Chapter 4
While Mom was still in the hospital, Ethan sent me a few texts.
Every single one was about how I needed to apologize to Chloe.
Chloe even sent me some messages of her own:
“What’s wrong, sis? Too scared to come home?”
“Hah, this time I’ll make sure you’re out of the house for good.”
“There’s only room for one princess here.”
I showed the messages to Mom.
“Mom, you adopted a snake, and Ethan? He’s just as bad.”
Mom looked at me with so much regret in her eyes.
“You’ve been through so much, haven’t you?”
Her words broke me, and I couldn’t stop the tears from falling.
When Mom first woke up, I knew immediately–she had come back too.
She told me what happened in our previous life.
After I died, Chloe came back.
Turns out, she hadn’t jumped to her death after all.
She faked the whole thing just to make everyone feel sorry for her.
Instead of blaming her, Ethan doted on her even more, relieved she was “back from the dead.”
But Mom eventually uncovered the truth about how I really died.
She tried to get justice for me, but before she could do anything, she collapsed.
When she woke up, she was back to the day of the accident.
A month later, Mom was discharged from the hospital.
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During that time, Ethan and Chloe were completely MIA.
Even Dr. Harper was unreachable.
Of course, Dr. Harper had bigger problems–he’d been forced to resign from the hospital.
I also reported him to the authorities.
Facing a potential prison sentence, he came crawling to me, begging for mercy.
“Emma, please… I was tricked! I didn’t know your mom was in such bad shape!”
“My mom almost died because of you,” I shot back.
“And now you’ve got the nerve to ask me to forgive you?”
He stammered, trying to defend himself, but I wasn’t having it.
Dr. Harper ended up serving six months in prison and losing his medical license.
Meanwhile, Chloe’s social media told a different story.
She and Ethan were off vacationing in Bali, as if nothing had happened.
On the day Mom was discharged, the two of them strolled back into the house, dragging along a ton of shopping bags and laughing like they didn’t have a care in the world.
The moment they saw me and Mom sitting at the dining table, their laughter stopped.
Ethan’s face hardened into a cold, distant mask, while Chloe ducked behind him, a flicker of defiance in
her eyes.
“Back already?” I said, setting my fork down and staring directly at Ethan.
“This is our house, isn’t it? Don’t act like you’re in charge here.”
He sneered and grabbed Chloe’s hand, ready to head upstairs.
“Stop right there!” Mom’s voice cut through the room like ice, freezing them both in place.
“Ethan Carter, you’ve really outdone yourself this time.”
Her tone was so sharp, even Chloe’s smug expression faltered.
“Mom, let me guess–Emma’s been filling your head with lies again, hasn’t she? Don’t listen to her.”
Family Ties Family Lies
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“She’s always been jealous of Chloe and causes drama for no reason.”
“Last time, during Chloe’s birthday, she even made up that nonsense about you being critically injuregu
Mom let out a cold laugh, her gaze piercing through Ethan.
“I raised you. I taught you better than this.”
“But here you are, taking the side of an outsider over your own sister.”
“Mom, Chloe isn’t an outsider!”
“She’s part of this family! You can’t keep favoring Emma like this.”
Ethan’s voice was loud and indignant, as if we were the villains in this story.
“Chloe’s family,” he insisted.
“I even heard you went to a lawyer recently to update your estate plans…”
Mom’s head snapped up, her eyes narrowing.
Ethan hesitated for just a second, but then he pushed on.
“You can’t cut her out, Mom. She deserves a share too.”
“Split Emma’s inheritance with her–she doesn’t need all of it.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
My brother was something else.
He wasn’t willing to give up any of his share or suggest splitting everything equally.
No, he wanted to take half of mine and give it to Chloe.
When our eyes met, my mocking smile clearly got under his skin.
Ethan straightened his posture and puffed out his chest like he had any moral high ground.
“I’m the oldest, and I’m the future head of the company.”
“Of course, I need the majority of the shares.”
“You girls don’t need that much. Don’t be greedy.”
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Chapter 4
“And, Mom, if you give Emma too many shares, I won’t have enough voting power to maintain control of the company.”
“You can’t let that happen.”
Mom slammed her hand on the table so hard that the dishes rattled, the sharp clinking cutting through the tense air.
“Ethan Carter, you’ve disappointed me more than I ever thought possible.”
“Mom, I’m doing this for the good of the family,” he said, his voice rising defensively.
“For the company’s future. Emma doesn’t know anything about running a business.”
“Giving her all those shares is a waste. It’d be better to give them to Chloe–at least she’d have some security.”
“Security?” I let out a bitter laugh, the kind of laugh that makes your chest ache.
“She’s been living in luxury here for years, and that’s not enough security for her?”
“Meanwhile, I’ve been lied to, hurt, and accused over and over again.”
“And now you have the audacity to come for my inheritance?”
