After my parents passed away, Gerald and Gary took turns caring for me around the clock. They feared I might take my own life in grief.

Eventually, worried that I was lonely, they adopted a girl my age from the orphanage—Sophia Norris.

But Sophia's arrival shattered our family. She took my dresses, stole my jewelry, and finally smashed my parents' portrait.

That was the breaking point. I slapped her, but at that exact moment, Gerald and Gary walked in.

Sophia framed me, claiming I had destroyed the portrait deliberately. She wanted them to lose faith in me, to cast me out.

At first, they didn't believe her. But when she revealed her wounds and sobbed that I had abused her, they never saw me in the same light again. They grew cold, distant, and treated me like a stranger.

As Sophia's accusations piled up, my brothers' affection turned into hatred. Eventually, they sided with her in every quarrel, never sparing a thought for me.

Like today, they locked me in the suffocating basement after a trivial argument. Gerald and Gary knew I had asthma; they knew the stagnant air could kill me.

When we were children, I once got trapped in a storeroom, and they had pounded on the door until they suffered fractures.

Now, their only response to my cries and pleas was a laugh.

"It's just for a while. Why the dramatics? We've obviously been too soft on you."

"Gerald, stop wasting your time on her. Sophia will worry if we're gone too long."

Then Gerald turned to the guards. "You can all leave for the night."

He looked at me, "Don't you love screaming? I'll let you get your fill. Even if you scream your lungs out, no one will save you. Don't blame me for being cruel. You brought this on yourself."

And just like that, I died on my birthday.

I gave a bitter, self-deprecating laugh. A lifetime with my brothers meant nothing compared to four short years with Sophia.

Suddenly, Zachary stormed in, furious. "Take me to Ms. Moore right now! I want an explanation from her!"

His phone displayed the message Gary had sent her. Sophia quickly tugged at Zachary's sleeve. "Calm down, Zachary. Giselle must be delirious from her fever. I'm sure she didn't mean to hurt you."

Gary sneered. "Delirious from her fever? That's just her vile personality. Mr. Green, you're lucky she doesn't like you. Someone like her doesn't deserve you."

Gerald nodded. "Exactly. You'd be better off paying attention to the people already around you."

Sophia gazed up at Zachary shyly, her eyes glimmering with affection.

However, Zachary just shoved her aside and declared impatiently, "Giselle isn't that type of person!"

He glared at Gerald and Gary. "What would your parents think if they knew how you've mistreated your own sister? If you won't take me to Giselle, I'll find her myself!"

Zachary shook off Sophia's grip and left without looking back.

Tears immediately welled in her eyes.

At that, both Gerald and Gary were enraged on her behalf. Gerald slammed his fist on the table and roared, "Mistreating? She deserves it! If she treated Sophia better, would we need to punish her?"

Gary smirked. "You want to find her? Send ten men to guard the basement entrance. No one is to approach her without my permission!"

As guards rushed downstairs, my heart sank.

Gerald, Gary, there was no need for that. I was already long gone.

Even if Zachary came to my rescue, he would find only a corpse.

I drifted to the corner of the banquet hall and looked out the window. I didn't want to continue looking at their display of sibling affection—their new perfect version of a family.

Outside, snow fell more heavily. A man held his sister close, breathing warmth into her hands.

My eyes stung at the sight of that. My brothers used to treat me like that.

Just as I was lost in memory, a guard burst in. "Mr. Gerald, Mr. Gary, Ms. Giselle isn't moving. When I got close, I couldn't hear her breathing."

Gerald froze for a moment. Recovering his composure, he slammed his palm against the table. His voice thundered, "Giselle's acting is getting better! Barely two hours in the basement, and this is what she pulls?"

Gary remained silent for a beat before speaking, his tone uneasy. "Gerald, Giselle has asthma. Could it be…"

The two exchanged wary glances, doubt flickering in their eyes. Sophia interjected quickly, "Asthma? But hasn't Giselle always carried her medication? I don't think anything serious would happen to her."

Relief washed over Gerald and Gary, but their anger soon returned.

Gary summoned a guard. "If she keeps pretending to be unconscious after half an hour, head in and slap awake. Got it?

"She thinks fainting will spare her punishment? How naive. Once she's up, drag her here. If Giselle refuses to apologize to Sophia today, she'll rot in that basement for the rest of her life."

Sophia tugged at Gary's shirt, looking up at him pitifully. "Don't hit Giselle, Gary. She's your biological sister, and I'm just an orphan. How could she ever apologize to me?"

"What nonsense is that? To us, you mean just as much as she does. You are both my sisters," Gary said, pulling Sophia into an embrace.

