A new reality show about a billionaire family is the latest viral hit. During a live broadcast, someone brought me up. My mother, her arm wrapped around the fake heiress, Chloe, accused me of being a pathological liar. My brother, Sonny, his voice laced with ice, added, “She’s nothing but trash.” My childhood friend, Peter, frowned. “A vicious, ungrateful viper,” was his assessment. Then Chloe, in her sugary-sweet voice, intervened. “Mom, Sonny, Peter, please don’t say that about my sister. Why don’t we invite her on the show? I’m sure she’s seen the error of her ways by now.” They fell silent. The live-stream comments, however, exploded with excitement, demanding they go find the real heiress immediately. Everyone wanted to see what kind of monster Jodie Ashford was to be so universally despised. Finally, Sonny lifted his gaze, his expression unreadable. “Fine. Do whatever you want.” And so, the entire production, a massive entourage, set off to find me. I floated in the air, a silent ghost tagging along. I was curious. Where on earth could they possibly find me? 1 A crowd of people swarmed in front of a dilapidated old building. The corners of the lot were overflowing with garbage, a buzzing cloud of flies and roaches feasting on the rot. The crew from the show couldn't help but pinch their noses against the stench. I did a slow loop in the air, grateful I couldn't smell a thing. Just then, my mother, Sonny, and the others stepped out of their luxury cars. Dressed in limited-edition couture, they were a stark, shimmering contrast to the squalor around them. The live-stream chat filled with confusion: 【Wait, the real Ashford heiress lives in a dump like this?】 【That dress Chloe’s wearing could probably buy this whole building.】 Someone chimed in with an explanation: 【You guys didn't see the news? Three years ago, Jodie Ashford killed her own father and ran away from home.】 【What? She’s that horrible? The Ashfords should never have taken her back in the first place.】 【Yeah, I heard about her. A real piece of work. Nothing like Chloe, who has Sonny Ashford and the medical prodigy Peter protecting her.】 The discussion was heating up. My mother pulled out a silk handkerchief, holding it to Chloe’s nose to block the smell. Then she turned to Sonny. “Go get Jodie to open the door.” Sonny took a single step up the crumbling concrete stairs, then froze. He’d realized he had no idea which apartment was mine. I’d actually told him before. But at the time, he was too busy consoling a tearful Chloe to pay any attention. But then I heard a low voice from behind him. It was Peter. “201.” I wasn’t surprised. Of everyone here, Peter knew me best. Sonny shot Peter a surprised look before continuing up to the second floor. There was no doorbell. The great Sonny Ashford, CEO of Ashford Corp, was reduced to pounding on a rusty metal door. A long, long time passed. No one answered. I tilted my head, watching Sonny. His face was hardening, a cold mask settling over his features. “Silly brother,” I whispered in his ear, though he couldn’t hear me. “Obviously, no one’s home.” He just kept knocking, a stubborn, repetitive rhythm. I found it fascinating. Normally, his patience with me wore thin in seconds. He would have stormed off by now, spitting, “Such a lack of manners,” over his shoulder. The viewers in the live stream were getting restless. 【Is she not home? Why don’t they just call her?】 【Who knows if they even have her number? Look at Sonny, he didn't even know the apartment number.】 【I heard Peter grew up with Jodie in a group home. Now he’s a medical genius with a spotless reputation. If even he talks about her like that, she must be truly terrible.】 【I was so ready for the drama of Jodie joining the show. The real vs. the fake heiress, it would’ve been epic.】 Then, another comment: 【This place looks sketchy as hell. Isn’t anyone worried something might have happened to her?】 