Chapter 3

I floated to the window and watched the medical vehicle drive away with its lights flashing. No one knew I was already gone.

My phone lit up in my room. A message from my mentor. "Nova, you did not come to training today. Are you sick? Take care of yourself."

Sunlight came through the high window and fell on my worktable. A half-finished design was still spread out there. I had planned to pick up new materials today. I did not need them anymore.

My spirit followed my family to the medical center.

In the treatment room, Iris was given a sedative and finally calmed down. The healer checked her eyes. "Just a stress spike. No real frenzy. She should be fine after a night of rest."

"Thank the Moon." My mother fell into a chair and covered her face. My father put his hand on her shoulder and patted it twice. "It is okay. Iris will be fine."

I stood in front of them and wanted to scream. "Look at me! I am dead! Your older daughter is dead!"

But my voice could not reach the living world.

A nurse came in. "Do you want to register her for observation?"

"Yes." My father stood up right away. "What do we need to do?"

The nurse wrote on her pad. "Patient name is Iris Vance?"

"Yes."

"And the other one?" The nurse looked up. "The medics said there was another young person hurt at the scene."

My mother and father looked at each other. "Oh, you mean Nova?" My mother waved her hand. Her voice was not quite sure. "She is fine. She just bumped herself. She is resting at home."

The nurse nodded and did not ask again.

Iris turned on the bed and made a soft sound. My mother leaned in right away. "What is it? Does something hurt?"

"Nova…" Iris's voice was weak and small. "Nova wants to hurt me."

"Do not be scared. Mama is here." My mother stroked her hair, her voice soft as water. "Nova just knocked over the shelf by accident. She did not mean it."

"No!" Iris's voice got sharp and her claws started to darken again. "She meant it! She hates me! She always says I am dead weight and one day I will destroy this whole family!"

Her breathing got fast. The numbers on the monitor jumped up. The healer rushed in again.

I drifted into the corner and watched.

All my life, every time Iris cried out and pointed at me, my parents never really looked at me to check. They were always too busy calming her down.

“You know how she gets. Just let her have this one.”

“She is not herself when she is like this. You understand, right?”

“You are the older one. You are steady. You can take it.”

Even now, with me dead on the floor, their attention was still on her. It had always been on her.

My father's phone rang. He walked into the hallway to answer it. "Hello? Yes, this is Vance. What?"

His voice changed suddenly, like something had cracked open inside him.

"No… that is not possible." His voice was shaking. "Are you sure it is our house?"

The investigator on the other end spoke in a calm, even voice. "The initial report shows a young female. Cause of death appears to be internal bleeding from a ruptured organ. Estimated time of death is over three hours ago. Based on the scene and family information, we believe the deceased is your older daughter, Nova Vance."