My brother, Liam Thompson, harbored a decade of hatred for me.
The last time we argued, I left town alone and unexpectedly found myself caught in an earthquake.
Just as a hotel chandelier was about to crash down on me, Liam suddenly appeared, shielding me with his body.
Skye, run! Don’t look back!
The chandelier fell heavily, shattering his spine, yet he looked at me with a relieved smile.
“Mom and Dad’s dying wish was for me to take care of you. I did it.”
“If there’s a next life, I hope you never appear before our family again.”
Someone held me back, forcing me to watch as my brother was completely buried beneath the rubble.
That night, having lost my last remaining family member, I didn’t hesitate to leap into the river.
When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day my birth family found me.
I saw Liam waiting outside the police station. I walked past him, heading straight for another boy behind him. “Brother,” I called out.
1
“You don’t remember anything at all?”
Officer Davies looked at me, pen in hand, unwilling to miss any detail.
“Try to think harder. Like, what’s your last name? Roughly where do you live? Who’s in your family?”
“You were seven or eight when you were abducted. You should have some memories, logically.”
I lowered my gaze, speaking slowly.
“I was always beaten there. Once, I was hit on the head, passed out, and when I woke up, I couldn’t remember much.”
Officer Davies’s eyes softened with sympathy.
She put down her pen. “It’s okay. If you remember anything later, you can always contact us.”
I left the police station, about to head towards the temporary lodging they’d arranged for me.
But then, I saw a familiar figure rushing toward me.
Liam?
My heart lurched.
In my past life, Liam had only come to pick me up reluctantly after the police contacted the Thompsons.
Why was he here already this time?
Liam’s eyes lit up when he saw me, and he quickly closed the distance between us.
I was about to speak, but he beat me to it.
“I’m warning you, don’t try to claim any relation. Our family already has a daughter.”
It hit me like a ton of bricks.
Liam had been reborn too, no wonder…
He was afraid I’d return to claim my place, just like in my previous life, so he wanted to stop me first.
A bitter ache bloomed in my chest, but I looked up, feigning confusion.
“Who are you? What do you mean by ‘our family’?”
Liam’s expression turned suspicious.
“What game are you playing now?”
I pointed to my head and said, straightforwardly,
“I really don’t know you. I got hurt here before, and I can’t remember a lot of things.”
A flicker of guilt crossed Liam’s eyes when he heard about my injury, but it quickly vanished.
“I don’t care if you’re really suffering from amnesia or faking it. All you need to know is that the Thompsons’ house isn’t where you belong.”
He paused, then continued.
“Even though we’re strangers, I can give you some money and help you find an apartment until you’re an adult, just because I feel sorry for you. As long as you don’t go babbling to the police and disturbing my family.”
I shook my head.
“Thank you, but I don’t need it.”
Ignoring his stunned gaze, I got into the waiting car.
I remembered Liam’s smiling face just before he died in my previous life, saying he could finally be reunited with Mom, Dad, and Mia.
My heart twisted with an unbearable pang of sorrow.
He risked his life to save me.
But in his heart, he only ever had one sister…
Since they were so happy as a family of four without me,
Then let them continue to be happy in this life.
2
At the lodging, I lay in bed, unable to sleep.
Staring at the dark night sky outside the window, memories crashed over me like waves.
In my past life, it was also this year that the police rescued me from the remote mountains.
I cried, giving them Mom and Dad’s names and address, my heart full of the hope that I was finally going home.
But when I was sent back, I found a strange girl in the house.
Mom and Dad awkwardly explained that after I was abducted, they were in so much pain that they adopted her.
Her name was Mia.
They looked at me with complicated expressions, like I was a stranger who had suddenly invaded their lives.
They were gentle and affectionate with Mia, as if she were their true daughter.
But… but they used to love me the most.
I broke down, screaming and shouting until my throat was raw.
I pointed at Mia, calling her a thief who had stolen the home that was rightfully mine.
Mom and Dad scolded me, saying I was thoughtless.
I trembled, crying, my voice hoarse.
“But I suffered so much! Why does she get to live in luxury?!”
Mom and Dad watched me in silence, their eyes showing both heartache and hesitation.
Unexpectedly, that night, Mia left a letter and quietly slipped away.
She said she was going back to the orphanage, not wanting the family to break apart because of her.
My heart was filled with unease.
But Mom and Dad didn’t blame me; they just sighed and said they were going to the orphanage to bring her back.
Liam wanted to go with them but was stopped.
“You stay home with your sister. She’s finally back, you need to take good care of her.”
As it turned out, they never came back.
Their car was in an accident on the way to pick up Mia.
All three of them were gone.
From then on, Liam hated me.
He hated me for ten whole years.
