Chapter 2

After the spectacle ended, the people inside the old castle dispersed. No one remembered that Dad and I were still inside. Our corpses remained kneeling inside the grand hall, though our souls were already gone.

A few days later, a foul, putrid odor drifted out and caught a security guard's attention.

"What's that smell? Did the trash bin leak?" he muttered.

He followed the smell, his flashlight trembling as his steps grew slower. The moment he pushed open the doors to the grand hall, the gruesome sight before him sent him stumbling backward in terror.

Our corpses had become unbearable to look at. Our faces were a dark purplish blue, dried blood caked at the corners of our mouths, and our bodies were stiff and ice-cold.

"Captain, something's wrong! Something terrible has happened!" the guard shouted.

The police arrived soon afterward. Red and blue lights flashed across the stone walls of the old castle, casting them in alternating brightness and darkness.

An officer crouched to examine Dad's and my faces, then said quietly, "Based on the initial assessment, this was likely caused by severe physical abuse."

They found a wooden tag hidden in an inner pocket of my clothing. Carved into it were the words, "Oscar Howard, of Glenford, Ashvale".

It was my identification tag. I had made it because I was afraid that if I stayed in that world too long, I might one day forget Abigail.

Using the phone number on the tag, the officer called Abigail. "Is this Ms. Finch?"

At that moment, Joel was trying on a wedding tuxedo in front of the mirror while Abigail stood beside him, her gaze full of affection.

The officer said, "We've found the bodies of your husband, Oscar Howard, and your father-in-law, Cameron Howard. We need you to—"

Before he could finish, Abigail scoffed, her voice full of contempt. "Oscar really went all out. How much did he pay you to pull off this act? He even cursed his own father to death for this stunt. Does he seriously think this is funny?"

Without waiting for the officer to reply, Abigail hung up.

Joel frowned and walked over to Abigail. "Abby, should we maybe put the wedding on hold? Oscar wouldn't go so far as to make up something like this, right?"

Mom approached them and said confidently, "Cameron just used my supplementary card to spend 20 thousand dollars on a meal. How could anything have happened to him?"

Joel then took out his phone and pulled up Instagram. On the screen was a photo of Dad and me at the beach. The caption read, "Staying away from toxic people and spending the rest of our days healing."

The photo was clearly AI-generated, but they all fell for it without question. I hurriedly tried to speak up, but no one could hear me.

Abigail turned and stood on her toes to kiss Joel on the cheek, her voice soft but leaving no room for argument. "Stop overthinking. I promised you I'd give you a perfect wedding before your stomach cancer gets worse."

Joel pulled her tightly into his arms, a flicker of satisfaction crossing his expression.

…

The following day, the funeral home called Mom. "Hello, this is the city funeral home. We're calling regarding the cremation of your husband and son's remains. We need you to come in and sign the paperwork—"

Mom immediately flew into a rage and shouted into the phone, "How dare you try to scam me? What's next? Are you going to mail me an urn?"

She was so furious that she turned off her phone right away.

Abigail sat across from her, pausing with her coffee cup in hand. "Mom, should we… perhaps go check it out?"

Mom slammed her hand on the table. "Check what? Isn't it obvious? Just because I agreed to appear as Joel's mother at the wedding, Oscar and Cameron deliberately pulled this stunt to make us give in. Not a chance!"

Abigail fell silent for a moment before nodding. "You're right. Once the wedding is over, everything will go back to normal."

I drifted beside them, a hollow emptiness settling in my chest. It turned out that in their eyes, my grievances and sorrow had never even mattered.