The fake daughter only sneezed.

My three brothers reacted as if she were on her deathbed, crowding around her anxiously and refusing to let her out of their sight.

So when she pointed her finger at me again, insisting I had shoved her into the pool, they accepted her story without a second thought.

They hauled me to a deserted walk-in freezer, sealed the door behind me at -58°F, and made sure the only escape was out of reach.

I screamed for my oldest brother, the CEO, to let me out.

He called me a cruel attention seeker.

I begged my second brother, the doctor.

He told me I finally got what I deserved.

I begged my third brother, the big-shot attorney.

He just sneered. "You've always been jealous of Chloe. Now you pushed her into the pool when you knew she was fragile? You really are rotten. Someone like you needs to stay in there and cool off."

Then, they bundled Chloe into their arms and rushed her to the hospital over a sneeze.

Bit by bit, warmth seeped from my body, until it seemed like ice was flowing through my veins instead of blood.

After thirty-six hours, I slipped away, lost to the cold.

Three days later, Chloe returned from the hospital, and only then did my brothers remember I existed.

But by then, the freezer had already claimed me.

Frozen Out by My Own Brothers

I died shivering in that forgotten walk-in freezer, the cold swallowing me whole.

It was only after death claimed me that the truth finally surfaced.

Chloe had changed the setting from 14°F to -58°F. The phone I could have used to call for help froze and died with me.

Afterward, my soul lingered, tethered to the shadows of my three brothers.

For three endless days, I watched them hover around Chloe's hospital bed, as if she were the true victim clinging to life.

My oldest brother, Ethan Ellison, blew off a billion-dollar deal just to make her ginger tea himself.

My second brother, Mason Ellison, pushed back an international medical conference and stayed by her bedside day and night.

My third brother, Logan Ellison, bought out every fireworks display in the city just to make her smile after she woke up.

It became a contest between them, each brother vying to outdo the others in showering her with affection.

Not a single one remembered I was still entombed in that icy prison. By then, my body had become nothing but a pale, frozen relic covered in frost.

…

Three days later, Chloe finally came home.

The butler met them at the door, his face pale. "Ms. Harper has been in the freezer for three days. She hasn't made a sound."

I expected panic to seize them.

Instead, Ethan's expression turned icy.

"Shut up," he snapped. "Chloe just got discharged. Why are you bringing up that curse now?"

The butler opened his mouth again.

Mason cut him off with one cold look. "She pushed Chloe into the lake. Letting her cool off for a few days is more than fair."

Logan scoffed. "She knew Chloe was weak, and she still shoved her into freezing water. She can stay there until she learns her lesson."

Then, he added, almost bored, "Relax. I set it to 14°F. It won't kill her. She'll suffer a little, that's all."

That word "suffer" made Ethan pause.

For a fleeting moment, he seemed to recall that pain had been my only companion since birth. His eyes wavered with doubt.

"You're sure it's 14°F?" he asked. "Maybe we should check."

Before Logan could answer, Chloe lifted her wrist. Her sleeve slipped back just enough to reveal a few faint red marks.

Then, she coughed softly and whispered, "Don't blame Harper. Maybe she didn't mean it. We should just let her out—"

Mason's face changed the second he saw her wrist. He grabbed her hand and asked, "Did she do this to you?"

Chloe quickly pulled away. "No. I bumped it myself. Harper was just upset because I took her place. She only grabbed me for a second."

"Grabbed you?" Mason's voice dropped. "Those are finger marks."

Ethan's brief hesitation vanished. He pulled out his phone and opened our chat.

The last message was from three days ago.

My phone had died before I could send a single word, leaving behind only a failed message and a missed call.

No apology. No explanation.

Ethan slammed the phone down. "Three days, and not one apology. She really thinks she did nothing wrong?"

Chloe lowered her head, her voice thin and shaky. "Maybe… Maybe Harper doesn't want me as her sister. Maybe I should move out. Then she won't be angry anymore."

Ethan stood at once. "Don't ever say that. She has no right to push you out. You're the sister we raised. As long as I'm here, she won't hurt you again."

