"Are you sure you want to send this to the cops? If it's legit, your husband could be charged with hiding a criminal," the voice asked.

Kayla Sutton flicked her cigarette out, watching the smoke swirl up. This time, she didn’t think twice.

"Yeah, I’m sure. Take it to the station yourself." She ended the call, feeling oddly numb.

Those five years in prison had been the worst of her life. Just thinking about it still made the scars on her body throb.

When she was finally released, she looked down at her old, faded clothes. But the second she looked up and saw Lionel Griffith, her husband, it hit her.

Five years. She barely managed a smile as she looked at him. But Lionel just glanced at her with a hint of disgust. "Get in the car."

Inside the car, she noticed her sister, Stephanie, sitting there too. Her face made Kayla's stomach twist.

"We're here to take you home!" Stephanie’s fake cheer faded fast when she noticed Kayla. "Why do you smell so bad? Didn’t you take a shower?" Her smile dropped, revealing how little she cared.

Kayla didn’t even bother to answer. She just stared out the window.

Life in prison had been tough, but honestly, the way things were now, she couldn’t even laugh at herself anymore.

She used to be the confident, up-and-coming CFO, a rising star in economics, making it to the top of accounting in her twenties. It felt like it all happened just yesterday.

Then that day came, the company was blindsided by a surprise audit from the bank inspectors. But Kayla always came prepared; she never went into a battle unarmed.

Except this time, when they went through the accounts, most of the files were missing from her computer. When they opened the safe, the paper records were gone too.

Kayla remembered seeing Stephanie walk out of her office right before everything went down. She tried to confront her, but Stephanie’s response was cold, "Do you have any proof?"

Her blood ran cold. She stood there, stunned. The safe’s password was her mother’s birthday and Stephanie was the only one who knew it.

On top of that, all the surveillance footage had been deleted. It took her a while to realize what had happened: she had been set up.

For years, Kayla had done everything right, never slipping up during an inspection or investigation. But after her mother died, her sister framed her and she ended up in prison.

She didn’t even know how she survived those five years. One minute, she was respected in her field and the next, she was a joke, despised by everyone. It felt like a sick joke.

When they finally pulled up to the mansion, nothing had changed except for the trees around it. The house her mom had left behind stood untouched. Kayla’s face stayed calm, but it was all just a mask. She hadn’t smiled in years.

Even in prison, she thought about one thing—her dog, Skippy. She had raised him for five years.

"Skippy! Skippy, I’m back!" she called out, but the yard was empty.

The lawn where Skippy used to play was now covered with roses—Stephanie’s favorite. But the roses were all thick with thorns, no place for Skippy to run around anymore.

The silence felt heavy and Kayla had this bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Her heart skipped a beat. She whipped around, eyes red as she locked onto Stephanie. "Where’s Skippy?"

Stephanie didn’t even blink. She pointed at the rosebush next to her with a smile. "That dog was such a pain. Do you know how annoying he was? He crushed a bunch of my roses. Do you realize how expensive they are? Lionel gave them to me, airlifted straight from Windvale."

She finished with a shy smile, cheeks tinged pink, like she had just done a favor. Kayla’s gaze was ice-cold. "Where’s my Skippy? What did you do to him?"

At the sound of Kayla’s voice rising, Stephanie’s tone softened. "I…"

Lionel looked up, his eyes briefly meeting hers. For a split second, she saw panic flash across his face before he quickly recovered, lifting his chin. "Kayla, come on. It’s just a dog. No need to yell at your sister. Stephanie’s just being nice. She gave your dog to someone else."

"Someone else?" Kayla’s teeth ground together. “That’s my dog! I raised him for five years, he’s family!”

Skippy was the last gift her mom had given her before she passed, her 20th birthday present. She still remembered her mom’s last words, "Skippy will stay with you, even if I leave."

During those five years in prison, she had worried about him constantly—whether he was eating, sleeping, or doing okay. Lionel knew how much she cared, yet he let Stephanie give him away like he was nothing.

Just like when the account books went missing—no matter how many times she told him she wasn’t responsible, he never believed her, just left her with cold words, "You go in and fix yourself. I’ll be there when you get out."

The thought hit her like ice. Kayla took a deep breath, forcing herself to speak with forced calm. "You knew that was Mom’s last gift to me. Why would you just give him away without even asking?"

