All Chapters of Even After My Death, They Hound Me: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

Three years after my death, my soul was still trapped next to Katrina Cobb.I witnessed how that once vibrant and bright young woman eventually turned into a cripple. She was hunched over, rummaging through a pile of rotting garbage.I floated above her head, looking at her messy, straw-like hair, my heart aching for her. I wanted to cry, but I couldn't shed a single tear."Trina, please, stop picking at the trash. Your hands are all cut…" My ghost-like fingers went right through her filthy cheeks.Yet, she couldn't hear me. She just numbly turned her wheelchair around, preparing to rummage in the next garbage can.Just then, a black car got in her way. The car window slowly rolled down, revealing two familiar faces.It was Mom and Dad, my biological parents, whom I hadn't seen for three years.In that instant, I felt my soul tremble involuntarily."Oh, isn't this that poor little girl from back then?"Mom took off her sunglasses and pulled a handkerchief from her bag, cover

Chapter 2

"What nonsense are you spouting?" Mom's voice rose several octaves as she screamed at Katrina. "Does Joshua think he's some big shot now? Does he think we have to beg to see him or make appointments to meet him now?"As she spoke, she pulled a thick wad of 100-dollar bills from her expensive Birkin bag and threw them at Katrina.The bills were scattered all over the ground, with some getting caught on the armrest of her worn-out wheelchair and some landing on her numb, crippled leg."Take it," Mom said, looking down at her. "This should be enough for scum like you to live on for a while. Now stop putting on those ridiculous airs and tell him to come out and see me! Who do you think you are now? How long do you expect us to wait?"Dad added coldly, "Tell him that this is his final chance."I wanted to rush forward and throw the money back in their faces. I wanted to scream that I was dead. Their son had died a long time ago!But I couldn't.After a long while, Katrina picked up t

Chapter 3

Katrina kept a hand strictly over her pocket in which she kept the money, her body tense.I knew what she was afraid of. This money was her only hope now, and she was willing to forgo her dignity, even her life, just for my sake.She chuckled bitterly and said hoarsely, "I won't return the money. You'll only regret it if you insist on seeing Joshua."She then ignored the shouts behind her and forcefully turned her wheelchair around, wheeling herself deeper into the alley.Mom and Dad exchanged glances with each other before following her with a cold smile on their lips."See? I knew that it was all just an act," Mom said, adjusting her expensive fur coat, her face full of disdain. "Come on. I'd love to see just how pathetic he's become, and how long he'll keep trying to hide from us!"The alley narrowed, with the surface becoming more uneven and filled with potholes.Mom's high heels clicked against the filthy cobblestones, and her brow furrowed deeper with each step.This plac

Chapter 4

"Katrina! Are you out of your mind?"Dad was even more enraged by now. He stormed into the room, pointing at the portrait with trembling fingers. "How dare you display something like this just to scam money from us!"Where's Joshua? Tell him to come out right now! Stop hiding in the back pretending he hasn't heard us!"He continued yelling in the basement as he looked around, trying to see where I could possibly be hiding. But the place was just too small, and he could already see everything in there with just a turn of his head.There was no other sign of life besides Katrina and that glaring portrait in the center of the room.Katrina watched them go berserk in silence."He's not hiding anywhere," she said, raising her hand and gently stroking the cold frame of the portrait. Her touch was as tender as if she were caressing a lover's cheek."He's right here. He's been waiting for you for three whole years."Dad's roar echoed in the cramped basement, causing the flames on the t

Chapter 5

Dad snatched the document from Mom's hand, his movements so rough he almost tore the fragile paper apart."You even forged a report? Wow, Katrina, you really went to great lengths for this little bit of money," Dad said with a sneer, his gaze casually sweeping over the report."Deceased's Name: Joshua Norman."Cause of Death: Severe traumatic brain injury with multiple organ rupture and hemorrhage caused by a car accident."External Characteristics: The deceased was run over and dragged by a heavy vehicle, and his facial features are completely disfigured and unrecognizable. The left ribcage collapsed, with multiple rib fractures and severed ribs piercing the lungs and heart. Both lower limbs suffered comminuted fractures, with exposed rib ends and avulsed skin…"I floated mid-air, reading the report and suddenly feeling the excruciating pain of that night that seemed to resurface deep within my soul.The day I died was precisely a week after Sally's death.After handling her fu

