Chapter 5

"Chloe, that's my money! You can't give it to him!"

I turned back, glaring at Chloe.

To my surprise, she got even angrier, stood up, and slapped me across the face.

"You've got some nerve! You're not even part of this family, so why would you claim that money is yours?!"

"Those funds were left by our parents for Liam!"

My ears rang, and my cheek throbbed with pain.

"You always say Liam is your and Harper's biological brother, but why is his last name different?"

I stared intently into her eyes, catching a fleeting moment of panic.

But the panic quickly vanished. She calmly fabricated a story: "Liam was raised by others for a while, so he took their last name. That's why he's a different last name."

"As for you, you probably just made up your own name!"

"You're not our brother at all."

A bitter chill spread through my chest. I thought that by speaking so plainly, they would drop the act.

But they were still pretending.

Chloe, Harper, what exactly is your secret that makes you treat me this way?

In the end, I was kicked out of my own home.

On my 23rd birthday, the only two family members I had in the world abandoned me.