Chapter 3

"Get out. You're not welcome here," I said.

Edith and Blake ignored me.

When Blake was sorting out the takeout, some hot coffee splashed onto his hand.

Edith grabbed the tie hanging by the door and used it to wipe the coffee off him.

My heart sank. "Give that to me!"

Mom gave Dad that tie as an anniversary gift the year she died. Dad treasured it and would take it out to wear from time to time.

Edith didn't stop. "Don't be so petty. Blake's skin is sensitive and turns red at the slightest touch. I need to take care of it right away."

Once she finished wiping Blake's hand, she tossed the tie onto the floor without a second thought.

I crouched down and picked it up. It was covered in coffee stains that wouldn't come out. The tie was ruined beyond repair.

I was shaking with anger.

Blake tried to calm me down. "Come on. It's no big deal. It isn't half as expensive as the watch Edith bought me. I'll just pay you back."

Edith looked at me like I was overreacting.

"That was the last gift my mom ever gave Dad. I told you both that," I said angrily.

Blake wouldn't meet my eyes. "I… I didn't know."

Edith was caught off guard for a moment, too.

"Who would remember something that insignificant?" She stepped in front of Blake. "Stop making such a big deal out of it. Blake already apologized."

A week ago, I had accidentally damaged a little fuse-bead charm Edith and Blake had made together. She had been furious and accused me of having no manners.

Now they were the ones who had ruined something and done something wrong, yet somehow I was the one being unreasonable.

Edith would always take Blake's side.

The commotion from the living room brought Dad out of his bedroom. The moment he saw the tie in my hands, tears welled up in his eyes.

"Who did this?" Dad demanded.

Blake apologized half-heartedly. "George, I already sent Connor the money for it. Please don't be angry."

Blake had transferred 10 dollars to me.

Dad was furious when he saw it and slapped Blake across the face. "Who wants your damn money? And who gave you permission to come into my house?"

Blake covered his cheek.

In a fit of anger, he snatched the tie from my hands and shredded it with a pair of scissors.

"It's just a gift from a dead woman! Why the hell should I care what happens to it?" Blake snarled.

Dad struggled to breathe as he watched something he treasured get destroyed. He clutched his chest and fell backward onto the floor.

I panicked and dropped to my knees beside him. He didn't respond to me.

Blake muttered under his breath, "What a performance. He hit me so hard earlier, but now he's pretending to be dead."

Dad had high blood pressure. I was afraid the shock had caused a brain hemorrhage.

I didn't have time to deal with Blake, so I looked at Edith. "Get Dad to the hospital. Now!"

Edith stayed where she was.

Instead, she said mockingly, "George is too old to put on an act like this. Just get him to get up."

She paused, then added, "Connor, I like you better this way, but I'm not stupid. You're not getting everything you want."

Tears stung my eyes.

I felt like I had wasted all those years on her. The woman I had loved for so many years was a complete piece of trash.

My hands were shaking as I called for an ambulance.

Ten minutes later, the paramedics carried Dad out on a stretcher and loaded him into the ambulance.

"He's really committed to the act. Isn't he afraid he'll actually shorten his life?" Blake rolled his eyes when no one was looking.

I turned around and punched him in the face.

"If anything happens to Dad, I'll never forgive either of you," I snapped.

Blake stared at me in disbelief.

Edith's expression hardened. "Enough with the temper tantrum! Blake helped us out, so apologize to him now."

I laughed.

Blake openly flirted with Edith and got between us while claiming he was helping our relationship.

Yet Edith called him our benefactor.

"Edith, can you really not tell that Blake likes you?" I asked.

She went quiet, and that was all the answer I needed.

She knew. She and Blake both knew what they were doing, but neither of them said it out loud.

I was the only fool who had been kept in the dark.

I said nothing else and got into the ambulance.

As the doors closed, I saw Blake resting a hand on Edith's shoulder and leaning down to say something to her.