Chapter 6

Mom instinctively tried to push the diary away. However, the moment her gaze fell on the words in my diary, she still took it from Katrina and began to read."May 30th. It's Mom's birthday today. I used the pocket money I saved up for a month to buy colored paper and folded a thousand origami cranes, wanting to surprise her."I secretly put the gift by the door and peeked from the corner of the stairs. But... I saw Jayson throw the origami cranes into the trash can afterward and even told the dog to chew on them."Jayson said Mom hated cheap things. I didn't believe him, so I went to ask Mom. But she didn't even look at me and said that I was being silly and that I had to let Jayson be because I was older than him."I just felt like I didn't belong anywhere when she said that. I was their biological son, but I feel like a thief in my own house."Mom's breathing quickened, and her face instantly turned deathly pale.She remembered that birthday.That day, she did see a huge pile

Chapter 7

The regret in Dad's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a furious rage at being played for a fool."Wonderful. Brilliant. Just brilliant," he gritted through his teeth as he straightened up and pointed at Katrina. "I can't believe that I almost fell for your tricks! Jayson is a very kind-hearted soul! He would never have done anything of the sort!"Meanwhile, Jayson just hid behind Dad and gave Katrina a provocative smirk.Katrina's hand slowly reached for her twisted, deformed left leg."Do you know how my leg was broken?"Dad's eyes flickered, instinctively avoiding looking at the leg.Mom frowned and took a step back. "What does your broken leg have to do with us? Don't you dare try to blame us for it!"Katrina laughed bitterly. The laughter echoed in the cold basement like fingernails scraping a blackboard, sending chills down everyone's spine.She stared blankly at a point in the void, her eyes vacant, as if she were back in that despairing, starry night."On the night o

Chapter 8

"Call the police! Call the police now!"Dad was completely enraged by Katrina's words and actions.He pulled out his phone, glaring fiercely at Katrina. "Since you won't hand Joshua over, we'll let the police talk to you! I don't believe you can still be as stubborn as you are now when the police are here!"Mom chimed in, her voice shrill and hysterical. "Yes! Charge her with kidnapping! Charge her with extortion! Let her rot in jail! Let's see how long that brat Joshua can hide from us!"They were convinced this was all a charade that Katrina and I put together just to get back at them. They were certain that once the police arrived, all the lies would crumble, and I would obediently come out and beg for their forgiveness on my knees.Jayson, however, panicked when he heard that. "Mom, Dad, maybe we should just let it slide."However, Katrina sat defiantly in her wheelchair and said, "Go ahead and drag me there if you will."…Half an hour later, Katrina was taken to the polic

Chapter 9

This time, Mom and Dad could no longer deceive themselves. They felt as if their spines had been ripped out, and they could only follow Katrina back to the dark, damp basement, feeling utterly dejected and defeated.Stepping back in, the musty smell no longer seemed to nauseate them. Instead, it transformed into a suffocating sense of guilt.Mom fell to her knees before the makeshift shrine with a thud, clutching the black-and-white portrait of me, weeping uncontrollably."Joshua… My Joshua… I was wrong. I was so, so wrong…"Dad stood to the side, his face buried in his hands, suppressed sobs escaping through his fingers.Meanwhile, Katrina remained seated in her wheelchair, coldly observing my parents' belated display of affection."What's the use of crying?" she asked in a hoarse voice, retrieving a shattered phone from her pocket. "This was what he left behind at the scene of the crime."Katrina's fingers gently traced the screen, her eyes tender yet sorrowful."This phone h

Chapter 10

When Mom and Dad finally came out of the basement, they were behaving like madmen, driving straight home to their villa.I soon discovered that I could finally leave Katrina's side and float back with Mom and Dad instead.As soon as I entered the villa, I saw Jayson sitting on the couch playing games on his PS5. Upon seeing that Mom and Dad were home, a sweet, cloying smile appeared on his face as he greeted them and said, "You're back! So, did you deal with that criminal? I told you that…"A resounding slap landed hard on his face.Dad put all his strength into that slap, knocking Jayson down onto the couch as blood began trickling from the corner of his mouth."Dad! Did you just hit me?" Jayson exclaimed, covering his face, his expression incredulous."Hit you? I wish I could kill you instead!"Dad's hand trembled as he flung the shattered phone against Jayson's. "Listen to this! Listen carefully to the audio and tell me what you mean by this!"The vicious recording was playe

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