"I just remembered—could this be connected to those organ traffickers they never caught?" Zack asked seriously.

I was instantly disappointed.

Zack had actually forgotten about it. It seemed like he really despised me.

At that moment, his phone suddenly rang. The caller ID showed that it was from me.

My heart skipped a beat.

"Didn't I ask you to repent at Mom's grave? Why are you calling me now?" Zack answered the call irritably.

An obnoxious male voice answered, "You finally remembered you've got a sister after all this time now, Dr. Smith!"

A shiver ran through me. I was overwhelmed with fear and anxiety.

I'd recognize that voice anywhere—he was the drug lord.

He was the one who sent people to capture me and allowed his subordinates to torture me. He was also the one who recorded the entire process while those bastards assaulted me, saying that it would be a surprise for Zack.

I couldn't help but tremble violently. I hadn't expected him to still have my phone.

I turned to look at Zack, my nerves so rattled I forgot everything else.

Zack's expression turned sombre upon hearing a man's voice on the other end of the line. "Who are you? Where's Sandra?"

"Sandra? She's currently sleeping," the drug lord replied nonchalantly.

Zack's expression darkened immediately after hearing that. "Who are you to her?"

"Me?" The drug lord chuckled before replying, "I'm your future brother-in-law, of course! Honestly, your sister is truly mediocre. I wouldn't have even slept with her if it weren't for the fact that she has some big shot forensic pathologist brother like you!"

Zack's breathing quickened. He yelled angrily, "I don't have a younger sister as shameless as Sandra—much less a brother-in-law like you!

"Do me a favor and tell her—she doesn't have to kneel and repent in front of Mom's grave anymore! I don't want that disgusting girl tainting Mom's resting place!"

My eyes widened in disbelief, taken aback by what he said.

Zack called me a disgusting girl tainting Mom's resting place. How could he humiliate me like this just based on something the drug lord had said?

He hadn't even seen the man on the other end of the line. He didn't even ask me what exactly had happened—he just jumped to a conclusion.

I was his biological younger sister!

Memories of the past years flashed through my mind.

When I was two, Zack held me every night to help me fall asleep.

When I was seven, he cried like a baby on my first day of school.

When I was 13, when a boy gave me a love letter, Zack punched him until he got a black eye.

It could be said that my entire childhood—all the way through adulthood—was spent with him by my side. He was there for me even more than Mom was.

But everything changed on the day Mom died.

I became the person Zack despised the most, while Madison—an adopted daughter—became his favorite younger sister.

I could still remember the day Mom first brought Madison back. Worried that I might feel jealous, he'd kicked her out—but look what was happening now.

A self-deprecating smile tugged at my lips.

Perhaps love would really fade away.

I looked at Zack, watching him end the call without hesitation. He refused to pick up the call when the drug lord called again—instead, he turned off his phone.

"There's no need to be like this, Zack. I believe Sandy isn't that kind of person. There must be some kind of misunderstanding," Officer Wright said, concerned.

"That's right, Dr. Smith. Sandy seems so well-behaved—there's no way she'd do something like that!"

"That's right! Aren't you seeing things too one-sidedly, Dr. Smith?"

"Sandy is such a nice person. You should treat both your younger sisters equally, Dr. Smith."

The other forensic pathologists and police officers all chimed in.

Warmth filled my chest. It turned out that there were still many that would believe in me.

"That's enough! I don't want to hear another word of it!" Zack yelled. "If all of you like her so much, then take her as your younger sister! I'd never acknowledge her even if it costs my life!"

A heavy silence fell across the room. Everyone looked at him with complicated gazes.

I felt even more crushed seeing what had happened.

At that moment, a young police officer walked in. "Officer Wright! We found this near the victim's body!"

He then held up a Heart of the Ocean pendant for everyone to see.

Zack froze on the spot.