Mason and Logan nodded, their voices just as cold.

"We were fools to feel sorry for her."

"She doesn't deserve it. Come on, Chloe. Let's get you something warm to eat."

The butler trembled. "But Ms. Harper really hasn't moved in three days."

Logan waved him off impatiently. "You think a few days in a freezer can kill her?"

He gave a short laugh. "Come on, Patrick. She spent fifteen years in some poor little town. She's been through worse. Stop making a scene before you scare Chloe."

I drifted above them, forced to listen as my own brothers cursed my name.

All I could manage was a hollow smile.

Fifteen years in that poor little town.

To help my foster parents scrape by, I hauled bricks, scavenged through trash, and scrubbed dishes through endless winters, until the cold seeped into my very bones.

I believed everything would change the day my real family found me.

Instead, my parents died in a car crash on the way to bring me home. My brothers finally brought me back themselves.

At first, they hugged me and cried. They promised they would make up for every year I had suffered.

Then, Chloe cried.

She sobbed about how her real parents had done terrible things, how she would spend the rest of her life paying for their sins if she had to.

My brothers rushed to comfort her. "Chloe, that has nothing to do with you. You're innocent. You'll always be our sister."

Then they turned to me. "Get along with Chloe, and don't bring those bad habits from the sticks into this house."

For the sake of the only family I had left, I swallowed every bitter word and accusation.

Chloe framed me again and again.

My brothers never believed a word I said.

They always gave me the same answer. "We raised Chloe ourselves. Don't you think we know what kind of person she is?"

Then, three days ago, Chloe sent all the staff away.

In front of my brothers, she threw herself into the icy lake and screamed that I had pushed her. They did not ask me a single question before dragging me straight to the abandoned freezer.

I kneeled in front of the frost-covered door and begged until my voice broke.

I told them I was afraid of the cold and that I would die there.

Mason only sneered. "Stop being dramatic. Chloe has a fever because of you. A little cold will help you think clearly."

Logan ripped out the only emergency switch and sealed off my last way out.

Now, seeing them shield Chloe like a fragile treasure, I finally understood: my brothers never cared for the truth.

They only needed an excuse to keep loving her.

A bitter smirk twisted my lips. 'Look closer, my dear brothers. The darling sister you cherish is the one who killed your real sister.'

Frozen Out by the Brothers Who Loved a Liar

For hours, laughter echoed through the Ellison Residence, every note bright and deliberate.

My brothers made sure I heard every sound.

They wanted me to understand that my absence meant nothing to anyone.

"Ethan, you worked so hard today. Mason, Logan, you should try some too."

Chloe had baked a fresh batch of cookies. She smiled sweetly as she handed them out, then moved behind Ethan and began massaging his shoulders.

With a single word, these three men could send the entire city into a panic, yet in her presence, all their fierceness softened, as if they had melted completely.

My soul slipped once more behind the frostbitten steel door.

My body remained curled in the corner, twisted into a shape no living person should ever have to endure.

My skin had taken on a ghastly blue-purple hue, while frost clung to my lashes and tangled through my hair.

Still, it was my fingers that suffered most.

I had clawed at the door until every nail bent or snapped, blood freezing into shards of dark red ice around my fingertips.

What a wretched sight I had become.

As I stared numbly at my own ruined body, the old butler entered the living room with drinks and fell to his knees once more.

This was the third time he had pleaded for my life.

"Mr. Ethan, please. It's been three days. Ms. Harper grew up poor, and her health has always been weak. If you don't let her out now, she is going to die."

Ethan's hand froze around his cup, his brow furrowing, while Mason slowly lowered his newspaper.

For a fleeting moment, both seemed genuinely shaken.

But then Chloe's eyes reddened, tears spilling down her cheeks before anyone could utter a word. "It's my fault," she whispered. "If I hadn't made Harper angry, she wouldn't have to suffer like this."

She forced herself shakily to her feet.