This was a live broadcast, so the people on set could see the comments scrolling by. “Maybe… maybe my sister saw the show and left ahead of time,” Chloe said, her head bowed as if in deep sorrow. “She doesn’t want to see us. When she left, she blocked all of our numbers.” “It’s all my fault. If it weren’t for me…” “This has nothing to do with you! She’s the ungrateful wretch!” Sonny had stopped knocking. His voice was cold, sharp with a hatred that seemed to cut through the air. “She’d better hope she can hide for the rest of her life.” I had heard those words, or ones just like them, too many times while I was alive. I didn’t want to hear them again. I drifted away from them, watching as they conferred with the production crew, finally giving up on their plan to invite me. Only when they began preparing for the next segment did I float back. 2 Just as everyone was about to get back into their cars, a woman in flashy, cheap clothes emerged from the building, yawning. She was halfway down the stairs when she saw Sonny’s face. She stopped, turned back, and threw him a sultry look. “Hey handsome, looking for me? It’s only two hundred.” I blinked, drifting in front of my brother to get a better look. Well. He was undeniably handsome. As I recalled, women had always flocked to him like moths to a flame. When had Sonny Ashford ever been subjected to such a humiliating offer? His face instantly darkened. “Get lost.” Several of his bodyguards moved forward, their expressions menacing. The woman flinched, about to run. “Wait,” Chloe called out, stopping her with a gentle smile. “Excuse me, have you seen the woman who lives here?” she asked, gesturing to the door of my old apartment. The woman glanced at the door. “Oh, her?” she said with a dismissive smirk. “She’s got good business. Always a few men with her at a time.” After she spoke, a dead silence fell over the scene. Chloe was the first to react, covering her mouth with her hand, the very picture of shocked innocence. “Oh my god. My sister… how could she do something like that?” My mother clutched at her chest, her face pale with rage. “What a disgraceful, filthy creature!” she seethed. Chloe immediately rushed to her side, helping her back toward the car and rubbing her back to calm her down. “That bastard!” Sonny finally processed the words, his initial shock turning into incandescent rage. “As an Ashford, how dare she?!” The force of his anger made me shrink back. I didn’t understand why he was so furious. Hadn’t he always told me I was born low-class, unworthy of the Ashford name? Why did it suddenly matter to him now what I did? The internet, of course, went into a frenzy. The comments flew by in a blur: 【What the hell, Jodie is a… a prostitute?】 【What a disgrace to the Ashford family. If only Chloe were their real daughter. She’s so pure and innocent.】 【Can we just move on? I don’t want to hear another thing about this person. It’s disgusting.】 But some offered a different perspective: 【Could this be a misunderstanding? Chloe isn’t always right. Peter grew up with Jodie, maybe he knows her better?】 At the mention of his name, everyone on set turned to look at Peter, waiting for his verdict. I floated over to him, waiting too. Peter simply lowered his gaze, his voice flat and devoid of emotion. “I never thought she’d sink so low.” He sided with Chloe, condemning me. He affirmed that yes, with a character like mine, I was capable of such a thing. A wave of murmurs went through the crowd. Sonny’s hands clenched into fists, the veins on their backs standing out like cords. Chloe, having settled my mother in the car, hurried back to his side. I stared at Peter. This boy, three years younger than me, whom I had once treated like my own brother. I thought I would be used to it by now. But my heart still ached with a familiar, numbing pain. When we were kids, bullies used to pick on him. I always stood in their way. Once, my arm was broken protecting him. Another time, I nearly lost an eye. But none of that seemed to matter as much as the simple umbrella Chloe had handed him on a rainy day. From that day on, whatever Chloe said, whatever she did, he defended her. She said I stole the class funds, so he testified against me, getting me ostracized by my classmates and disciplined by the school. Chloe fell down a flight of stairs when I was nearby, so he pushed me down a flight of stairs in return. And now, this. He knew. He knew the truth. When we were clinging to each other for survival, we lived in this very building. That flimsy metal door did nothing to block out the sounds from next door. He would cover my ears with his small hands, his jaw clenched in hatred. “Jodie, don’t listen. Don’t be scared. When I make money, we’ll move away from here.” We did eventually move. He got a big, beautiful house. But the sister in his heart was no longer me. It was Chloe. “Mr. Ashford, I’ve found the young miss’s number.” 