Chapter 3

Jean reached out and brushed her fingers against my cold face.

She tore into me, her voice cracking, “Why did I give birth to a moronic thing like you? Tanner is still young. What’s wrong with putting him first? Why must you be so fragile about the whole thing and unalive yourself?”

I smiled wryly to myself.

For the past eighteen years, I had given way to Tanner in everything, whether it was resources or recognition.

It didn’t make sense to me that I should surrender my only chance at changing my destiny to Tanner because Jean said so.

“Mom, I wish I could bring home a college graduate as your daughter-in-law, but my grades aren't good enough for that.

“I’m so jealous of Graham. Sure, he’s not a great son to you, but he excels in school. He really makes you proud.

“I’m not like him. I’m just a loser.

“I don’t see the point in going on.”

With her heart going out to Tanner, Jean made up her mind right there and then to let him take my place at college. From that moment on, the course of our lives was forever changed.

…

Jean decided to bury my body. Acting all on her own, she transported my corpse out of the cellar to the living room.

In our little village, it was customary to cover the dead until they were probably taken care of.

She grabbed my old blanket and threw it over my body.

Jean barely had two seconds to sit and catch her breath when a suited man approached.

“Excuse me, ma’am. Is this where Graham Blue lives?”

Jean asked warily, “Who are you? What business do you have with Graham?”

“Don’t be alarmed. I’m here on behalf of my boss. The boy has a heart of gold. His mother suffered from kidney failure a year ago and didn’t have money for the treatment, so Graham deliberately had his left thumb sliced off with the factory machine. The boss offered him 200 grand as compensation, but he refused, saying that 150 grand was enough. The boss asked around and realized that the boy did it to save his mother.

“The boss also came from a single-parent household, so he has mad respect for tight-knit families. When he heard that Graham got into college, he sent me here to offer him sponsorship for tuition and living expenses.”

Jean was taken aback. “Didn’t he lose his left thumb from getting into a fight?”

“Who told you that? The surveillance camera in the factory caught Graham putting his thumb into the cutting machine, and blood got all over the face of the worker standing right in front of him. There’s no faking that.”

It was during the winter break of sophomore year in high school when Jean was diagnosed with kidney failure out of the blue.

Since the family was short on funds, I came up with a desperate idea.

I took up a seasonal job at the factory and orchestrated a workplace injury to get a payout.

Jean was lost in her thoughts. After weighing her options, she gave the man Tanner’s number.

“He’s gone off to college. You can reach him at this number.

“Oh, he has legally changed his name. He goes by Tanner Blue now.”

My chest tightened as emotions washed over me.

Jean was afraid Tanner might not be comfortable going by my name after replacing me at college.

Consequently, she had our names swapped early on.

Tanner could then carry on his college life under his own identity.

Jean sure did everything she could for Tanner.

Once the man was gone, Jean called Tanner to get their story straight.

The call ended.

After much silence, Jean let out a scoff.

“Graham, you’re cruel to hide the truth from me. I bet you were waiting for the day to gaslight me, so I could never live in peace again.”

I sighed, feeling more drained than ever.

In fact, I had already explained that I lost my thumb at my job at the factory, and the payment was to cover the hospital bills.

However, the moment Tanner opened his mouth, Jean determined that I had gotten my thumb chopped off in a street fight.

Jean was confident that the medical insurance had taken care of the astronomical medical expenses.

She mumbled to herself, as if looking for excuses to justify her choices.

“Even though you paid for the hospital bills, that was your responsibility as a member of this family. Tanner and I don’t owe you anything.

“Besides, you were wrong to cheat the factory out of the money. Tanner didn’t go around telling everyone he donated a kidney to me, and that’s real devotion. There’s no comparison between you two. Tanner rightfully deserves the financial aid.”