Thinking of this, my throat constricted, and a familiar sting burned behind my eyes.
I wiped away the tears.
Now that I couldn’t go back to the Thompson family, I had to think about my future.
I was not yet sixteen; I needed a guardian.
Suddenly, a name surfaced in my mind.
Caleb Maxwell.
A skinny boy who always shielded me when we were beaten.
In my past life, if it hadn’t been for him, I would have been bought to be a child bride for that family’s dim-witted son.
When we were shivering, locked in the pigsty, he wrapped his only remaining clothes around me.
“From now on, I’m your brother. I’ll protect you.”
We endured countless grueling days together.
But later, he was sold to another village.
When we were rescued, the police said the people in that village had been freed before us.
In my past life, I had wanted to find him.
But the sudden changes in my birth family prevented me from doing so.
In this life, I decided to find him.
The next day, at dawn, I went to the police station.
“Officers, I remember where my family lives.”
After registering the information, I turned to leave the police station.
But Liam Thompson, who had rushed over, grabbed my wrist.
“You tricked me again! You really were faking it before!”
“Why are you so determined to go back to my family? They don’t want you.”
His voice trembled, as if suppressing immense anger.
“Don’t you understand? I already have a sister. Mom and Dad dote on her endlessly. They don’t need an extra daughter.”
I shook off his hand and continued walking out without a word.
Liam was so infuriated by my attitude that his eyes turned bloodshot. He suddenly shouted,
“Weren’t you abducted? Why didn’t you just stay in those mountains forever?!”
His hysterical outburst was identical to his fury in my previous life, after our parents died, when he pointed his finger at me and screamed,
“Why didn’t you die instead of them?”
I raised my hand and slapped him hard.
*Slap!*
The sharp sound silenced him for a moment.
“Who do you think you’re talking to?”
I stared at him, asking each word distinctly.
“Do you think someone who was abducted deserves to die out there?”
Liam seemed to snap awake from the slap.
He staggered back half a step, regret showing in his eyes.
“I’m sorry…”
Officer Davies, who had finally had enough, frowned and stepped in front of me.
“Excuse me, sir, how can you speak like that? This young lady is looking for her family. It’s not your place to dictate.”
Liam was silent for a long moment, then, with a cold face, he grabbed my arm.
“You want to go home, don’t you? Come on.”
But I pulled my arm free from his grasp, and to his surprise,
I hid behind Officer Davies.
“Yes, I want to go home, but what does that have to do with you?”
3
“My brother’s name is Caleb Maxwell, and he lives in S-Province.”
I spoke each word clearly to Liam Thompson.
Liam froze, then looked at me incredulously.
“Skye Thompson, you’ve gotten bold, haven’t you?”
“Where did you get a brother named Caleb Maxwell?!”
Officer Davies immediately pulled me behind her, protectively, and turned to ask me,
“Young lady, do you know him?”
I shook my head, my voice very soft.
“No, I don’t. And… I’m not Skye Thompson. My last name is Maxwell.”
Liam’s expression instantly changed to shock, disbelief written all over his face.
Suddenly, he seemed to understand something.
“You’re back too, aren’t you?”
I lowered my head, clutching the hem of my shirt.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Skye Thompson!”
Liam’s eyes blazed with raging hatred. “Do you think playing dumb or pretending to have amnesia will erase the fact that you’re a murderer?”
“And you even made up a fake name to trick me,”
He scoffed. “What, do you think I’d be worried?”
“Let me tell you, keep dreaming.”
He took a step closer, his eyes mocking.
“Fine. Your brother’s named Caleb Maxwell, right? Then go find him.”
He watched me smugly, as if certain I would panic.
“You’re insane!”
Officer Davies cursed, then pulled me into her patrol car. “Come on, ignore him.”
Liam finally panicked, chasing after us and banging on the car window.
“Where are you going?!”
But he only got a mouthful of exhaust fumes.
The car drove for a long time, eventually stopping in front of a garden house.
My heart was surprised.
I hadn’t expected Caleb’s family to be quite wealthy.
This instantly boosted my confidence about relying on him.
We walked up and knocked on the door. After a long wait, someone finally opened it.
The man standing behind the door was tall and slender, with refined features that held a hint of sickly paleness.
His messy hair slightly obscured his eyes, and his shirt sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing thin wrists.
Seeing us, he paused.
“And you are?”
“Brother, I’m your sister!”
I rushed straight into his arms.
He stiffened, but didn’t immediately push me away.
“Skye, are you crazy?!”
Liam suddenly rushed up the stairs, pulling me away and angrily pointing at Caleb.
“What are you doing! Do you even know who he is? Just throwing yourself into someone’s arms? What if he’s a bad guy?!”