3 Sonny’s assistant’s voice snapped me back to the present. I was a little surprised. My brother had actually sent someone to find my number? That was so unlike him. The resources at his command were usually reserved for Chloe and Chloe alone. I floated closer to him. He was frowning, staring at the number scrawled on a slip of paper in his hand. His face was a mask of conflict. Was he hesitating? Struggling with what to say to his disgraceful sister? Impossible. I shook my head. I knew better than that. The only times Sonny had ever called me were to demand I apologize to Chloe, or to vent his own frustrations… “Jodie, you have three minutes to get to Father’s memorial tablet and kneel.” The seconds ticked by. Sonny just stared at the number, unmoving. I was getting antsy for him. The live stream was, too: 【What's he thinking? Just call already! Confront her!】 【They said they haven’t spoken in three years. Maybe it feels awkward?】 【CALL HER! Get her on the show so we can see how awful she really is.】 【I bet she won’t have the guts to show up. She burned her bridges with the Ashfords.】 The show’s director, growing desperate, cautiously approached his biggest sponsor. “Mr. Ashford, if you’d please…” Sonny silenced him with a single glare. The director scurried away, but not without a flicker of triumph on his face. He had seen it. Sonny’s phone screen now read: Dialing… Everyone held their breath. Only I wasn’t nervous. I was bored, looking around. After all, there was no way that call could connect. I was a ghost. How could I possibly answer a phone? But in the next second, the call connected. A voice on the other end said, “Hello?” I jumped in shock. But I quickly composed myself. My brother, on the other hand, was stunned into fury. He practically choked on the words. “Who is this?” “Where is Jodie?” 4 “This is your daddy!” The person on the other end seemed to hesitate for a second before snapping back. Sonny, after a moment of shock, regained his composure. “You must be her friend, Maya. She always did love running with gutter trash like you.” “Put Jodie on the phone.” I looked up, surprised. I didn’t think he’d even remember Maya, my best friend from before I returned to the Ashfords. I thought he never paid any attention to my life at all. Maya’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “Well, well. I thought the great Sonny Ashford was calling because he’d finally grown a conscience. Turns out you’re just as cold-blooded as ever. Is this how all you rich folk are?” Sonny didn’t rise to the bait. He calmly slipped on the jacket his assistant handed him. “Miss Maya,” he said with a faint, chilling smile, “I doubt you could find a more cold-blooded person on this earth than your dear friend, Jodie.” “Right, right. The kindest person in the world is your precious, two-faced fake sister, Chloe. There, are you satisfied, Mr. Ashford?” Maya was clearly furious now, her words tumbling out in a rush. “You build her up, fund this trashy show, and you want to drag Jodie through the mud as a prop? Don’t you think you’ve hurt her enough? It’s disgusting!” She paused, as if catching her breath, then added, “If you ask me, Jodie wasn’t cold-blooded enough. She should have just watched you get kidnapped all those years ago!” Sonny’s pupils contracted. His knuckles, wrapped around the phone, turned white. I felt a jolt of memory, a dizzying pull back to the year I was taken. My brother, sneaking me out of the house to play without our parents’ permission. A tall man grabbing him, trying to drag him into a van. I had clawed and bit at the man until he yelped in pain and let go. I kept screaming, crying, finally drawing the attention of passersby. Realizing he’d been spotted and that grabbing Sonny again would be too difficult, the man had simply shoved me into the van and sped off. I was four years old. My brother was ten. Sonny’s face became a thundercloud. “Who do you think you are, speaking to me like that?” he snarled. “I’ll say it one more time. Get Jodie. On. The. Phone. Now.” “Oh, that’s right! You’re all so high and mighty! Us poor folk aren’t worthy of speaking to you!” Maya was clearly terrified of Sonny, but she gritted her teeth and pushed on. “You want to talk to Jodie? Maybe in your next life!” Maya, you fool! Why are you provoking him? I was frantic, wanting desperately to stop her, but it was useless. I could see Sonny’s face had become so dark it looked like it was carved from obsidian. My heart twisted for Maya, terrified of what he might do to her in retaliation. I knew what that was like. It wasn’t pleasant. And Maya was just an ordinary person; she stood no chance