Chapter 05

Estelle's POV

"Mrs. Silverthorn gave us the instructions herself."

Salome said it quietly, but in that silent hall, every single person heard it.

My father turned slowly to look at my mother.

Salome held her tablet tighter and kept going. "When Miss Estelle first came home, Mrs. Silverthorn told us not to give her the money directly. She said Miss Estelle grew up in a poor village and might not know how to handle so much money. She was afraid Miss Estelle might waste it, or pick up bad habits from... from the people she grew up around."

My cheeks burned. The people I grew up around. My grandmother, who sewed my dress by hand. My neighbors, who shared their last cup of rice with me.

"So Mrs. Silverthorn told us to send Miss Estelle's allowance to Miss Delilah's account instead," Salome said. "Miss Delilah was supposed to keep it safe and give Miss Estelle whatever she needed."

She paused.

"And Mrs. Silverthorn also asked us to double Miss Delilah's own allowance. She was worried Miss Delilah would feel sad and left out now that the real daughter was back. So Miss Delilah has been getting ten thousand dollars a month, plus Miss Estelle's five thousand."

A woman in a blue gown gasped and covered her mouth.

"Benedict," an old man near the fountain said slowly, "please tell me you knew about this."

My father said nothing. His face had gone pale.

"Really?" someone else whispered, loud enough to carry. "The Silverthorns are billionaires, and their own daughter didn't get a single cent?"

"No wonder she's wearing that old dress."

---

Cassius stepped in front of me, his face tight.

"Fine," he said. "Maybe you didn't get anything from the family account. But Mom and Dad still would have given you something. Pocket money. Gifts. Something."

I looked straight into his eyes.

"They never gave me anything," I said. "Not one cent. Not one gift. Not even a birthday card."

He opened his mouth.

"Go ahead," I said. "Ask them. They're your parents. I'm sure you'll believe them over me."

Cassius turned around.

"Mom? Dad?" His voice was not so sure anymore. "How much did you give her?"

My father cleared his throat and looked down at the floor. "I... I thought she was getting money from the family account. So I didn't think..."

"Me too!" my mother said quickly. "I thought the account was taking care of everything!"

"But Mom," Cassius said, "Salome just said you were the one who..."

"I told them to give it to Delilah to keep for her!" my mother cried. "I thought Delilah was passing it to her!"

She rushed toward me in her long silver gown. Her eyes were wet. She reached for my hands.

"Estelle, sweetheart, why didn't you say anything? You should have told us you had no money. Mommy would have given you anything you wanted. All you had to do was ask."

I pulled my hands away.

Ask? I did ask. I asked for help the night Lilith fell. I asked them to believe me. I begged. And they sent me to a place where they beat me until I bled.

"Yes, yes," my mother said, wiping her eyes. "It's my fault. All my fault. I didn't see that you were struggling. But Estelle, listen to me. Mommy loves you just as much as she loves Delilah. Do you understand? Just as much."

Just as much.

I almost laughed.

"You're my mother," I said. My voice was calm. Too calm. "But you took what was supposed to be mine and gave it to Delilah."

The room was so quiet I could hear the fountain splashing outside.

"I'm your real daughter. Your own blood. And you didn't trust me with five thousand dollars. But Delilah? You gave her fifteen thousand dollars every month. All because you were afraid she might feel a little bit sad."

My mother's face crumpled.

"Are you really that scared of hurting her precious feelings," I asked, "that you never once stopped to think about mine?"