When we were at our lowest, my sister and I became the trophy wives of the Sterling brothers, bearing them each a son. My sister, burdened with a condition that made her cry easily, was taken by the eldest, the psychopathic Richard Sterling. I, mute from birth, ended up with the illegitimate son, Cole Sterling, who was obsessed with his dead, mute first love. In the fifth year of our miserable existence, my sister said she wanted to leave. Because Richard, obsessed with watching her cry, had "accidentally" killed her kitten. And their son had clapped and cheered for his father. She told me to be obedient, stay with Cole, and take good care of my son. She promised to visit often once she settled down. I grabbed her suitcase and signed to her: "But I don't love him, and I don't love that child. I only came to the Sterling family to follow you." My sister sighed softly. "Then let's leave together." Chapter 1 After placing the last piece of clothing inside, I closed my suitcase. It wasn't a large case, yet it was still half empty. My sister, Maya, lifted the suitcase for me and asked softly, "Is this it?" I nodded and pointed to the small, silver carry-on in the corner. That was all she was taking. Like me, despite living in the Sterling mansion for five years, she hadn't accumulated much that truly belonged to her. We each took a suitcase. Maya reached out and held my hand as we walked downstairs. In the living room, my son, Leo, and Maya's son, Ethan, were glued to a video game. Maya led me over to them. Leo, his view slightly blocked, immediately screeched: "Move! The mute and the crybaby, so annoying!" I stood still. The "Game Over" sound blared from the TV. Furious, Leo pushed over my suitcase, threw down his controller, and jumped up to glare at me. "Are you deaf as well as mute?!" Ethan sat silently on the side, but his expression was filled with undisguised disgust. He was older than Leo and more like his father, Richard—better at hiding his emotions, but just as cold. Maya crouched down and set my suitcase upright. Standing up, she looked calmly at Ethan. "When your dad and uncle get back, tell them your aunt and I have left." Ethan didn't respond. Maya didn't say another word. She took my hand and led me towards the door. Just as we were about to step out, Ethan's voice rang out from behind us. "You're not coming back?" Chapter 2 Maya's grip on my hand tightened for a fraction of a second. She paused at the doorway, silent for a moment, but didn't turn around. "No," she said simply. "We're not coming back." Behind us, Leo cheered. "Finally! The two annoying pests are gone!" Ethan said nothing more. It was the height of summer, and rain was pouring down outside. As we left, Maya held the umbrella, tilting it to cover me. A few days ago, Cole had taken his anger out on the racetrack after being scolded by his father. He dragged me along, and his reckless driving nearly cost me my leg. The wound was just starting to scab over, and Maya was worried about it getting wet. I looked at her soaked shoulder. She smiled warmly. "It's okay. I'm tough." In the taxi, she changed the dressing on my leg. When she looked up, her eyes were red, her voice trembling. "It must hurt. It won't... ever happen again." I shook my head and signed, It doesn't hurt. We took the taxi to the train station and boarded a high-speed train. The long tracks were taking us back to our hometown by the sea. Halfway there, Richard actually called Maya. I was sitting close enough to hear his displeasure through the phone. "Where did you go?" Outside the window, the scenery blurred past. Maya pressed one hand against the glass, her fingers curling anxiously. But her voice remained calm and gentle. "I cleared out my things. If I missed anything, please throw it away." Richard's voice deepened, impatient. "I asked you, where did you go?" Chapter 3 Maya was used to obeying. When our father was alive, she obeyed him. After he died and she went to Richard, she obeyed Richard. So, when she spoke again, her voice held a trace of unnatural defiance. "You don't need to know. We have nothing to do with each other anymore." The silence on the other end suggested Richard was surprised by her attitude. After a long pause, he said angrily, "Did I say you could leave?" Maya's voice grew quieter. "You have no reason to stop me." She knew. For all these years, Richard's heart belonged to someone else. He laughed, a sound born of extreme anger. "Because of that stupid cat?" This time, Maya was silent for a long time. Just as I thought he might have hung