Chapter 2

Just like that, the homecoming banquet I'd been looking forward to for three years ended in less than an hour.

When I returned to the Holmes residence, Adeline was leaning back on the couch, sipping water.

Mom sat beside her as she gently patted her back, while all three of my brothers hovered around her as though she'd just come out of the emergency room.

I'd just changed my shoes when Mom called out to me. "Sylvia, come over here and apologize to Adeline."

I walked over and replied, "What exactly am I apologizing for?"

Mom's hand stilled at my words. Marcus let out a cold scoff. "Do you really need someone to spell it out for you?" he snapped.

"Yes, I do. Otherwise, I might end up apologizing for the wrong thing. Is it because I asked her why she took my seat? Or because I didn't offer to give it up for her?" I asked, holding his gaze.

Marcus shot to his feet. "There you go again. You always have to pick apart every single word we say until you make things awkward for everyone in the family."

"Whoever says something unreasonable should be the one feeling awkward. What's wrong with that?" I questioned.

"Family isn't about who's right or wrong."

"Then what is it about?"

"It's about love! Feelings!" he argued.

I kept my gaze on Marcus and asked, "I've been back for three years. You were there for all three of her birthdays, but never once for mine.

"So, when you talk about love, do you mean the love all of you have for Adeline?"

Marcus' face flushed bright red. "I had something going on back then."

I started counting them off on my fingers. "The first time, you took Adeline to a concert. The second, she'd had a fight with a friend. The third, her cat wouldn't eat.

"Which of those had anything to do with you?"

He had nothing to say to that.

Adeline set down her glass and said softly, "You sure remember everything, don't you?"

"Of course. After all, my birthday only comes once a year," I replied.

A flicker of discomfort crossed Mom's face. "Sylvia, just because we used to spend more time with Adeline doesn't mean you need to bring up every little thing from the past."

"That's hardly in the past. My last birthday was two months ago."

Silence settled over the living room once more. Unable to stand it anymore, Lucian pushed a box toward me. "The homecoming banquet didn't go as planned, so this is for you."

I opened the box to find a pearl necklace inside.

Adeline's expression changed as her hand instinctively flew to the emerald pendant hanging around her neck.

I'd seen the pendant before.

The first time Mom came to see me, she'd shown me a photo of it and said, "The Holmes family had this made especially for you. You went missing when you were little, so I've kept it safe for you all these years."

I pointed at the pendant around Adeline's neck. "Why does she have my pendant?"

"Adeline got seriously ill when she was 18 years old. I wanted her to have something for comfort, so I let her wear it for the time being," Mom quickly explained.

"And how long has it been since then?"

"It's… It's been three years."

"So, when is she giving it back?" I questioned.

Adeline immediately reached to take it off when Mom stopped her. "It's just a pendant, Sylvia. If you like it, I'll buy you another one."

"I don't need another pendant. What I'm asking is, why did you give her something you said you'd save for me?"

Her eyes reddened. "At the time, I thought we'd never find you."

"But you have now. So, why hasn't she given it back?" I asked as I held her gaze.

Tears spilled from Adeline's eyes. "I'll give it back to Sylvia," she choked out.

Mom stopped her immediately. "I was the one who gave this to you. You don't have to return it."

Nodding, I set the pearl necklace back on the table. "I get it now."

My response seemed to catch Mom off guard. "What do you mean?"

"You never really meant to save that pendant for me, and this necklace isn't compensation either.

"You just want me to accept something new so that I'll stop asking what happened to the things that were supposed to be mine," I said.

Dad just so happened to walk in as I finished speaking. Hearing my last sentence, he frowned. "What's all this about now?"

"Sylvia's insisting that Adeline give her the pendant she's wearing," Marcus immediately cut in.

"That's not what I said," I corrected Marcus. "I was only trying to confirm whether it belongs to me. If it doesn't, I don't want it. If it does, then it should be returned to its rightful owner. Is that really so hard to understand?"

There was a pause before Dad spoke up again. "We can talk about the pendant another time. Tomorrow, we'll get your family registry sorted out."

I looked at him.

I'd been back with the Holmes family for three years, yet my registration was still tied to my old family back in the small town where I'd grown up.

Every time I brought it up, they claimed the paperwork was complicated.

Adeline chuckled softly. "After all this time, you're finally going to be added to the family registry."

I turned my gaze to her. "What do you mean 'finally'?"

Her smile faded at my words. "I'm just happy for you."

"But the way you said it tells me that you knew it'd been delayed for a long time. Do you know why it took so long?"

She quickly avoided my gaze.

"All of us will be going tomorrow," Mom immediately cut in.

"By that, do you mean Dad, Mom, and all three of my brothers?" I confirmed.

Lucian nodded in response. "We'll all be there," he replied.

Marcus leaned back against the couch, his tone impatient. "We're just adding you to the family registry. Do you really have to name every single one of us?"

"Yes, I do. I don't want anyone suddenly coming down with a stomachache, feeling dizzy, or having a cat that refuses to eat tomorrow." I met each of their gazes in turn.

Adeline's face went pale at my words.

"That won't happen. This time, no one's leaving," Mom promised as she took my hand.