Chapter 4

Grandma showed up that afternoon carrying a canvas tote bag.

Before she could step through the doorway, she started shouting while kicking off her shoes.

"You cruel girl! Stealing your own brother's money, where is your conscience?!"

I kept my lips pressed tight, refusing to waste my breath on another useless explanation.

Leo rushed right over, laying it on thick and twisting the story to make himself the victim.

Grandma listened, her face filled with heartbreaking sympathy.

She reached into her pocket, pulled out a thick envelope of cash, and stuffed it into Leo's hands.

"My poor boy," she cooed. "You've suffered so much."

The envelope was bulging, packed with cash.

Grandma didn't spare me a single glance.

Leo squeezed the envelope, then jingled the stolen car keys in his other hand, beaming.

"Since I've got a ride now, dinner's on me! Let's go out to a restaurant!"

With no other choice, I followed the family out to the borrowed car.

Leo grabbed the steering wheel, his face practically glowing with smug pride.

When he pulled up to the restaurant entrance, everyone piled out onto the sidewalk.

Before we could even walk in, familiar laughter echoed nearby.

It was a group of Leo's college classmates.

Leo puffed out his chest and walked over, deliberately patting the hood of the car.

"Check it out. Brand new ride. I'm driving this bad boy everywhere on weekends now."

The guys looked the car up and down. One of them let out a sudden laugh.

"Come on, man. You're always crying broke at school, living off one meal a day and barely paying for course materials. Where'd you get car money? Isn't this your sister's?"

The smug look on Leo's face instantly froze.

"What do you mean my sister's?! This is my car!"

Seeing him snap, the guys dropped it, exchanging knowing glances before walking away.

Fuming with embarrassment, Leo turned around and stomped into the restaurant.

The second we sat down in the private room, my parents started on me again.

"Look at what you did! If you hadn't created all this drama, your brother wouldn't have been mocked like that!"

"Even if you didn't steal his money for the car, this whole embarrassing situation is still your fault!"

I was completely exhausted, mentally and physically.

After a quick, uncomfortable dinner, Grandma decided she wanted to take a walk to digest.

We strolled down the commercial street, passing an electronics store with the newest flagship smartphone displayed in the front window.

Grandma stopped dead in her tracks. She grabbed my wrist with an iron grip and dragged me straight inside.

"Come on! You are buying Leo a brand-new phone right here, right now!"

I tried to yank my arm back. "I'm not buying anything."

My parents immediately stepped up, blocking the exit so I couldn't walk out.

"Chloe, what's the big deal with buying a phone?" Dad commanded sternly. "You owe him this!"

Leo sprinted over to the display counter, grabbed the newest model right out of the stand, and clutched it to his chest.

"I want this one."

"I am not paying for it," I said firmly.

Grandma dropped straight onto the floor, throwing a full-blown tantrum.

"Oh, God help us! My own granddaughter stole thousands from her younger brother, and now she refuses to even buy him a replacement phone! She's terrorizing her own family!"

A crowd of shoppers quickly gathered outside the entrance, whispering and casting angry glances in my direction.

The store clerk stepped in, looking extremely uncomfortable.

"Miss, maybe you should just buy it? Please don't cause a scene, it's disturbing our customers."

Every drop of frustration I had swallowed down over the last two days snapped.

"I NEVER TOUCHED HIS MONEY!" I screamed.

I pulled up the campus account app on my phone and shoved the screen right into their faces.

"Look at this! Every single deposit record is right here!"

The ledger was crystal clear.

[$10,000 deposited at the start of every month, plain as day.]

My parents leaned in, staring at the screen. Their brows furrowed tightly.

"You really sent $10,000 every month?"

Grandma sneered, rolling her eyes.

"Who knows what tricks you did on that phone! Anyone can fake a screenshot these days!"

Grit tensing my jaw, I swiped down on the screen.

Beyond the deposit logs, the app also tracked automatically itemized debit charges.

My parents' eyes followed my finger down the detailed statement.

The very next second, their faces turned completely ghost-white.