up, she spoke. "Yes. Let's say that's why." Richard sneered. "Good timing. My secretary, Sarah, needs a place to stay. She can take your room." "You and your precious sister can rot in the streets for all I care." The line went dead. Maya put down her phone and hugged me. She always tried to hide her tears, afraid of upsetting me. But I felt them soaking into my shoulder. I let her hold me, feeling her body shake. After a while, I gently pushed her away. I took a bank card from my pocket and pressed it into her hand. I signed, I saved a lot of money. I can take care of us. It didn't matter. Men were just men. We didn't need to rely on anyone. Since the day I was born, the only person I could truly rely on was my sister. Maya wiped her tears, forced a smile, and nodded. The train sped on. The city where we had lived for five years faded into the distance. Chapter 4 From the train, we took a ferry. It was nearly midnight when we reached the island. Our father had left us an old house here. It was small, but livable. It was the only thing he left us. The house was dusty from disuse. By the time we cleaned it up, dawn was breaking. Through the window, we could see a faint glow on the horizon. We decided not to sleep and went to the beach to watch the sunrise. Sitting on the soft sand, the sea breeze blew away our exhaustion. The sun slowly rose from the sea, bursting through the clouds and bathing the water in gold. I leaned my head on Maya's shoulder. She suddenly said, "I want to open a restaurant here." She had said the same thing years ago. Then Dad died, leaving behind a mountain of debt. She went to her ex-boyfriend, Richard, bringing six-year-old Ethan with her. After that, the ex-boyfriend became her patron, and she became his mistress. Unable to open a restaurant, she cooked for Richard instead. But after a few days, Richard frowned and told her, "I have chefs. I don't want to come home to a woman smelling of grease. It's disgusting." Maya never cooked for him again. But Richard's attitude never improved. She realized it wasn't the cooking; he just found her disgusting. But none of that mattered now. I raised my beer can and clinked it against hers. To Maya's success. To a smooth future. Maya's restaurant opened quickly. I invested in a travel agency and started working as a sign language tour guide for the deaf and hard of hearing. There are millions of deaf people in the country, but very few guides for them. I led groups around the island, watching sunrises and sunsets, catching crabs at low tide. Seeing them sign "thank you" with familiar gestures warmed my heart. After work, I would eat seafood at Maya's restaurant and wait for her to close up so we could walk home together. Business was booming. Maya was beautiful and honest, and her restaurant soon went viral on social media. Days turned into weeks. Cole and Leo were like a fading watercolor painting in my memory. Until one night, over a month later, as I was getting ready for bed, Cole texted me. "What are you doing?" Chapter 5 I thought I was hallucinating. In five years, Cole had never once cared about my whereabouts. I stared at the message, unsure how to reply. A moment later, another text came: "Wrong person." Expected. I exited the chat, unbothered. I contacted the agency about tomorrow's tour. When I finished, I noticed Cole had sent another message half an hour ago: "How's your leg?" I didn't know what he meant. Maybe he felt awkward about the wrong text and was making conversation. Or maybe he was just mocking me. Either way, there was no need to reply. The scar on my leg throbbed. The memory of Cole crashing his car toward me on the track, his cold, crazy face, came rushing back. It felt like a thorn in my heart. I tapped his profile picture and deleted him. We were never going back. There was no need to stay in touch. My phone was finally quiet. I washed up and went to bed. Closing my eyes, I remembered the first time I met Cole. I had gone to the city to find Maya and got caught in a storm. Richard's servants locked me out of the iron gates. He looked at me coldly and said, "This isn't a shelter for strays." I tried to explain, "My sister is Maya. She's your girlfriend." He scoffed. "Girlfriend? She wishes." I couldn't get in, and Maya couldn't leave. She still owed Richard. That was when Cole drove up. He looked reckless and wild, laughing as he cursed at Richard. "Are you human? Leaving your woman's sister out in the rain?" Richard said indifferently, "You take her then."
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