My face paled as I clenched my fists so tightly that my nails cut into my skin, yet I barely noticed when the blood started to flow. My heart felt numb, a cold emptiness spreading through me.
Frustration and anger surged within me, finally breaking free.
“Dad, Mom, I’m your real daughter!” I cried, my voice trembling. “Eliana is the real monster here! You’re all blinded by her act!”
Eliana looked hurt, tears streaming down her cheeks. Wade, his heart heavy, shouted, “Saige, just be quiet! It’s you who’s been putting on a performance!”
With that, he unfolded the blood-soaked letter Eliana had written earlier, revealing the dark, stark words that leaped off the page like a haunting accusation.
“Everyone, take a look at this! This is the suicide note my sister wrote, using her blood after she cut her wrist!”
“Sister, please let me go!”
“Only someone who has endured such profound sorrow could resort to such a desperate act.”
“Could Eliana really go so far as to sacrifice her life for a performance?”
The audience was utterly captivated.
“I never expected the defendant to look so refined and gentle, yet beneath that facade lies a heart filled with malice!”
“As a big man, I’m shivering from what I’m hearing; her methods are incredibly cruel.”
“It’s no wonder Eliana felt pushed to the brink; I’m not sure I could withstand it either.”
“She even torments her sister, whom she professes to love—what a truly wicked woman!”
“Did you hear? Eliana is not her biological sister; she’s just the plaintiff’s adopted daughter.”
“She probably fears that the adopted daughter will lay claim to the family fortune, trying to drive her to ruin.”
“Some people are simply born with darkness in their hearts; they shouldn’t even exist in this world.”
“If the defendant were a man, I’d swear she was a malevolent creature straight out of a horror story.”
“I support the plaintiff in her quest for justice; she deserves the harshest punishment!”
“I’m with you all the way!”
Everyone turned against me, their glares seething with concealed anger, even the judge and jury.
In the midst of it all sat Garrett, my defense attorney, quietly fiddling with the bead chain on his wrist, his silence almost deafening.
The case was glaringly obvious: I had long tormented my adopted sister, Eliana, exploiting my status as the legitimate child of the Laurier family.
The judge’s expression darkened as he asked if I pleaded guilty.