They Replaced Me... Until the Government Wanted Me

Chapter 20

"I answered that bitch Paige Anderson's call last week."

"I could tell from her tone—she’s never coming back."

"From now on, I’ll be their only sister. The only one!"

"So what if she’s their blood sister?"

"All these years, no matter how many of her things I broke, her brothers always took my side!"

"When I pretended she pushed me down the stairs, that idiot actually tried to grab me."

"She ended up falling and getting hurt herself—then got slapped for it. Serves her right!"

"She wanted to go to Mohe, but I insisted on Norway. And guess what? They took me to Norway instead!"

"Everything will be mine now. Everything!"

It seemed she truly believed these were triumphs worth boasting about.

Lily Thompson’s eyes gleamed with twisted pride and vicious delight, her expression unnervingly distorted for someone her age.

Their argument raged on, relentless and venomous.

Ethan Parker wanted to lunge forward.

He wanted to tear them apart, make them suffer a thousand cuts.

But he couldn’t move.

Even if he killed the people before him now—would it bring Paige back?

Could anything be undone?

No. No...

It was too late. Far too late.

Countless memories flashed through his mind like a merciless slideshow.

The first time Paige had screamed at Lily to get out, desperately insisting she was a fraud.

The first time a cherished photo frame had been shattered, the first time she’d sobbed uncontrollably.

The first time she’d pressed a hand over her face, swallowing her tears in silence when no one would listen.

The first time she’d fallen down the stairs.

The first time he’d struck her.

Every moment, every choice, had paved the road to her departure.

Never before had Ethan realized with such crushing clarity—he had lost Paige.

She was gone. And she wasn’t coming back.

He didn’t remember how he made it home.

When he stepped inside, he found Lucas Parker slumped on the couch.

The housekeeper sat across from him, her voice calm but weary: "It’s not as if I’m only telling the truth now."

"Was there ever a single incident where Miss Anderson didn’t tell you the truth?"

Lucas stared at her, his eyes hollow and lifeless.

He must have heard the same things Ethan had.

The housekeeper’s voice trembled with sorrow. "I’ve cared for Miss Anderson for years."

"I always believed that, even when she was stubborn or mischievous, she knew right from wrong."

"She would never lie about something like this."

They had once believed that too.

So why had they stopped trusting Paige the moment Lily arrived?

Lucas stood, swaying slightly, and stumbled upstairs.

Ethan followed, watching as his brother entered his bedroom, opened a suitcase, and pulled out a crimson scarf.

Lucas murmured to himself, "I promised her."

"I was supposed to give this to her when she came back."

Ethan’s voice was raw. "She’s not coming back."

Lucas’s lips trembled. Then, for the first time, he broke.

Tears soaked silently into the fabric as his voice shattered beyond recognition.

"Yeah. She’s not coming back."