"I'll go apologize to her. I'll kneel if I have to. Let her out. Put me in there instead."

That was enough to shatter any sympathy left for me.

Whatever pity my brothers still held for me vanished in an instant.

Ethan grabbed Chloe and pulled her back.

Then, he turned on the butler and snapped, "Shut your mouth. Are you the Ellison family's butler, or are you that girl's dog?"

Logan gave a cold laugh. "Patrick, remember this clearly. A girl ruined by the slums doesn't deserve to be an Ellison. Chloe is our only sister."

'Our only sister?' The words echoed inside me, making my soul tremble.

When I first returned, they had promised that I was the only family left to our parents. They had sworn they would never choose Chloe over me.

Just three days ago, I spent three sleepless nights carving a sandalwood charm for Ethan, my palms blistered and raw.

Chloe snatched it from my hands, and as I lunged to reclaim it, she hurled herself into the icy lake, screaming that I had pushed her.

My brothers never questioned her story. They simply dragged me to the freezer.

So this was the truth: Chloe had always been their only sister.

A bitter laugh bubbled up inside me.

A family like this? I wanted nothing more to do with them.

Suddenly, the front doors burst open.

A staff member assigned to watch the freezer stumbled in, pale and trembling. "Mr. Ethan! Something's wrong!"

His voice cracked. "The freezer's been silent all this time. I looked through the vent, and—"

He swallowed hard. "Ms. Harper… I don't think she's breathing. She's frozen solid."

A heavy silence fell over the living room.

Ethan sprang from the couch, panic flickering across his face so quickly I almost wondered if I had imagined it.

Mason and Logan exchanged a single glance before turning toward the door.

At last, they were going to see for themselves.

Then, Chloe let out a soft cry and dropped to the floor, clutching Ethan's sleeve. "Ethan… is Harper still angry with me?"

She pressed a trembling hand to her chest, and for the first time, real fear flickered in her eyes.

She remembered setting the freezer from 14°F down to -58°F. Now, fear gnawed at her—if I were dead, all her secrets could come to light, so she wept even harder.

"My birth parents told me she used to fake fainting back in the countryside whenever she didn't want to work."

Her voice trembled.

"Do you think she's doing it again? Is she trying to scare you into sending me away?"

Then she lowered her head.

"Maybe I should just leave. You're her real brothers. I'm only the daughter of the people who stole her."

Those words bewitched them more than any magic ever could.

The panic vanished from my brothers' eyes, replaced by guilt for Chloe and a burning hatred for me.

Ethan gave a sharp, disgusted laugh. "So now she's pretending to be dead?"

Mason pushed his gold-rimmed glasses up, his eyes cold. "People can fake fainting. They can hold their breath. It's a cheap trick."

Logan's expression darkened. "She can't bear to see Chloe happy. So she chose today to make a scene, is that it?"

He strode toward the door. "Fine. If she wants to play dead, let's go watch her performance."

Chloe's face drained of color.

She had only meant to keep them from going.

Now, they were truly on their way.

She clutched her chest, coughing violently as her body swayed. "Ethan… My chest hurts. Please don't go. Stay with me, okay?"

Yet Chloe had miscalculated one crucial thing.

My brothers loved her so fiercely that anyone who upset her became their enemy, and that love twisted into cruelty toward me.

At the sight of her coughing, Ethan hurled his teacup to the floor. Shards scattered in every direction.

"Don't be afraid, Chloe. Go rest." His voice trembled with fury. "That vicious girl dared to upset you. Today, I'll drag her back here to beg for your forgiveness."

Mason opened his medical kit, pulling out a syringe with a chilling calm.

"Playing dead?" His voice was icier than the freezer itself. "Then, I'll make sure she wishes she really was."

Logan loosened his tie and stormed ahead, fury etched across his face. "Let's break the door down. I want to see how long she keeps up this act once we drag her out."

The Sister Behind the Frozen Door

I couldn't help following my brothers down to the basement.

With every step, a heavy pressure settled deeper in my chest.

