Chapter 3 — The Girl in the Rain

“You need to leave this house.”

The words struck Evelyn before she had fully stepped into the dining room, halting her mid-stride as the weight of them settled in.

Her father stood near the head of the table, a newspaper clenched tightly in one hand, while fury radiated from every rigid line of his body. Across from him, her mother sat pale and exhausted, as though the situation had drained whatever strength she had left. Amelia remained by the window in her wheelchair, quiet and composed.

Charlie stood behind Amelia with one hand resting on the back of her chair, as though that space already belonged to him, as though he had already chosen where his future lay.

Evelyn lowered her bag slowly onto the floor, her fingers loosening around the handle. “What happened now?” she asked.

Her father didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he threw the newspaper onto the table with enough force to make it slide toward her. The front page was impossible to ignore.

HEIRESS PARALYZED BY JEALOUS SISTER.

Beneath the headline, a photograph captured Amelia in a wheelchair, tears streaking down her face while Charlie shielded her from a crowd of reporters outside the hospital.

Evelyn barely appeared in the image at all; only the edge of her face was visible, blurred and shadowed in a way that turned her into something unrecognizable, something easy to hate.

“Reporters are surrounding the company,” her father snapped. “Investors are already asking questions, and our family name is being dragged through the mud because of you.”

Evelyn stared at the article, her expression dull with disbelief.

The media thrived on stories like this, stories that were simple, dramatic, and easy to consume. A beautiful younger sister. A cruel older one. A powerful family fractured by tragedy. It was the kind of narrative people devoured without ever questioning.

“She didn’t deny the story,” Evelyn said quietly.

Amelia’s gaze dropped at once, her fingers tightening slightly in her lap. “I was scared…” she murmured.

Charlie’s voice cut through the room before Evelyn could respond. “She doesn’t owe you protection after what you did.”

Evelyn turned her head and looked at him properly, really looked at him for the first time since she walked in. This was the man she had once believed in completely, the man she had trusted without question.

Now, she wondered if loving him had always been a slow form of self-destruction. “You believe everything she says,” Evelyn said under her breath.

His expression hardened immediately. “Because Amelia doesn’t lie.”

The irony pressed painfully against Evelyn’s chest, almost enough to make her laugh, but the sound never came.

Her father spoke again before the silence could stretch any further. “You’ll move into the east guesthouse until this scandal dies down.”

Evelyn blinked, absorbing the words with a strange sense of detachment.

The east guesthouse was separate from the main estate, a place reserved for temporary staff or distant relatives who never stayed long enough to matter. “You’re banishing me?” she asked.

Her mother finally found her voice, though she still couldn’t meet Evelyn’s eyes. “It’s only temporary.”

The word echoed in Evelyn’s mind with bitter familiarity. Temporary had defined her entire life: temporary neglect, temporary injustice, temporary loneliness, and yet nothing had ever changed.

Charlie shifted slightly when Amelia moved in her chair. “Are you tired?” he asked, his voice softening in a way it never did for Evelyn.

Amelia nodded faintly. “My legs hurt today.”

Without hesitation, Charlie crouched beside her and adjusted the blanket over her knees. “I’ll take you upstairs.”

Evelyn turned her gaze away before the sight could settle too deeply. The tenderness in his movements, the instinctive care it all pressed against something raw inside her chest.

As he wheeled Amelia toward the staircase, Amelia glanced back over her shoulder. Their eyes met briefly, and a faint smile curved her lips.

It was subtle enough that no one else would notice, but Evelyn did.

The east guesthouse carried the stale scent of dust and old wood, as though it had been left untouched for years. Rain lashed against the windows, the sound filling the quiet space as Evelyn stood alone in the center of the dim room.

Most of the furniture was draped in white sheets, giving the place the hollow, abandoned feeling of somewhere long forgotten. It suited her situation perfectly.

She sat on the edge of the bed and stared at her suitcase, her thoughts circling without direction. How had everything unraveled so quickly?

One accident. One lie, and now she had become the villain in everyone else’s story.

Her phone buzzed sharply, dragging her out of her thoughts. The screen displayed an unknown number.

The moment she answered, a woman’s voice erupted through the speaker, thick with fury. “You evil bitch!”

Evelyn instinctively pulled the phone away from her ear. “You should’ve died instead of your sister!”

The line went dead, only for another call to come through immediately. Then another. And another, the pattern became clear within seconds: death threats. Insults. Voicemails filled with venom.

Someone had leaked her number.

Her breathing grew uneven as the messages flooded in faster than she could process them. Monster. Psycho. Murderer. Her hands trembled, but she forced herself to stay still, refusing to let the tears that burned her eyes fall.

Crying had never changed anything.

A sudden, heavy knock echoed through the guesthouse, cutting through the noise of the storm. Evelyn stiffened. The knocking came again, louder this time, more insistent.

Her stomach twisted as she stood and made her way toward the door. When she opened it, a gust of cold rain swept inside.

Charlie stood on the other side, soaked through, his dark coat clinging to him as water dripped onto the wooden floor.

