Chapter 3

The sounds of Rebecca's sobs echoed from the next room at around 2:00 am. She cried about being scared and in pain.

I could vaguely hear Colin comforting Rebecca. "It's alright. I'm here. I'm right here…"

Silence returned to the hallway about 40 minutes later.

Colin didn't return to the room.

I lay on the bed and stared up at the pitch-black ceiling. I turned on my side and grabbed my phone, navigating to Rebecca's secret social media account.

Her latest update was last night at 11:00 pm.

She had been flirting with a man with the username, "ACupOfBlackCoffee", in the comments. When he sent her a kissing emoji, she replied with a blushing one.

Rebecca had apparently been too scared to fall asleep last night at 11:00 pm.

I took a screenshot of their interaction and saved it to the album.

…

The next morning, Colin discussed Saturday's arrangements during breakfast.

"St. Grace Hospital has an inpatient observation program. The doctor mentioned that he can conduct a short-term evaluation on Becca. She just has to be hospitalized for a couple days."

He looked at Rebecca and asked, "What do you think, Becca?"

Rebecca placed her spoon down. Her lashes fluttered as she leaned her head against his shoulder and murmured softly, "Are there going to be a lot of strangers there, Colin?"

Colin covered the back of her hand with his and answered, "I'll stand guard by your door the entire time. I won't let anyone get close to you."

Rebecca smiled at him upon hearing his words. "I won't be scared as long as you're there."

I ate a spoonful of soup and calmly said, "Great. The two of you can go to the hospital on Saturday. I'll stay home and tidy up the house."

I returned to the study, closed the door, and sent a message to a certain number. "Can we meet at the third floor of St. Grace Hospital on Saturday afternoon?"

"The time and location is up to you," they replied instantly.

…

On Saturday morning, Colin crouched down and packed Rebecca's suitcase for her. He stacked each garment carefully, making sure that each piece was wrinkle-free. He packed her pajamas, her bedroom slippers, her toiletries, and the body shampoo that she always used.

I stood by the door and watched him for a moment before asking, "Do you need any help?"

"No need," he answered without looking up. "I know what she needs."

Three years ago, Rebecca only had a single suitcase with her when she moved in with us.

Three years later, her belongings took up half the space of our home.

Her things could be found in the closet in the master bedroom and the racks in the bathroom. Her bottles of vitamins sat on the coffee table in the living room.

The only things that were left for me in my own home were the 64-square-feet study, a foldable bed, and a plastic cup.

Rebecca came out of her room after she put on her shoes. When she walked past me, she tugged on my sleeve gently and murmured, "Natalie."

Her lashes cast long shadows down her cheeks. Her eyes slowly reddened. Her voice sounded like it had been dipped in honey when she said, "I'm sorry for causing so much trouble for you in the last three years."

"It was no trouble at all. Just focus on getting better," I replied, patting the back of her hand with a smile.

The door clicked shut behind them.

Right before they left, Colin said that he would most likely be home late and asked me not to wait for him.

I waved at him. Seconds after the door closed, the smile on my face melted away.

I went to Rebecca's room and lifted her pillow. The strip of birth control pills were still there.

I flipped the strip around and held it toward the light that was streaming through the window. The last pill was removed three days ago.

I snapped a photo of it and sent it to Damien, asking, "Including the other evidence that I sent you the other day, is this enough?"

"Yes."

I lowered my head and glanced at the thin wedding band around my ring finger. I hadn't taken it off even once after putting it on three years ago.

I pinched the ring between my fingers and spun it around my finger once.

I didn't take it off. Instead, I put on a clean coat, grabbed my bag, and left the house. I also sent a message to Mom while I was on my way out.

"Might be home late tonight, Mom. Don't call me."

"Okay," Mom replied before adding, "I left some oranges in your bag. Eat them if you're hungry."

…

I hailed a cab and headed for St. Grace Hospital.

Only a few rooms in the VIP inpatient department were lit up. The door of the room that Colin had registered for was left ajar.

I could hear Rebecca laughing. "Stop messing around, Colin. It tickles…"

"You're the one who should stop messing around," Colin replied in a deep voice that was laced with mirth.

I slipped my hand into my bag as I stood outside the door. I rummaged around for my phone, pulled it out, and started recording. I then pushed open the door.

Rebecca was sitting cross-legged on the bed, wearing my silk camisole that had gone missing six months ago.

The camisole was a deep, wine red with a plunging neckline. Her arms were wrapped around Colin's neck as she pressed her face to his chin. The two of them were extremely close to each other.

Rebecca's hands froze in midair when she heard the door creak open.

The two of them turned toward the door in unison.

Colin's face twisted when he saw me standing at the door with my phone. He let go of Rebecca, took a step backward, and straightened his back.

"You! What are you doing here?"

Rebecca shrank back against the pillows. Tears streamed down her face as her shoulders slumped.

"It's not what you think, Natalie," she said. "I… I just had a nightmare. Colin was comforting me…"

It was impossible that anyone would believe her flimsy excuse. Why would she need her adopted brother to comfort her in a VIP hospital room while wearing her sister-in-law's silk camisole? On top of that, her arms had been wrapped around his neck.

Colin stepped in front of Rebecca and shielded her behind him.

"What do you think you're doing?" he roared. "We were just doing some desensitization exercises. The doctor said that close contact can help her get over her phobia and help her develop a sense of security around men. Stop overthinking things. Why do you feel the need to record us?"

I kept my phone raised and continued recording Colin and Rebecca. My hands didn't shake at all.

I ignored his words and used my free left hand to pull out a black phone from the innermost compartment of my bag.

It was Colin's old phone that he had accidentally left on the shoe cabinet earlier that morning. The password was Rebecca's birthday, and he hadn't changed it even once in the last three years.

I tapped on one of the apps and typed, "Home service: Sports rehabilitation", in the search bar, prompting eight male personal trainer profiles to appear. All of them were over six feet tall.

I selected all of them before typing in the address.

"Room VIP-03, 3rd Floor, St. Grace Hospital."

I then used Colin's personal card to pay for their services.

Colin still had no idea what was going on.

Meanwhile, Rebecca's face twisted when she caught a glimpse of the screen. The color drained from her face, but she didn't look pale because she was ill. Instead, she looked terrified. Her voice also changed. It no longer sounded timid, and her words didn't tremble.

"What are you doing?" she shrieked.

Colin snatched the phone from me. His eyes widened when he glanced at the screen.

"Have you lost your mind, Natalie?" he shouted.

I took the phone back from Colin and slipped it into my bag. I then leaned against the doorframe and smiled at them, using the same smile that I always gave the patients at the community health center whenever I asked them about their condition.

"Just Colin is far from enough if Rebecca wants to undergo desensitization exercises. I'll foot the bill today. I hired eight trainers to help you. The treatment will definitely be effective. It's been three years. I'm determined to cure you of your phobia today."

Colin tried to cancel the order, looking like a madman. Unfortunately, there was no way to cancel the order once it had been placed.