The hallway outside the old walk-in freezer was bitterly cold. Ethan, Mason, and Logan marched straight toward the frost-covered steel door.

Ethan kicked it hard.

The entire door shuddered with a dull, thunderous boom.

"Harper, stop playing dead and get out of here!"

His voice echoed through the basement.

"You upset Chloe so badly her heart condition flared up. Today, you're getting on your knees and apologizing to her."

Inside the freezer, there was only silence.

I drifted above, watching anger contort his features.

He had no idea that there was no one inside who could answer him anymore.

When nothing came from the other side, Mason pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and gave a cold smile.

"Still trying to make us feel sorry for you?" His voice was full of contempt. "You think if you stay quiet long enough, we'll cave? In extreme cold, people instinctively cry for help. You're not making a sound. Even your act is sloppy."

A deeper shadow crossed Logan's face.

He grabbed the trembling staff member beside him by the collar. "Did she pay you off? Did you let her sneak out?"

His voice turned vicious. "Using this pathetic silent treatment to threaten us? Who does she think she is?"

The staff member collapsed to his knees as he pleaded with Logan. "Mr. Logan, no! I swear! Ms. Harper hasn't left this room once in three days!"

When Ethan heard I was still inside, he let out a cold snort and reached for the handle. "You almost killed Chloe, and you still won't admit you were wrong. Are you even worthy of being an Ellison?

"Come out and apologize, Harper. Do that, and we'll still see you as our sister. Otherwise—"

He yanked the handle. The door didn't move.

Ethan's expression darkened instantly. He kicked the door again, harder this time. He laughed in fury. "So now you've learned to lock it from the inside? You think this will force us to give in?"

Mason and Logan stepped forward, too, grabbed the handle, and pulled with all their strength.

"Open the door!"

"Harper, get out here and apologize!"

Yet no matter how hard they pulled, the door stayed jammed shut.

Ethan frowned, his patience snapping. "What the hell? Why is the door stuck like it's frozen solid?"

I hovered overhead, my gaze fixed on the warped steel door below.

I thought, 'Of course it wouldn't open. Three days ago, I was trapped in that impossible cold, pounding on the door with whatever strength I had left.

'My nails were bent back. Some were torn clean off. Blood ran down my fingers and seeped into the lock, then the cold froze it solid. That door wasn't locked from the inside. I sealed it with my own blood.'

"She must have wrecked the lock from the inside on purpose." Logan suddenly laughed, sharp and furious. He kicked the door again. "Great. Now she's breaking things just to fight us?"

Mason turned to the security team, his voice ice-cold. "Get a sledgehammer and a saw. Cut the lock open. Let's see how long she can keep hiding in there."

His eyes narrowed. "Today, the three of us are going to teach you some discipline."

Soon, the guards came back with heavy tools. Sparks burst and scattered across the concrete.

The screech of tearing metal ricocheted through the basement.

As the saw chewed deeper, the door finally split open a narrow, jagged slit.

A wave of frigid air surged out, laced with a sharp, sickening stench.

Every face blanched in horror.

"M-Mr. Ethan…" The staff member shook so hard his teeth chattered. "That smell isn't right. That's… That's the smell of death."

The basement went silent.

Ethan froze with his hand still on the door, his eyes narrowing.

But a second later, Logan slapped the staff member across the face. "Shut your mouth! You think someone can die at 14°F? Do you think I'm an idiot?"

Then he shoved the guards aside and snatched the sledgehammer himself.

"Harper, listen carefully. Mom and Dad may be gone, but today, the three of us are going to teach you the lesson they never got to."

He raised the sledgehammer high. With all his rage behind it, he brought it down on the half-broken lock.

The sound shook the basement.

The heavy steel door that had trapped me for three whole days finally crashed to the floor.

Harsh hallway light spilled into the freezer's pitch-black void.

My brothers strode into the swirling white fog, their anger still wrapped tight around them like armor.

"Why the hell is it this cold?"

"Harper, get out here—" Ethan's roar caught in his throat. At last, he saw the figure curled up in the middle of the freezer.