Behind the White Walls

I got back to Lloyd's place at the stroke of twelve.Still, my phone was as quiet as a graveyard.The Lloyd house was all lit up, laughter and music spilling out into the night.I did not ask them why.If the maid had not opened the door, I might have just stayed out there forever."You look a mess! And your clothes are filthy."Janet did not pull any punches when she saw me.My mom, Harriet Yates, looked at me, her eyes wide with a mix of shock and disbelief."Zack, what happened to you? You're skin and bones!"I could not help but wonder how I went from a sturdy, well-fed heir to someone who looked like he barely tipped the scales at eighty pounds in just five short years.Dad's eyes were filled with a pang of sorrow as he quickly told the servant to whip up something for me to eat."We were going to come get you, but Walter wasn't feeling well, so we-" he trailed off.I got it. That was their way of saying sorry without actually saying it.They could ignore me, put me d

"Like what?" I shot back.Janet, the Lloyd's princess, always got her way. She'd got that thing for bikes, loved the rush, I guessed.I thought back to her accident, how I used to chew her out for taking those risks, always telling her to be careful.Every time I tried to warn Janet, she gave me that look like I was the most annoying person on the planet."Seriously? You're a big guy, and you're fussier than me? What do you even know about it? Riding bikes is all about the rush! You're not my brother, and even Walter doesn't bug me about it, so why do you?"I knew she was fed up with my lectures, but I could not help myself. Every time she was about to take off, I would repeat my warnings, driven by worry.However, all my nagging, all my care, just evaporated over those five years without a single sign that she heard my cries for help.Janet's face turned stormy in an instant."You're not scared I'll speed and crash?"I shook my head."I don't get it. Isn't the whole point of

I laughed at myself, a bitter chuckle.At the beginning, I really thought the Lloyd family had a soft spot for old times' sake when they took me back in.However, all they were after was my kidney, huh?Harriet had this look of guilt washing over her face, and I could not figure out why."Zack, you know you're like a son to me. Just say the word, and no one can make you do anything!" she insisted.Janet could not hold back, her voice rising in protest. "Mom, get it straight: who's your son now? Walter's going to die without that kidney!"Harriet's eyes blazed with a fierce protectiveness, like a wolf ready to defend her young."I know who my real son is, thank you very much!" she snapped back, and Janet was left speechless.Walter looked down, his eyes shadowed, lost in his own world.Nevin opened his mouth to chime in, but one look from Harriet and he clamped it shut.Harriet turned to me, her eyes filled with that desperate hope, as if my saying no would make her rise to my

"And what about Zack? Have you been honest with him?"Mom's hand flew across Dad's face with a slap, but he did not even flinch.Every question seemed to scream the same answer.Walter was Dad's secret son."That's it, I want a divorce!"Do you even realize what Zack's been through these last five years? It's all because of Walter!"Walter's the curse! No way we're letting this surgery happen!"Harriet was pounding on the operating room door like it was the only thing standing between her and justice."Stop, just stop everything!"Why should my son go through hell and back, and then give up his kidney to him?"Harriet's cries filled the air, her sanity slipping through her fingers like sand.In a flash, Nevin's hand struck, and Harriet crumpled to the floor, out cold.Janet watched, her mind a blank slate."Dad, is everything Mom said true? Have you lied to all of us?"Liliana, who did not say a word, turned as white as a ghost.She thought back to when she picked up the

"And about those troubled souls, that was all he was doing. Soon, I'll make sure he's the one in a mental hospital! He'll pay back everything you went through, tenfold!"From now on, you're the only son I have."Can you forgive me, just this once?"Her eyes, brimming with tears, pleaded with me.I stayed silent.To say my heart was not moved would be a lie.However, I did not need her anymore.The damage was done, and it could not be undone."Mom, this is the last time I'll call you 'mom.' Once I'm out of here, I want to go for a walk by myself, okay?"The doctors did not give me a timeline, but I knew my days were numbered.…After my parents split up, Dad handed over most of the company shares to me, leaving just a slice for Janet.Walter, well, Mom had him committed to a mental hospital.Dad confessed that Walter finally saw the error of his ways. His whole act at school was driven by pure envy.Then, he's walking down the same rough road I did."I failed him as a fat