against my brother. Strangely, Sonny took a deep breath and, for once, didn’t retaliate. Just then, Peter suddenly spoke up. “Let me try.” 5 Sonny tossed the phone to Peter, his face a mask of stone, and walked away. Peter caught it, his tone familiar and easy. “Maya, it’s been a while. Can you put Jodie on?” Maya, Peter, and I had all grown up in the same group home. Once upon a time, we were an inseparable trio. There was a long silence on Maya’s end before she finally spoke, her voice hollow. “Well, if it isn’t the rising star of the medical world. What’s it been, a few years? Have you already forgotten how to call the person who worked her fingers to the bone to put you through school ‘sister’?” Peter’s lips curved into an unconcerned smile. “Maya. Sister. Is that better?” “Was I asking you to call me that?” Maya exploded. “Peter, has your conscience been completely eaten by dogs?” The smile vanished from Peter’s face. His expression cooled. “Maya, my patience is limited.” “Where is Jodie?” “You want to see her?” Maya’s tone was strange, almost eerie. Peter’s lips thinned, but he said nothing. Maya let out a short, sharp laugh that grew louder and more unhinged. “You want to see her now? Isn’t it a little late for that? Where were all of you before?!” Still, Peter didn’t answer. Maya’s laughter died down. When she spoke again, her voice was quiet and steady. “Jodie? Oh, she’s probably… been reincarnated into a better family by now.” The call was on speaker, the volume turned up for the show. The entire set, including the crew and the thousands watching the live stream, fell into a profound silence. My heart leaped into my throat. So, it’s finally out. Before I died, Maya was the only one by my side. She handled everything afterward. She had already borne so much for me. It was probably for the best that she let it all out. I just didn’t know how my mother and brother would react. I lowered my head, unable to look at any of them. After what felt like an eternity, a low chuckle broke the silence. 6 I turned. It was my brother. He was laughing. “You went through all that trouble just to say that?” Sonny said, slipping his hands into his pockets, utterly convinced he had uncovered the truth. “Jodie put you up to this, didn’t she.” It wasn’t a question. “She really is something else.” Peter’s head was bowed, his hair obscuring his eyes. “A person that selfish… she wouldn’t die before she’s done ruining people’s lives,” he said, his voice laced with scorn, as if the flicker of panic in his eyes moments before had been a mere illusion. I bowed my head, helpless. Of course. Peter probably wished I would just drop dead. “That’s right, I was just messing with you! So what?” Maya’s voice suddenly turned manic. “Jodie is happier than she has ever been since she left you all! Did you really think she liked living in that toxic wasteland of a family? She was sick of it! Why is it always you people who get to summon her and dismiss her whenever you please? You want to find her? Then you can crawl over here yourselves!” Maya spat out an address and, without waiting for a reply, hung up. Everyone stared at each other. The director and camera operators exchanged nervous glances, but no one dared to move. They just kept the cameras rolling. Sonny stood frozen, his expression impassive, but the veins on the back of his hand were a web of angry blue. Peter remained with his head down, his thoughts a mystery. “Go. We’ll go right now. Let’s see what kind of game this little liar Jodie is playing!” The furious voice came from behind them. My mother, leaning carefully on Chloe’s arm, strode forward. “And bring the family register,” she commanded. “The Ashfords have no such person in their family!” Chloe froze, then turned to the camera, her face a mask of pitiful pleading. “Sister, I know you’re watching. Please, I’m begging you, stop making Mom and our brothers angry. It’s not too late to admit you’re wrong.” My grandmother’s intent was clear. She was going to disown me, live on this show, in front of the whole world. In a hundred years, the Ashford family had never had such a disgraceful child. Sonny’s expression shifted through a storm of emotions. Finally, he spoke. “Jodie, you’ve gone too far this time.” “It’s time you learned a lesson.” Hearing that, I silently floated into one of the cars. And I silently cursed myself. Jodie. How could you still hold out any hope that your brother would protect you?
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