I won’t feel safe marrying into your family until you pass my obedience test.” I glanced at my lovestruck brother, Leo, whose eyes were pleading with me. I had no choice but to nod. First, the bride-to-be, Jessica, demanded I transfer $1,000 to each of her bridesmaids and all the gathered relatives as a "token of goodwill." For my brother’s happiness, I gritted my teeth and sent the money. Second, she ordered me to kneel on the floor, wash her feet, and put on her wedding shoes. Seeing Leo on the verge of tears, I swallowed my pride and did it. “And for the third thing,” Jessica announced with a smirk, “we’ll have an exchange. I want you to marry my brother!” I refused on the spot. But Jessica was smugly confident. “Don’t follow the rules, and you can get the hell out of the Vaughn family. You’re just the adopted one. Don’t get ahead of yourself.” My own brother chimed in, twisting the knife. “She’s right, Camille. Mom and Dad adopted you. It’s about time you paid them back by helping me.” I almost laughed from the sheer audacity of it. The truth was, Mom and Dad had adopted him because they thought I was too lonely as a child! … The eyes of everyone in the room darted toward me. “I had no idea the Vaughns’ daughter was adopted. And here I was, so jealous of her, thinking she was born with a silver spoon in her mouth.” “Her adoptive parents must be saints. Look at her, decked out in designer brands from head to toe.” Jessica’s eyes glinted with envy, her words laced with acid. “What can I say? My future in-laws are just so generous, even to an adopted stray. They’re only putting my name on one of their properties, while she has several in her name already.” She shot me a look of pure contempt. “Some people have no shame, happily taking things that aren’t rightfully theirs.” I took a series of deep breaths, forcing down the fire in my chest. Today was Leo’s wedding day. I couldn’t be the one to ruin it. I told myself I’d try one last time. Forcing a smile, I said, “Jessica, please come downstairs. We’ll be late.” She slapped my hand away and spun to face Leo, her voice a shrill whine. “Leo, what is your sister trying to say? Is she looking down on my brother, or is she looking down on me? Didn’t you tell me you’re the one who calls the shots in your family? How can she refuse something so simple for our wedding?” Sparks flew from my eyes. Something so simple? And her brother? Did she have any self-awareness at all? The man was a total creep who looked to be in his forties, complete with a beer belly, a balding head, and a smile that revealed a mouthful of yellow teeth. Jessica wouldn’t let it go. “My parents worked so hard to put me through college, and now I’m supposed to slave away for your family for the rest of my life,” she sobbed. “Is it really too much to ask for you to give them a daughter in return?” She started crying hysterically. “It’s our wedding day, and your sister is already disrespecting me! I can’t imagine how she’ll treat me once I’m actually married into your family! Leo, if your sister doesn’t marry my brother, then this wedding is off!” The threat of cancellation sent my love-drunk brother into a panic. He rushed over to her, half-kneeling. “My darling, please don’t do this to me. I chased you for so long to win your heart. If we don’t get married today, I don’t think I can go on living!” Jessica shoved him away, and he stumbled to the ground. “Your sister refuses to complete my obedience test! I know she’ll make my life hell!” she shrieked. “I’m my parents’ precious treasure! Why should I have to put up with her abuse?” The inferno in my chest roared hotter. I dug my nails into my palms, trying to stay grounded. Leo clutched his back as he scrambled to his feet. He turned to me, his brow furrowed in annoyance. “Camille, what is your problem? What’s so wrong with you marrying Jessica’s brother?” “So what if he’s a little older? He’ll know how to take care of you! Are you looking down on their family’s financial situation? Mom and Dad gave you several houses, didn’t they? That’s more than enough for you to live on for the rest of your life!” “What?” he sneered. “Are you still dreaming of marrying some rich, handsome prince? Wake up, Camille! Your birth parents were nobodies from the countryside. What wealthy guy would ever seriously look at you?” He leaned in, his voice a low threat. “If you don’t agree to this, I’ll tell Mom and Dad you ruined my wedding. Believe me, they’ll kick you out on the street in a second.” In that moment, the last thread of my composure snapped. 2 I dropped the purse Jessica had made me hold and stormed toward the door. “I don’t care if this wedding happens or not. I’m going home!” But before I could leave, Jessica grabbed my arm in a vice-like grip. “You’re not going anywhere!” She unzipped the purse. “First, I’m going to check if you stole anything from me!” She opened the bag. Inside, there was nothing but a few empty red envelopes from the earlier cash gifts. Jessica shrieked, “Leo! The diamond necklace, the ring, the gold you gave me… it’s all gone!” Her expression twisted into one of vicious accusation as she pointed a finger at my face. “Well, well, Camille. I thought I could trust you, my future sister-in-law, to hold my bag for me. I never thought you’d have such sticky fingers!” I was completely stunned. She immediately started a live stream, shoving the camera right in my face. “Everyone, look! This is my future sister-in-law, the famous Miss Vaughn of the Vaughn Corporation. But guess what? She’s the adopted daughter. I guess she inherited some bad genes from her real parents!” “I asked her to hold my bag, and in just a few minutes, tens of thousands of dollars worth of my jewelry vanished! The bag never left her hands. I wonder who could have taken it? It’s such a mystery!” A flood of malicious comments poured in. “This is why you should be careful about adopting. Who knows what kind of trash their parents were?” “Look at her, dressed in all those designer