Chapter 5

Less than ten minutes after the statement was published by the Wellington Group, my mom shared the link in our family group chat.

Dad replied with a single word: [Good.]

Claire told the public relations department to pay to get it trending. She wanted to establish Ryan as the family's son as quickly as possible. Meanwhile, Natalie shared a preview of the wedding.

I was the only one who stayed silent. Nobody thought that was strange.

No matter how badly they had treated me in the past, I had always come home for dinner. I kept fixing Claire's project problems and stayed at my parents' side when they were sick.

They were used to it.

"Leon might get angry, but he would never leave."

At dawn, Dad sent me a client handoff form through the family chat: [Finish organizing this in three days. Ryan's taking over the project, so don't hold anything back.]

Claire messaged me right after my dad talked with me: [Come back to the office this afternoon. Ryan doesn't know some of the clients well. Go with him when he meets them.]

Natalie sent me the wedding guest list: [Remove your friends, then redo the seating chart the way Ryan wants it and send it back before eleven.]

I did not reply to any of them.

Soon, my bedroom door swung open.

Mom came in and took the only blanket off my bed. "Ryan was up half the night crying about how hard his mattress is. You'll have to do without this for now."

As she reached the door, she tossed a set of keys onto the bed beside me.

"The alteration for his suit is finished. Pick it up this afternoon. Come home early to cook dinner. Ryan wants your fish fillet with the tangy glaze."

I looked at the keys and said, "He already got his memory back."

Mom paused.

"Does getting his memory back mean he doesn't need to eat? Leon, don't think we don't know what's going through your head. You think we're all siding with Ryan, so you're deliberately giving us a hard time."

She sighed gently, sounding almost patient.

"Once you calm down, you'll understand that only family will always have a place for you."

After she closed the door, I heard Ryan laughing downstairs.

The media were coming to film his first interview since recovering his memory.

Dad had contacted the reporters for him.

Claire had prepared the project documents.

Natalie was driving him there herself.

As they left, Ryan took Mom's arm and smiled. "Will Leon really make glazed fish fillet tonight?"

Mom answered for me. "He's stubborn, but he has never broken a promise to you."

Their car drove out of the courtyard.

Not one of them came upstairs to check on me. Not one of them knew I had already packed my bags. I handed copies of my client documents to my lawyer, Grant Sanders, instead of sending them to Claire.

That was my work. Ryan didn't get to use it to secure his position at the company.

I laid out the access card for the residence, my employee badge, and the keys to the marital house Natalie and I had planned to share. I also placed my engagement ring and the keys for collecting Ryan's suit on the living room's coffee table.

The front door closed quietly behind me. I pulled my suitcase through the courtyard without looking back.

My phone kept ringing on the way to the airport. I switched off all message notifications.

As the plane was taking off along the runway, the lights outside stretched into blurred lines.

When the plane broke through the clouds, every bond to my family sank into the darkness with those distant lights.