Three Lives, One Tragedy

A Call from the Hospital

After dinner, my mother returned to her bedroom, and I had no choice but to drift in behind her.

She seemed anxious as she paced back and forth around the room.

"What's wrong?" my father asked softly as he came in.

My mother simply furrowed her brow and said nothing.

My father looked at her. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "I'm going to the hospital. Vanessa hasn't been heard from for a week, and her due date is tomorrow."

My mother snapped the second he made that suggestion. "No one is going anywhere! Seven days have passed, and she still hasn't apologized to Alice. How dare she act so arrogant?"

My father cowered and mumbled, "She did have a car accident. Plus, she's pregnant."

My mother swept her skincare products off the table and barked. "Alice didn't suffer anything serious when she was the driver. Vanessa wasn't even the one driving, so what could have happened to her? I bet she is still holding grudges against Alice!"

As my mother spoke, she seemed to grow confident with her claims. "She was the one who caused the fire, and it killed my brother and his family! Alice was only three when she lost her parents. All Vanessa ever did was compete for affection and never thought about how Alice would feel.

"Moreover, her jealousy grew worse when she got older. Do you know that she tried to kill Alice? Do you know how many horrible things she had done to Alice over the years?"

Before I could process the pain, my mind went blank.

"What did Mom mean when she said I was the one who set the fire?"

As I thought about it, I shuddered and felt chills run down my spine.

Even though I was only about five years old, I remembered it clearly.

That day, I was pretending to sleep to fool my aunt after she had tucked me in. Just moments ago, Alice had wanted my butterfly hair tie, but her mother scolded her. So, she became upset. I wanted to give it to her secretly, so I pretended to be asleep.

Shortly after they left, I smelled smoke. When I opened the door, I saw the house in flames. I desperately called for my aunt and uncle, and I remember them rushing back toward me.

What happened next was hazy. All I could remember was the sound of the wind whistling in my ears. When I woke up, I was in the hospital, and my uncle and aunt had died.

However, I was certain I had never started that fire.

"Hello? What is it?" My mother's tone was sharp. "Don't tell me that Vanessa has caused trouble again! Tell her to come home now and apologize to her sister! No one is going to put up with her act!"

When I heard her words, I snapped out of my daze and saw my mother answering a call from the hospital.

After a long silence on the other end, a voice finally spoke, "Dr. Miranda, Ms. Tyson has been dead for a week. She suffered severe injuries and even had a miscarriage.

"However, we didn't have anyone to help her since you had called all the doctors away. In the end, she died along with her unborn children."