Gerald approached and patted her head. "I agree. I'd rather have you as my sister than Giselle."

I thought I had grown numb to the world, but hearing those words still cut deep.

Suddenly, a guard rushed in, exclaiming, "Bad news! Mr. Green overheard the maids and discovered Ms. Giselle's whereabouts. He's at the entrance of the basement, shouting that he'll save her!"

Sophia's eyes welled with tears, while Gerald and Gary were livid.

"He's truly besotted with her! What a pity he's chosen the wrong woman!"

"Let's head to the basement. I'll make Giselle kneel and apologize to Sophia. Let's see if Zachary still wants her once she's been thoroughly humiliated."

Gerald and Gary strode out of the room. I followed in silence, listening to them hurl insults at me with every step they took.

The moment Gerald and Gary approached, Zachary swung at Gary.

"You locked her up? Don't you know she has asthma? You're murderers!"

His voice cracked with fury, and watching his desperation made a lump rise in my throat.

Zachary and I had grown up together, and he had harbored feelings for me for years.

But every time I tried to return his affection, Sophia would intervene. Before a date with Zachary, she would pour paint all over me. She would even throw his gifts for me into the drain.

Because of her, my relationship with Zachary had always been rocky. My brothers had no idea; they simply thought I was trying to steal Sophia's man.

Gerald wanted to punch Zachary, but he held himself back when he saw Sophia. Straightening his collar, he forced his anger down. "Mr. Green, don't meddle in our family's affairs. Giselle was locked up because she did something wrong."

"Something wrong?" Zachary roared, his voice echoing through the corridor. "I've heard about this. All this because Sophia's dress was torn?

"Isn't Sophia wearing a fancy gown now? Did you really need to hurt Giselle like that?"

Suddenly, Sophia collapsed to her knees, sobbing into her palms, her shoulders shaking. "I'm sorry, Zach. It's all my fault. I made a fuss over nothing."

She crawled to Gerald and Gary, clutching their pants. "Let Giselle out! I won't do this again. I'll behave."

With every word Sophia spoke, Gerald's and Gary's expressions darkened.

Gary ordered a guard to subdue Zachary, pressing him to the floor. Then, Gary kicked the door open.

"You must be thrilled, Giselle, hearing Zachary defend you. But don't be naive! Unless you kneel and apologize to Sophia, you'll never leave the basement!"

Gerald trembled with rage. He glared at Zachary, who met his stare with defiance. "Take my advice—find someone else. You're blinded by Giselle's innocent face. We were fooled too. We thought she was the best sister in the world.

"But after Sophia came home, Giselle grew jealous of our attention and abused her to drive her away. Sophia grew up in an orphanage; her life was already hard. She finally found a family, only to be tormented!"

At that thought, Gerald and Gary grew even angrier. They helped Sophia to her feet and promised, "Don't worry, Sophia. We'll make sure she apologizes to you, even if it kills her. As for Zachary, I'll talk to his father and arrange for you to marry him."

"What? I don't want to marry her!" Zachary's head shot up.

Gerald and Gary didn't even spare him a glance. They yelled toward the metal door, "Still keeping your mouth shut, Giselle? Don't think that you'll escape just by staying silent!"

Gary turned to Sophia. "If she doesn't speak in three minutes, take off the gown Mom gave her. I'll cut it into pieces in front of her."

I looked at him incredulously. So he did remember that our mom had gifted that gown to me. And it wasn't just a gift; Mom had equally treasured it.

Our mother, whom we all loved!

How could they destroy her belongings for Sophia?

I screamed at them, but my voice never reached them.

The seconds ticked by. Soon, the three minutes were over.

"Go change, Sophia!"

Sophia bit her lip, mumbling, "Giselle would be sad if she found out."

"No way! If she did, she wouldn't have stayed silent," Gerald hissed. "Don't forget how she destroyed our parents' portrait just to get rid of you."

Sophia smirked smugly before heading off to change.

Once she returned, Gary raised his scissors and shredded the gown.

Zachary thrashed against the guard, shouting, "Giselle won't forgive you for this, Gary!"

But Gary kept cutting. Every snip felt like he was cutting away a piece of my heart. I watched from beside them, helpless.

I didn't want to be silent, my brothers. Before dying, I had screamed with everything I had. I had called for Gerald and Gary, begging them to save me.

I kept waiting, but the only person who came was Sophia. She took my inhaler and sealed the door tight, condemning me to suffocation.

As the last scrap of cloth fell, my heart shriveled.

After surveying the shreds strewn across the floor, Gerald and Gary kicked the door once more. Still, there was no response.

Gary swore under his breath and instructed the guards to open the door.

As the door swung wide, a gray corpse with swollen eyes appeared before them.