From Tool To Treasure: My New Life
For nine years, I was Kane Hill' s secret. I was his emotional punching bag, the convenient stand-in for my twin sister, Harper-the woman he truly loved. I endured his cruelty, convincing myself his control was a twisted form of love.
Then, just before he announced their engagement, Harper sent me a recording. It was Kane, his voice smooth and dismissive.
"Eden? She's useful," he told Harper. "An emotional pressure valve. I need to vent on someone so I can be the perfect man for you."
The cold truth shattered me. I wasn't a person, not even a substitute. I was a tool. That night, he polished Harper's engagement ring right in front of me before ending our nine-year "game" with a single, bored phone call.
He never knew that I was the girl who had saved him at a summer camp all those years ago, not Harper. He'd called my attempts to tell him the truth "pathetic."
So I packed a single bag and vanished into the night, leaving his gilded cage for a quiet farm in Vermont. But just as I started to heal, he found me, clutching the proof of my story in his hand, begging for a second chance I had no intention of giving.
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Chapter 3
I fumbled for my phone, my heart hammering against my ribs. A blocked number. Hesitantly, I answered.
"Eden?" A soft voice, familiar yet distant, whispered into the phone. "It's Harper."
My blood ran cold. Harper. My twin sister. The mere sound of her voice, a voice so like my own, sent shivers down my spine. We shared a face, a voice, a past, but our lives had diverged spectacularly, especially after she' d been adopted into wealth and I' d remained adrift in the system. We'd maintained a fragile, secret connection over the years, a few hushed calls, always with her reminding me, "Don't tell Kane. He thinks I rescued him."
"Harper," I breathed, my voice barely audible.
"My god, you sound terrible." Her tone softened, a flicker of genuine concern. "Are you okay, sis?"
Sis. The word felt foreign, exhilarating, and painful all at once. She rarely called me that.
Before I could answer, her voice dropped, a hint of steel beneath the velvet. "Look, I know this is sudden, but Kane's furious. Your contracts are all cancelled. Your social media accounts... gone."
My heart plummeted. I knew this was coming. The "clean-up," as Kane's ruthless team would call it. Removing any inconvenient connections before his grand engagement announcement.
"I know," I said, the words a dull ache. "I saw."
"You know?" Her voice rose slightly. "Why didn't you say anything? Why didn't you call me? Call Kane?" There was irritation in her voice now, a flash of her pragmatic, results-oriented nature.
Suddenly, Kane's voice, laced with cold fury, snapped through the phone. "Eden! Who is this? Why aren't you answering my calls?" He must have taken the phone from Harper. "What's going on, Eden? Why is Harper telling me your account is shut down?"
My teeth clenched. He knew now. Knew what he himself had orchestrated. The hypocrisy was a bitter taste in my mouth.
"I didn't want to bother you," I managed, my voice flat.
"Bother me?" His voice was a low growl, vibrating with possessive anger. "You think having your entire career nuked isn't a bother? Why didn't you come to me? I could fix this. I can fix this. You know I can." His words were a threat, a promise of absolute control. "Don't you dare try to handle this yourself. You're incompetent without me."
Harper's voice, smooth and calming, drifted from the background. "Kane, honey, let me talk to her. She's upset."
"I didn't tell you," I insisted, my voice gaining a desperate edge, "because I don't want to fix it. I don't want to do that anymore."
The line went silent for a beat. Then Kane's voice, colder than I' d ever heard it. "What did you say?"
"I said... I don't want to be an influencer anymore," I repeated, the words gaining strength as they left my mouth. "I don't want this life."
"Don't be ridiculous," he snapped. "You're coming to the office first thing tomorrow. We'll get this sorted out."
"No!" The word burst out of me, raw and defiant.
"Eden, I said to come to the office!" His voice was a thunderclap, used to instant obedience.
My eyes welled up, hot tears stinging. "Why, Kane?" I forced myself to ask, my voice trembling. "Why do I have to? Am I just... a convenient stand-in? An easier version of someone else?" The words spilled out, years of pain finally breaking free.
A sharp intake of breath on the other end. "What did you just call me?" he demanded, his voice dangerously soft.
"Kane," I whispered, the name feeling foreign on my tongue. "You never call me by my name when you're angry. Only when you're... being gentle. Or when you're with her. You always call me 'baby,' or 'honey.' Never just Eden. It makes me feel like I' m anyone. Like I' m no one." My voice cracked. "Am I just someone you can mold, someone who looks a lot like Harper, so you don't have to look so hard for her?"
His breathing was heavy, ragged. "What the hell is wrong with you, Eden? Why are you acting like this?"
I wiped furiously at my tears. "Because I don't want to be a substitute anymore!" The truth was out, ugly and unvarnished. "I don't want to be your emotional punching bag so you can be charming for your real girlfriend. I don't want to pretend anymore."
A chilling, humorless laugh echoed through the phone. "Substitute? Don't flatter yourself, Eden. I'm bored with this little game. It's over."
The line went dead.