Didn't You Want Me to Behave?

The moment the screen lit up, my blood ran cold. The screen showed the footage of my abuse from three years ago. Those men had filmed my torment from every angle for their entertainment.

My body began trembling uncontrollably. I felt cold all over, and even breathing grew difficult. "No… this can't be happening…"

I couldn't find my voice and could only stare at the screen. Back then, Joshua personally told me that he had destroyed every single video.

I snapped my head up and looked at him, my eyes wide with fury. I lunged at him while still on my knees. "Joshua, please don't send that out. I'm begging you."

The suffering that I had endured wouldn't vanish even if I left this world.

Joshua's expression was terrifyingly calm. "I swore by Mom and Dad's grave that I would raise you right. As your older brother, it's my responsibility to discipline you. I believe that they would agree if they were watching."

After he finished speaking, he clicked the send button without hesitation.

Joshua walked over and grabbed my wrist. "Come here and apologize to Maddie for what you just did."

The instant he touched me, the terror from three years earlier crashed over me like a tidal wave. I scrambled backward, desperate to get away.

I shrieked and fought with every ounce of my strength. "Don't touch me! Please, don't touch me! Let go of me!"

My reaction enraged Joshua, and he furrowed his brow. "Victoria, you're being far too headstrong. What are you trying to pull now? To make sure you learn your lesson, I'll give Maddie the entire Caldwell family fortune as her wedding gift."

My ears rang incessantly. I couldn't make out a single word Joshua said. All I could hear were wild laughs echoing in my head.

"Clean yourself up tonight. At the wedding tomorrow, I need you to walk onto the stage and publicly apologize to Maddie, giving her your most sincere blessings. Otherwise, don't bother coming back to this house," Joshua said.

The moment the door closed, I could no longer hold myself together and collapsed onto the floor.

My phone vibrated frantically. Countless unknown numbers kept calling, and messages popped up one after another. They were all full of insults, morbid curiosity, and malicious mockery.

I wrapped myself tightly in the blanket, wishing I could just die right then and there. But I couldn't do that yet.

…

The next day, all the large screens on Brightvale's skyscrapers broadcast the wedding of the century between the Turner and Caldwell families.

I stood at the edge of the rooftop, watching Joshua scan the crowd from the altar as if searching for someone. Madeline noticed his distraction and tugged on his arm to keep him moving forward.

The scene before me suddenly overlapped with my memories. Back then, when Cassian and I were about to get engaged, Joshua said with reddened eyes, "I'll personally walk my beloved sister into her next chapter of happiness."

He kept his word, except that sister wasn't me.

The voice of the system sounded in my mind. "It's time. We should leave."

I stepped forward without a second thought, and a sense of weightlessness instantly hit me. The wind whistled past my ears. As I fell through the air, my eyes briefly met Joshua's, and I smiled.

"Joshua, how could three years of my life and the entire Caldwell family be enough to make amends to Madeline? Let me use my life to make her wedding even more spectacular," I said.