Chapter 4

Before I could finish speaking in the video, Colin stormed over and yanked out the videotape, his face dark with fury. He yelled, "Scram!"

The boy was startled and immediately ran away, crying loudly.

Lance looked a bit guilty. He tried to explain himself. "Colin, I—"

However, Colin hurled the videotape at him. He was breathing heavily, his chest heaving with rage. "Lance, why did you bring her things back home? Are you out of your mind? She got Mom and Dad killed and made us spend ten years in prison! And you still can't let go of her?"

Lance pursed his lips, his face turning slightly pale.

Xavier sighed. There was only so much an outsider could say about family matters. He stepped forward and patted Colin on the shoulder.

He explained, "Colin, I still trust my instincts. If your sister really was as cruel as you say, and her grief in prison that day was all an act, she must be one hell of an actress. You have no idea. That day, she cried so hard that she actually coughed up blood."

My brothers froze, shock and confusion flickering in their eyes.

I trembled. That day, I had traded my life for one last chance to see them. I had no regrets.

Colin's expression stiffened as he desperately tried to smother the sudden panic rising in his chest. A suffocating silence settled over the room.

After a long silence, Colin looked up at Xavier. "You've always thought Brittany was a good person, haven't you?"

He laughed bitterly, ignoring the sharp ache in her chest. "It's no wonder she managed to fool you. She managed to fool us for over 20 years."

As he spoke, he walked into the room and took out the nine videotapes. "Go ahead and watch them. Once you've seen them, you'll know exactly what kind of person Brittany really is."

"Colin…" Lance murmured.

Colin said, "It's okay. We're leaving tomorrow anyway. We won't be coming back. Nothing here will matter to us anymore."

Xavier instinctively straightened up, his eyes fixed on the TV. The first videotape began to play.

"Colin, Lance, is life in prison miserable for you? Well, let me tell you something. I was the one who leaked the company's confidential information. Don't bother asking me why. It's because I hate you both! I despise you! In the Garcia family, I was nothing but an idiot!"

Xavier's eyes widened in shock.

Colin forced a painfully ugly smile. "You know how Lance and I were when we first showed up. With Mom and Dad dead, we had no desire to go on living. But her cruelty gave me my reason to keep living. I want to kill her with my own hands."

The second videotape began to play. "I sent both your wives to a slum overseas. Who knows if they'll even survive? By the time you get out of prison, everyone will have turned their backs on you. Don't even think about trying to find me. I'll be living a much happier life than you could ever imagine."

Colin squeezed his eyes shut, gripping the remote so tightly it nearly cracked. "See that? The woman you keep calling kind didn't even spare two innocent women. I can't even imagine what kind of life they've been forced to live all these years!"

Lance hung his head, his hands clenched into tight fists. He forced down the hatred inside him, along with the trace of sorrow he refused to acknowledge. "Xavier, don't speak up for her anymore. She doesn't deserve that."

"But…" Xavier paused, hesitating for a moment. "I still believe what I saw."

I crouched to the side, already sobbing uncontrollably. I thought, "No, none of that was true. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!"

However, I didn't know what else to do. All I could do was let the pain in my heart consume me.

Just then, the landlord's mischievous grandson came rushing in again. Before anyone could react, he pressed play on the last videotape, a cheeky grin on his face.

"Stop!" Colin yelled. He was about to rush over and turn it off when he heard my faint, weary sigh from the TV.

"Colin, Lance, if you're watching this, please go to Plot No. 19 at Linton Cemetery."

Everyone froze, their eyes turning instinctively toward the screen. On the TV, I gave a faint smile, bitterness filling my eyes. "That's where I'm buried."