My mother once told me she didn’t regret being shot or dying to save them, because she believed they would treat me well for the rest of their lives.

Right now, I was trying my best to stop my voice from shaking.

“Okay, I promise you,” I said quietly.

After that, Adrian hung up the phone, sounding very happy. I wiped my tears away and sent a message.

[Hannah Jameson: Professor Adkins, I’ll go on the mission assigned by the institute. I’ll join you on Saturday.]

While I was packing my things in the room, Marcel and Nancy came back.

When Marcel saw me packing, he laughed coldly.

He then said, “I really thought you had the courage to leave our house. But it looks like you’re just shameless enough to turn down the job at the institute and stay here.”

It seemed that Marcel thought I was putting the clothes back into the drawers instead of preparing to leave. Nancy smiled and wrapped her arm around his.

“Oh, Marcel, don’t say that. Hannah has always admired you since we were kids. She just wants to stay close to you.”

Marcel looked at her with a sneer as he said mockingly, “Being admired by a desperate girl in heat, what’s there to be proud of?”

I couldn’t understand why Marcel had become so cruel.

“Did I do something to hurt you?” I asked.

Marcel was stunned for a moment. He didn’t know how to answer. He knew it was just a plan he made with Adrian, a game they were playing. But the fact that I had asked Adrian for help made him feel irritated.

“Did I say anything wrong? You’ve been eating my dishes and wearing my old clothes since you were little. Now that you’ve grown up, you want to leave my house just to go fool around? Isn’t that what you’re doing?”

He got angrier and angrier as he talked. After that, he kicked over the box I had placed at the end of the bed. Everything inside spilled to the floor. Dolls, ornaments and small things I had kept. Most were gifts from Marcel and Adrian.

“Fuck, I thought you were tough. But look at you, trying to take these with you when you leave.”

He only wanted to humiliate me. He didn’t notice the sign I had already placed on the box. It said ‘trash’.

Nancy gave me a long look, then leaned into Marcel and acted cute.

“Anyway, Adrian already booked us a table. Let’s change clothes and go. Don’t let him wait too long.”

Marcel smiled at her and gently touched her head.

It caused Nancy to blush, but she then turned to me.

“Hannah, please don’t take it the wrong way. They just want to celebrate with me because I got the job at the institute. There’s nothing more to it.”

When Marcel heard that, he looked at me and saw that I was being silent.

He said, sounding annoyed, “Why are you even talking to her? She’s jobless and useless. She’ll have to rely on my family to survive anyway.”

After that, they ignored me, changed their clothes and left the house together.

The next day, when I went out to finish the paperwork, I ran into Kenneth Jackson, a colleague from the institute. He looked a little surprised when he saw the things I was carrying.

“I thought you weren’t going to join,” he said.

Not long after that, he continued, “I didn’t expect you to agree.”

The mission from the institute was hard. Before, I had refused to go because I still cared too much about my childhood friendships. But now, I knew I had to put myself first.

Since I wished to discuss some of the research plans with Professor Priscilla Adkins ahead of time, I went to the institute with Kenneth after we finished the paperwork. When we reached the entrance, I saw Nancy and the others there. Adrian looked shocked when he saw me.

“Hannah, didn’t you promise me that you wouldn’t come here?”

I didn’t want to start a fight, so I answered calmly, “Professor Adkins has always been kind to me. I just want to apologize to her in person.”

But Nancy didn’t want to back down.

“The institute is only recruiting one person this year. Not just anyone can get in. I’ve already talked to Professor Adkins myself.”

Nancy arrogantly waved the papers in her hand. However, Kenneth, who was standing next to me, looked a little uncomfortable because of her attitude.

"The institute chooses people not only based on their ability but also their character," he said.

His words made Nancy’s face red with embarrassment right away. Meanwhile, Adrian looked annoyed.

"Hannah, when did you start spending time with this kind of person? He and Nancy should apologize," he said.

I answered with no emotion, "This is Kenneth Jackson from the institute. He is one of the leaders of several big projects for the research."

Nancy smiled as soon as she heard that.

"Oh, so you're Kenneth! Hello, my name is Nancy. I guess I’ll be your junior from now on."

But Kenneth didn’t even look at her. He just took me away without saying anything. Nancy stomped her foot in frustration behind me.

Adrian watched me leave and seemed to think of something. Then, he slowly pulled out his phone and made a call.

"The last thing I asked you to do is still the same, but now it has to be done faster. I want it all over the internet in thirty minutes."

I stayed at the institute until the evening. Just as I was about to check my phone to see what time it was, I noticed a news alert that caught my attention. Without further ado, I opened it.

What I saw were private photos of me in all kinds of poses, exposed and embarrassing, the kind that made it hard to even look at the screen. I felt like my blood turned cold. In an instant, I collapsed into my chair in shock.

How could this be happening? I had already promised them, so why wouldn't they leave me alone? The painful memories from those nights came rushing back, like a horrible nightmare I couldn’t escape.

I felt like I couldn’t breathe. I grabbed the knife next to me and, without thinking, I cut my wrist. At that moment, Professor Adkins and Kenneth came rushing in. When she saw me like that, Professor Adkins immediately understood how much I had suffered.