Evelyn’s pulse betrayed her, quickening despite everything. “What do you want?” she asked.

His gaze swept over the interior of the guesthouse briefly, something unreadable flickering in his eyes before it vanished. “You leaked private hospital information,” he said.

Evelyn stared at him, disbelief sharpening her expression. “What?”

“Someone anonymously sent Amelia’s medical records to the press.”

A bitter laugh escaped her. “And you think that was me?”

Charlie stepped inside without waiting for permission, rain trailing behind him. “You’re the only one who benefits from damaging her image.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it?”

The accusation in his voice cut deeper than she expected.

Evelyn folded her arms tightly. “You already decided I’m guilty before you even asked.”

“Then tell me the truth.”

“I have been telling you the truth.”

His voice dropped, quieter but far more dangerous. “Then explain why you hate her this much.”

The question settled heavily between them because the truth was far more complicated than that.

Evelyn didn’t hate Amelia.

Even now, after everything, she couldn’t bring herself to. “You really want to know?” she asked softly.

Charlie said nothing, but his silence was enough. “She spent our entire childhood making sure no one ever loved me more than her.”

Something flickered across his face, not belief, but surprise.

Evelyn let out a hollow laugh. “You think she’s kind because that’s what she shows you.”

“That’s enough.”

“She lies to you constantly.”

His eyes hardened. “You’re obsessed.”

The word hit her harder than anything else he had said.

Obsessed?

Was that truly how he saw her?

“She manipulated you after the river incident,” Evelyn said suddenly.

Charlie froze. “What did you say?”

For a moment, the truth hovered dangerously close to the surface. I saved you. Not her.

But fear held it back. If she spoke and he refused to believe her, if he accused her of trying to take Amelia’s place, whatever remained of her dignity would be gone. “It doesn’t matter anymore,” she said, looking away.

Charlie grabbed her wrist, not violently, but firmly enough to stop her. “Finish what you started.”

The contact sent an unwanted spark through her, a reminder of something she wished she could erase. “You’re hurting me,” she whispered.

He released her immediately. His gaze dropped briefly to the bruising on her wrist, something unreadable passing through his expression before it disappeared.

“You’re hiding something,” he said.

Before she could respond, his phone rang.

Amelia, of course.

He answered without hesitation. “What happened?”

The shift in his voice was immediate, sharp concern replacing everything else.

Evelyn looked away.

She already knew how this would end. “I’m coming,” he said, before ending the call.

“What happened?” she asked despite herself.

“Amelia collapsed.”

A cold dread settled in her chest. Not concern something more instinctive, more self-preserving, because she knew how this would be twisted.

Charlie paused at the door, glancing back at her. “If she’s harmed because of this stress…”

He didn’t finish, but he didn’t need to. The threat lingered long after he stepped back into the rain.

By the time Evelyn reached the main house, chaos had already taken over.

Doctors moved quickly through the halls, her mother’s sobs echoed near the staircase, and staff whispered anxiously in the corners.

Charlie stood outside Amelia’s bedroom, his expression tight with barely contained anger. The moment he saw Evelyn, his gaze turned ice-cold. “What did you say to her?”

Evelyn stopped. “What?”

“She had a panic attack after you upset her.”

Disbelief flared. “She’s the one who called you.”

Charlie took a step closer, his movements slow and deliberate. “You think this is a game?”

“No,” Evelyn shot back. “I think she’s manipulating you.”

The hallway fell silent.

Charlie’s voice dropped. “You really are unbelievable.”

Before she could respond, Amelia’s weak voice drifted from inside. “Charlie…”

He turned immediately.

The doctor stepped out moments later. “Her condition is unstable. Stress could worsen the nerve damage.”

Evelyn saw the exact moment fear took hold of Charlie. Real fear, and in that instant, something became painfully clear. This wasn’t just love; he needed Amelia, which meant anyone who threatened her would become his enemy.

Especially Evelyn.

“She keeps saying she’s afraid of her sister,” the doctor added.

That was enough.

Charlie turned back, his expression colder than she had ever seen. “If anything happens to her…

Evelyn swallowed. “You’ll what?”

His answer came quietly.

“I’ll make sure you lose everything.”

For the first time since the accident, Evelyn believed him.

Later that night, Amelia opened her eyes in the dark. The fragile act vanished instantly.

Charlie sat beside her, exhaustion evident in his posture. “You should rest,” he murmured.

She studied him. “You still trust me, right?”

He frowned. “Why wouldn’t I?”

Amelia hesitated just enough to seem vulnerable. “Evelyn looked at me strangely earlier.”

His expression hardened. “She’s trying to manipulate you.”

Relief settled quietly within her. She reached for his hand. “You won’t leave me alone, will you?”

“Never,” he said.

She smiled faintly.

But once he left the room, the softness disappeared. Her expression turned cold, calculating. She reached beneath the mattress and pulled out an old photograph. The river.

Charlie unconscious.

Evelyn, beside him, was covered in blood and mud.

Amelia stared at it for a long moment before slowly tearing Evelyn out of the image.