brands. You’d never guess she was a common thief.” “What a snake in the grass. Her adoptive parents gave her everything, and she repays them by stealing from her brother’s fiancée and trying to ruin his wedding.” Jessica’s bridesmaids swarmed me, snatching my own purse. They dumped its contents onto the floor. When they found nothing, Jessica grabbed a handful of my hair and slapped me hard across the face. “Bitch, tell me where you hid it!” My cheek burned, and the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. But what chilled me to the bone was my brother’s reaction. He just stood there, watching with cold indifference. He even added, his voice light, “Come on, Camille. Just give Jessica her things back. Don’t ruin our wedding, okay?” I wiped a smear of blood from my lip. “Since you’re so sure I stole something,” I said, my voice dangerously calm, “then let’s call the police and have them figure it out.” Jessica snatched my phone and smashed it on the ground. The screen shattered. She crossed her arms, glaring at me. “This is a small town. What will the neighbors think if they see the police show up at my parents’ house?” “Since you’re so determined to deny it, we’ll just have to search you ourselves.” A wicked glint appeared in Jessica’s eyes. “Girls, strip her down. Who knows, maybe she hid it in her underwear.” Panic seized my heart. “Jessica, that’s illegal!” I shouted. “Leo, call the police!” But Leo just rubbed his ear and went back to scrolling on his phone. My eyes widened in horror as I stared at the boy I had loved and protected for over twenty years, blood or not. My heart turned to ice, piece by piece. “Leo!” I screamed. “I’m your sister!” When we were kids, I was always the one who stood in front of him, taking the blame for his mistakes. Leo just scoffed. “Give me a break. Your deadbeat parents were so poor they had to sell you to our family. You think you’re worthy of being my sister?” Jessica’s friends yanked up my t-shirt, exposing my skin to the leering eyes in the room. Whistles echoed around me. I struggled, but Jessica just slapped me again and again, until my ears were ringing. She leaned in close, her voice a venomous whisper. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll sign over all your properties to Leo. Then I’ll let you go.” “Otherwise,” she smirked, “your parents will believe you’re a thief. You’ll lose everything and get thrown out with nothing.” So that was it. A thief crying wolf, all to steal my houses. Rage burned so fiercely it felt like it would tear through my chest. My voice trembled as I spoke. “Jessica, if you ever manage to marry into the Vaughn family, my name isn’t Camille Vaughn!” Jessica burst out laughing as if I’d told the funniest joke in the world. “Have you forgotten your place? You’re the adopted one. Who do you think you are to make threats like that?!” Her eyes darkened. She waved a hand. “Girls, teach her a lesson. Don’t worry, she’s not their real daughter!” 3 A sharp fist slammed into my forehead. A warm trickle of blood ran from my nose. Kicks landed on my stomach, sending waves of agony through me until my vision blurred. Through the haze, I saw Jessica grab a vase from the coffee table and bring it crashing down on my head. A bolt of sharp pain, and then I felt my forehead. My hand came away wet with blood. My appearance must have been terrifying, because Jessica and her friends finally stopped. I staggered to my feet, my eyes locked on her. A flicker of fear crossed her face, but she quickly masked it with bravado. “It’s your own fault for being a thief!” she spat. “Fine. I’ll be generous since you’re Leo’s sister. Give me back my things right now and kneel and apologize, and I’ll let this go for today.” She waved a dismissive hand and sat back down on the bed. Leo, ever the sycophant, put down his phone and began massaging her wrist. “Camille, hurry up and give her back the jewelry! See how forgiving Jessica is being?” “I didn’t steal anything!” I roared. “How can I give back something I don’t have? This whole thing was a setup by Jessica!” Leo’s eyes darted away. My heart sank. That look on his face… he knew. He was in on it. But he still pressed on. “Then just pay her back! The jewelry was worth tens of thousands. Paying her a hundred thousand in compensation is more than fair!” “Do it now,” he threatened, “or I’m calling Mom and Dad and having them throw you out!” He was so brazen, constantly holding the threat of being disowned over my head. I closed my eyes. I remembered a conversation I’d had with my parents just a few weeks ago. “Camille,” my mom had said, her voice gentle, “we adopted Leo because we felt guilty that you were so lonely as an only child, especially since we were always so busy with work.” “You two got along well enough over the years, so we let it be. But now he’s demanding to take over the company and wants us to transfer all the properties we gave you into his name.” “The boy has gotten greedy. We were thinking, since we’re already paying for his wedding, maybe it’s time to tell him the truth and have him move out.” At the time, my heart had gone soft. I’d argued against it, thinking about how Leo had lived his whole life as the Vaughn family’s young master. The shock of the truth would be too much for him. My parents had reluctantly agreed, and we dropped the matter. But today, Leo’s actions had frozen my heart solid. I made a decision. The moment I got home, I would tell my parents to kick him out. Not ruining his wedding day would be my last act of kindness as his sister. I turned and walked toward the door. Leo’s shout echoed behind me. “Camille, you dare leave without paying?” Then came the gasps of the guests. “Oh my god, I can’t believe the Vaughn’s daughter is like that behind closed doors.” I spun around in shock. Leo was holding his phone up for everyone to see, a triumphant smirk on his face. On the screen was a video… My pupils constricted.
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