LOGINI looked up curiously.Second Pops hesitated for a moment. "After the Stantons were released and sent home, they fought among themselves for quite a while."My parents had resented Sharon for selling them out at the black market. They'd been bitterly disappointed and felt they had raised an ingrate. They'd wanted to kick her out of the house.After the brain transplant surgery, Sharon was basically useless. She'd cried and begged for mercy, hoping my parents would soften toward her.That was when her biological mother had shown up.My heart gave a little jolt, a strange mix of anticipation and unease rising in my chest. "What did she say?""She threatened the Stantons. She claimed to have evidence of their crimes. If they didn't want it exposed, they had to give her a sum of money and make sure she and Sharon were properly taken care of," Second Pops said.Meeting my puzzled gaze, he went on, "She said the Stantons that you know aren't actually your parents."I froze. Then, som
In the end, the Stantons still got to walk out. Because after my godfathers talked it over, they all agreed that killing them would only dirty their own hands."Besides, I think making them live a fate worse than death sounds a lot more fun." Third Pops pushed the door open and came in holding a folder. Behind his gold-rimmed glasses, a sly glint flashed in his eyes. "I already had someone look into the Stanton family's company accounts."Tax evasion, fake invoices, commercial fraud… You name it, they've done it. I've already filed an anonymous report. Once the investigation really gets going, they're done for."I was taken aback. "You guys are going to destroy them?"Big Pops closed the folder and looked at me, his eyes unusually serious. "They didn't hold back at all when they went after you, so why should we show mercy?"Once we crush the Stantons this time, then anyone who wants to come after you in the future will think twice. I don't ever want to see you in the hospital li
Jack was furious and clutched at his chest as he struggled to breathe. "Sharon, w-what are you talking about? We worked ourselves to the bone raising you for 18 years, and we treated you like a precious treasure."Even when our real daughter came back, we didn't shortchange or mistreat you at all. How could you say something like that?"Emma looked just as disappointed. She pointed at Sharon and wailed, "Back then, you cried to us every single day, saying that once Maisie came home, we wouldn't love you anymore. To make you happy, we wronged Maisie at every turn. We gave you the biggest bedroom with the best sunlight and made her live in the basement."It was you who complained that her mock exam scores were better than yours and that she would have a brighter future than you. You said you wanted a smarter brain. That's why we went everywhere asking about brain transplant surgeries. It was all for you that we came here! Do you even have a conscience, Sharon?"Sharon's lips quivered
The Stantons had been locked up in a shack made of metal sheets and tortured until they were barely recognizable.I couldn't help thinking of how, on the way here, Jack had threatened to have me thrown in there, too. Seeing the state they were in now gave me a strange mix of bitterness and grim satisfaction.Sharon's brain transplant surgery had already been completed.Originally, even Second Pops hadn't been confident about such an unprecedented, extremely high-risk operation. But to get back at the Stantons for me, he'd forced his way through the technical difficulties and swapped Sharon's brain out for the "idiot's brain" she'd prepared ahead of time.I stared at her curiously. Now that she had an idiot's brain in her, would she really become an idiot?The Sharon I saw now had drooping eyes and a slack mouth. Drool leaked out whenever she moved even a little. She sure looked like a fool, but when my gaze swept over her, she still glared back at me with a mix of humiliation and
I was out cold in the hospital for three whole days. When I finally woke up, sunlight was pouring in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, warm and soft on the blanket.The room was huge, with a couch, a TV, and a mini-fridge. The nightstand was piled high with flowers and gifts from my godfathers.Ever since Little Pops set up this black market, he'd kept the best hospital room reserved just for me. Every time I got sick, I stayed here. The tension in me eased as I looked at the familiar surroundings.Little Pops was sitting by my bed and peeling an apple. When he saw my eyes open, he paused, then smiled. "You're awake? Are you hungry?"He cut the apple into small pieces, speared one with a toothpick, and held it to my lips.The rest of my godfathers were around, too. They'd all been doing their own thing, but the moment they realized I was awake, they rushed over and crowded around my bed.Big Pops stared at my bandaged hands with heartache. "How do you feel? Are you still in p
My parents froze."You… You know this wretch?""What's going on? Didn't the investigation say she was wandering the streets and didn't have any other friends or family?"The doors of the operating room were suddenly kicked open with a loud bang. My first godfather, Big Pops, rushed in, his coat buttons done up wrong and his tie crooked to one side. It was obvious he'd run all the way here.Behind him, from the far end of the corridor, came the thunderous roar of footsteps. Sixth Pops and Seventh Pops strode over, each of them carrying a wrench.Third Pops walked in unhurriedly at the very back. He pushed his glasses up and held his phone up high. In the blink of an eye, he had already listed several of my parents' crimes.Fourth Pops carried a pair of boxing gloves, while Fifth Pops pulled out his laptop and hacked right into Jack's company website.The eight men crowded into the operating room.Jack's face went pale. He opened his mouth, wanting to smooth things over. But with