Professor Adkins had worked with my parents and watched me grow up. She knew I was not someone who would do such things. She held me tightly while I cried in her arms and told her everything.

For quite a while, she comforted me gently and told me she wouldn’t give up on me and that we would leave this painful place soon. After that, I returned to the Dougherty house feeling completely hopeless. When I finally arrived, it was Nancy who opened the door and looked at me.

She pretended to be worried, but her face showed pride.

"Hannah, your private photos are all over the internet now. It’s really a shame. I do feel so bad for you, Hannah. I really do," she said in a fake sympathetic voice.

As Nancy spoke, she showed off the ruby necklace and ring she was wearing. That necklace and ring were keepsakes my mother gave me before she died. I had kept them safe all these years. How did she get them?

Marcel walked over.

"Who told you to let your private photos spread all over the internet? Nancy was worried about you all afternoon, so I gave those things to her to help her feel better," he said, like it was no big deal.

I didn’t want to argue with his nonsense. I just reached out my hand and said, "Give them back to me."

Marcel looked surprised that I was standing up for myself.

He said in a mocking tone, "Your mother is already dead. There's no point in holding on to her things. The institute will have a welcome party tomorrow and Nancy can wear them to show off."

I couldn’t take it anymore. I jumped at Nancy and grabbed her neck tightly.

"Give them back to me!" I shouted.

It seemed that my behavior shocked Marcel, because he just stood there, frozen. Adrian walked in right at that moment and reacted fast. He kicked me hard in the side and sent me flying.

Nancy, who had almost passed out from being choked, fell into Adrian's arms and cried like a child. Her crying seemed to wake Marcel up and he rushed over to check on her. They both held Nancy like she was the only person that mattered, gently patting her and trying to calm her down.

On the other hand, I was lying on the ground and coughed up blood. The cut on my wrist had opened again, so blood was spreading across the floor.

Yet, the image of the three of them hugging each other was burned into my eyes that hurt me the most.

It felt like I had gone back to when I was twelve years old.

When my mother died, the three of us hugged each other just like this. I remembered listening to their promises, telling me they would take care of me forever and never make me feel alone. Suddenly, I laughed even though my mouth was full of blood.

My laughter broke the warm moment they were sharing.

Marcel walked up to me and stepped hard on my bleeding wrist.

"Why are you pretending right now?" he asked me coldly.

"Nancy was almost strangled to death by you and you're still trying to act like a victim to get sympathy. I’m telling you, even if you die today, this matter won’t end so easily."

He pressed down even harder. The pain was so strong that my face twisted. I could tell he really wanted to break my hand.

Adrian finally said something, "Enough. We need to take Nancy to the hospital first."

He picked up Nancy and when he passed by me, he looked down and said something that hurt more than the wound.

"You killed your mother yourself. You don't deserve to wear that necklace and ring. So don’t take your anger out on others who are innocent."

I killed my mother? He was right. If I hadn’t begged my mom to save those kidnapped people, she would still be alive. She died because of me.

This was my punishment.

"Hahaha ... retribution ... it’s all retribution..."

I forced myself to stand and walk out of the house. After a while, I saw some lights in the distance and tried to wave. But everything went blurry and I fell to the ground.

When I woke up, I was in a hospital room. No one else was there. A nurse came in and looked at me with some pity.

"We managed to save your hand," she said softly.

"But it may never work the same again."

She sounded sorry, but in my heart, I felt strangely calm.

This hand was now the proof that my ties with them were broken. After that, I picked up the phone on the bedside table. I needed to leave the hospital and go home to get my things.

Professor Adkins had sent me a message saying she would come pick me up. When I went to pay in the hospital lobby, I unexpectedly ran into Adrian. The moment he saw me, he looked annoyed.

"I told you to stop bothering Nancy. Why did you come to the hospital? Marcel and I only see her as our little sister. She has no one else to depend on, so we support her. Why does that bother you?"

I looked at him and listened to his words, but I didn’t feel angry or sad anymore.

I just said calmly, "No, I won’t do that again."

Adrian seemed surprised. He surely had thought I came to cause trouble again.

Still, maybe because of what I’d done before, he added, "Nancy is going to the welcome banquet tonight. You hurt her badly. Give her the necklace and ring as a way to apologize."

I nodded in response as I gave him a short answer, "Okay."

He was shocked that I agreed so easily.

Again, he might have thought that I had finally realized my mistakes.

Then, he continued, "Also, give her your parents’ research notes. Let it be a gift to celebrate her future."

Those notes were something my parents worked hard for their whole lives. Professor Adkins had given them to me as a coming-of-age gift on my eighteenth birthday. Now, he wanted me to hand them over so casually.

I said again, "Okay."

My answer made him confused, perhaps even a little uneasy.

It was like he didn’t recognize me anymore.

"Good," he said slowly.

"After Nancy's celebration tonight, Marcel and I will hold a small banquet for you too. You’ve had bad luck and we want to help you move past it. I’ll invite all my friends to come."

However, he had no idea that many of those so-called friends had already spread my private photos.