A loud voice echoed from inside the mansion. "Enough already! Is this ever going to stop?"

Kayla turned to see her father, Ferris Sutton, standing in the doorway. He looked serious and over the past five years, he’d become a lot more polished.

His gray hair looked untouched and that same disgusted look never left his face. As soon as Stephanie saw him, she dashed over to his side.

"Dad! It’s all my fault! If I hadn’t gotten rid of Skippy, she wouldn’t be so mad at us," she said, practically clinging to him. They looked like the perfect father-daughter pair. It was almost comical to Kayla.

"It’s just a dog. If she wants another one, buy her one. You’re already yelling the moment you come back? How embarrassing! Can’t you learn something from your sister?" Ferris snapped.

Kayla didn’t respond. She just looked at him with a blank expression.

The truth was, even though she and Stephanie were sisters, they couldn’t have been more different. One was adored by everyone and the other was the illegitimate daughter.

Kayla had once been the CFO of her own company, while Stephanie was just a small-time clerk Ferris had put under her. Stephanie acted all innocent, but Kayla knew she’d always wanted her position.

But now, she knew it was too late.

Kayla never thought her own father would turn against her. The moment she found out the truth, she was done with this family.

But the house was her mother’s gift to her and those people were the ones who should leave.

Kayla walked past him without a word and headed upstairs. The room that used to be hers had been completely redecorated, now drenched in the pink she could never stand.

Kayla stood there, staring at the photo on the wall and it finally clicked; this room wasn’t hers anymore.

Stephanie's voice broke the silence. "You must be used to smaller spaces from your time in prison, right? I thought you might struggle with a bigger room, so I moved here. Hope that’s okay with you," she said, smiling sweetly.

Ever since Stephanie had joined the family, she had always had her eye on Kayla’s room. However, back then, Kayla had been the one in charge and even their father never dared to say no to her.

"Just go ahead and sleep, Kayla won’t mind," Lionel added with a smile, stepping in. He hadn’t smiled at her once since she got out of prison, so it felt strange now, like a jab to her chest.

She didn’t even bother to respond, just gave him a quick glance and felt a sharp ache in her heart. It was clear no one here was happy to have her back—not even Lionel.

Later, after getting some sleep, Kayla woke up, but it wasn’t the same. The bed at home felt too soft after years on a hard mattress and her back ached.

She headed downstairs and found the food already half-cold on the table.

"Kayla, that’s just leftovers. It's probably better than whatever they fed you in prison, though. You can eat it," Stephanie said, snuggling into Ferris’s side, her smile all sweetness.

Kayla looked at the half-eaten food, the mess on the table and then met Lionel’s eyes. For a split second, their gazes locked before he quickly looked away.

It stung. He had learned how to turn a blind eye to her.

Suddenly, she lost all appetite and walked out into the backyard, heading straight for the tree her mother had planted before she passed.

Kayla stood frozen, staring at the barren backyard. The tree her mother had planted was gone and all that remained was a wasteland.

She slowly walked toward the stump, her eyes catching something that made her stomach drop—white bones carelessly tossed aside. Her hand shook as she picked one up. It took a moment for her to process what she was holding.

It was a dog’s bone. Skippy. Her beloved dog had starved to death here.

Her breath hitched and tears filled her eyes as she clutched the bone. "Skippy... I’m so sorry."

Before she could collect herself, she heard footsteps approaching. It was Stephanie, looking at her with a smirk. "It’s just a dog. What’s the big deal? It ruined my flowers, so it got what it deserved."

Kayla’s lip curled in disgust. Apparently, flowers were more valuable than a life.

She gently laid the bones back in place and turned to head upstairs.

Lionel was waiting at the top of the stairs, his gaze fixed on her. He followed her as she walked into her room, catching her just as she pulled out her phone.

"Hello, police? I—" she started, but Lionel grabbed the phone from her hand.

"What do you think you’re doing?" he snapped.

Kayla met his eyes, her voice thick with emotion. "She killed my dog."

Lionel paused, his expression unreadable, before he hung up the phone. "It’s just a dog, Kayla. She’s your sister. Are you seriously calling the cops on her? Stop making a scene. You’re embarrassing yourself."

Kayla stared at him, her heart sinking. For the first time, the man she had loved felt like a stranger.

Embarrassing? When he had nothing, she had never once judged him for it.