Chapter 4

Melinda's face went pale with fear. "Ms. Ashley, why are you here?"

I looked toward the person standing in the doorway. She was wearing a silk nightdress, her hair smooth and neatly done. She looked like she was living a pampered life, down to the last detail.

I glanced down at myself. All I had on was a five-dollar plain cotton T-shirt. My hair was dry and split at the ends, while my arms were thin and twig-like. Compared to the socialite in front of me, I didn't look like part of the Reid family at all.

Just as I was thinking that, she suddenly let out a cold laugh and slapped Melinda across the face. "This is my house. Since when do I need your permission to walk around? You're just a maid. Who do you think you are, talking to me like that?"

She was arrogant and overbearing, showing none of the fragility she usually displayed around the Reids.

I caught a flicker of malice in her eyes, as if she were about to strike again. I instinctively stepped in front of Melinda.

She paused before flashing me a taunting smile. "Summer, looks like you still don't understand your place in this house."

She picked up a bowl nearby and smashed it hard on the floor. The sharp sound echoed clearly through the quiet night.

The moment it sounded like someone was coming downstairs, the same girl who had been acting so high and mighty suddenly smacked herself hard across the face and dropped to the floor. Tears came on cue, and when she opened her mouth again, her voice shook with the kind of practiced desperation you'd expect from a seasoned actress.

"Summer, why did you hit me?"

The footsteps outside sped up.

The same three people I'd seen that afternoon appeared at the door of the dark room again, and once more, they formed a shield around Ashley.

"Ash, are you okay? What happened?"

Ashley clutched her cheek and whimpered, "I thought Summer must be starving since she skipped dinner, so I brought her something to eat. But when I opened the door, Melinda was already here. They said I was gloating and that I shouldn't even be in the Reid residence.

"Dad, Mom, Liam, if I go back to the countryside, will Summer stop being mad at me?"

Seeing her fearful expression, my parents immediately flared with anger. "Summer, you really are crazy! How dare you lay a hand on Ash!"

They were furious, as if I'd committed some unforgivable crime.

Melinda stepped in front of me, trying to explain, "It's not like that. I'm the one who brought the oatmeal!"

Liam let out a cold laugh. "Oh? So you're saying Ash is lying?

"Melinda, we only hired you because you begged us to let you see Ash. We let you in because you're her biological mother. Now, it's clear why Summer turned out this way, always lying and stirring up trouble. It must've been your influence!"

I looked at Melinda, and that strange familiarity I felt earlier finally made sense. She was once my mother.

Melinda stayed in front of me. She wasn't particularly broad-shouldered, but it felt like she was trying to shield the entire sky above me.

"Sunny's a good child. She's never done anything wrong. It's all of you who are blind, even after she's done so much for you!

"Mrs. Reid, Sunny's the one who gets up before dawn to prepare the medicine you take for your headaches every single day. Don't you know that?

"Mr. Bobby, Sunny learned massage techniques just to ease your stress whenever you needed it. Have you forgotten?

"And Mr. Liam, every time your stomach problems flare up, who's the one who takes care of you? It's always Sunny! She's just a young lady!"

As Melinda listed every detail, my so-called family froze for a moment, as if they were actually trying to remember whether I had done all that for them.

Seeing their hesitation, Ashley panicked.

"If it weren't for me, Summer wouldn't have been ignored by everyone. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have come back at all! She's so perfect that even my biological mother is on her side. Of course, you all should love her more."

Tears streamed down her face as she grabbed a shard of broken porcelain and stumbled upstairs, crying. Her movements looked desperate, like she might actually hurt herself.

The Reids went into a frenzy.

Sapphire turned to Melinda with fury. "How heartless can you be? All you care about is Summer, even though Ash is your own daughter! You're just a maid. Who do you think you are, meddling in the Reid family's business? Pack your things and get out!"