Seeing Liam’s dusty, travel-worn appearance, he must have followed us all the way.
Just like in my previous life, when he secretly followed me and ultimately risked his life to save me.
My gaze lingered on him, unreadable.
“He’s my brother. What right do you have to insult my brother?”
Liam laughed in exasperation. “He’s your brother? Skye Thompson, do you even have eyes?!”
I retorted, word for word,
“If he’s not my brother, then are you?”
I stared at him, watching as Liam’s mouth opened, the word “yes” almost escaping.
But he forcefully stopped himself.
He glared at me, then let out a cold laugh.
“You almost tricked me there. I told you I’m not your brother. You don’t deserve to be my sister.”
A cynical smile tugged at my lips.
Officer Davies finally lost her patience, cutting in sharply.
“Which one of you is her brother, for goodness sake?!”
4
The moment I threw myself into Caleb’s arms,
He already recognized me.
Seeing my pleading eyes, Caleb sighed and turned to Officer Davies.
“I’m her brother. Thank you for helping me find my sister.”
Liam’s expression turned incredulous.
“Fine. Just fine.”
He looked at me with a grim face.
“This isn’t me forcing you, it’s your own choice. Don’t regret it later.”
With that, he turned and left.
Watching Liam’s retreating back, a wave of unspeakable bitterness washed over me.
Isn’t this exactly what he wanted?
For me not to return to his family?
Yet why did he look so betrayed?
After everyone else had left, I quietly said to Caleb,
“I’m sorry, I caused you trouble.”
“He’s your biological brother, isn’t he?” Caleb asked.
“If you’re having family issues,” Caleb advised, “you should go back once you’ve made up.”
I shook my head, memories of my past life flashing through my mind.
I couldn’t go back.
Just as I was about to speak, my peripheral vision caught sight of an uncollected pill bottle on the table.
My stomach dropped when I read the label.
Looking at the man whose head was bowed, his expression unreadable, I grabbed Caleb’s hand.
“You once told me that if I had no home, you’d be my brother and take care of me for life.”
My voice trembled slightly.
“Does that promise still stand now?”
Caleb was silent for a very long time, so long that I thought time itself had stopped.
Finally, he nodded.
“It stands.”
I happily threw myself into his arms.
“Then from today on, you’re my real brother, and I’m your only sister.”
I looked up at him. “We’re each other’s family.”
“Now… Brother, I’m hungry. I haven’t eaten all day.”
Caleb clearly paused. “Okay, I’ll go grocery shopping. What do you want to eat?”
“Tomato scrambled eggs, and just buy whatever else you like.”
I said casually.
Caleb nodded and left the house.
I took the opportunity to dump all the pills from the table into a drawer.
Pretending I knew nothing.
However, soon after, there was a knock at the door.
“How are you back so quickly?”
I opened the door, only to see Liam Thompson standing there, his face grim.
“Why are you here?”
Liam grabbed my hand without a word, pulling me toward the door.
“Come with me.”
I shook off his hand. “Where are you taking me?”
“Home! Skye Thompson, there’s a limit to how much you can fake amnesia! Do you really want to stay in a strange man’s house with no proper explanation?”
Liam’s voice suddenly carried a hint of fatigue.
“Since we’re both back, let’s just forget about what happened in the last life. Come home with me and be sensible. Mom and Dad and I won’t mistreat you. Stop trying to compete with Mia…”
I cut Liam off.
“What if I said my condition for coming home is for Mia to leave? Would you agree?”
The air instantly froze.
Liam looked at me incredulously, then his eyes filled with hatred.
“I knew it! You truly are evil by nature! Why are you so determined to drive Mia out?”
“Let me tell you, don’t even dream about it! Mia has been with Mom and Dad for so many years; in their hearts, she’s already like a real daughter!”
“See?” I sneered. “I only proposed the idea, and I haven’t even done anything, yet your reaction is so extreme.”
“Between Mia and me, it was never fair from the start!”
My voice began to tremble.
“Did any of you ever consider my feelings? Was I abducted willingly? Do you know how much I suffered during those years I was kidnapped?”
“Why should I be magnanimous enough to accept that the love that was originally mine is now split with someone else?”
“It was your own fault for being so reckless and getting abducted in the first place!”
Liam blurted out. “Who else is to blame?”
I suddenly looked up, my gaze sharp as a knife.
“Are you sure it was my fault for being reckless?” I took a step closer to him. “Liam Thompson, you’ve lied to everyone for so long, have you actually started believing your own lies?”
His face instantly turned ashen.
I knew he remembered.
5
When I was seven, Liam insisted on taking me to play in a secluded cornfield.
I didn’t want to go into the cornfield, but he called me a coward, shook off my hand, and rushed in himself.
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