Because her swollen ankle hurt so much, Sheena walked slowly all the way back to her small bed, and only then did she finally wipe away all the tears from her face.

In the dim light, Sheena carefully packed up everything in her room.

When she was done, she realized just how little she owned: a few pieces of clothing, a handful of books, a family photo, and a necklace.

The family photo was taken before Jasmin came to live with them. Her parents had brought her and Stephen to a sunflower garden for the photo. In it, Sheena’s small figure nestled in her mother’s arms, her tiny hands tightly wrapped around her mother’s neck, radiating deep attachment.

Her father stood to the side with his usual stern expression. Stephen, however, smiled with arched brows, posing like a knight protecting her. His right hand, half-hidden, was cheekily tugging at the corner of her dress.

It was the only thing Sheena had taken with her when she was sent to the countryside.

For years, this photo had been her token, the proof she clung to in order to convince herself that her parents and brother still loved her. Someday, they would be a happy family again, just like in that picture.

But now, that dream was utterly shattered.

Sheena took the photo out of its frame, ripped it into tiny pieces, and tossed them into the trash.

As for the necklace, it was a gift from Travis. A small, unremarkable trinket from a village market. The pearl had long since faded, and the chain was tarnished and dull. Yet Sheena had treasured it like a precious heirloom.

She held onto it because when Travis gave it to her, he had declared with unwavering conviction, "This is our token of love. Sheena, wait for me. I promise to make you the happiest bride in the world!"

Perhaps because the necklace was so old and cheap, it was the only thing that Jasmin hadn’t bothered to destroy. But now, Sheena didn’t want it anymore.

She slipped the necklace into her pocket, thinking that no matter how worthless it was, it was still a gift from Travis. Since she didn’t want it anymore, she should at least return it to him before leaving.

With that thought in mind, Sheena fell into a restless sleep.

When she woke up, Stephen’s furious face was looming over her. "Sheena, you did this on purpose, didn’t you?"

Her leg had throbbed all night, leaving her with a splitting headache. She had no energy to deal with him.

Her silence only fueled Stephen’s anger. He grabbed her and dragged her out of bed, pulling her all the way to the dining room.

Once he roughly threw her to the floor, he shouted again, "Look at what you’ve done!"

Sheena glanced at the empty dining table, utterly baffled as to what he was so enraged about.

Just then, Jasmin walked in wearing a pretty princess dress, covering her mouth in a mock surprise, "Sis, why didn’t you make breakfast for us?"

'Ah, so that was it.' Sheena thought.

In the past, Sheena had bent over backward to please the Brooks family. She had carefully observed everyone’s preferences, waking up three hours early every morning to prepare breakfast for them.

But today, she hadn’t done it.

Jasmin pouted, pretending to be upset. "But I love the breakfast that sister makes the most."

While comforting Jasmin, Stephen turned his fury back on Sheena. "You know perfectly well that Jasmin loves the breakfast you make, yet you deliberately didn’t cook today. How could you be so cruel?"

So it was all about breakfast—something entirely inconsequential to anyone else.

Suddenly, Sheena couldn’t help but laugh.

“Oh? But in five days—no, four now—I’ll be sent to the Wilson family to bear their punishment. Will you drag me back from there just to make breakfast for you?” Sheena indifferently retorted.

At that instant, the dining room fell into a sudden, oppressive silence.

After a moment, it was Jasmin who broke the quiet, her voice trembled as she sniffled. “Sis, you’re not skipping breakfast because of the Wilson family thing, are you? If that’s the case, then I’ll go take the punishment instead!”

With that, she turned to run outside.

Stephen hurriedly grabbed her, pulling her into a comforting embrace. “If someone has to die at the Wilson family, it should be Sheena! How could it be you?”

The moment the words left his mouth, Stephen froze, stunned at his own cruelty.

'She’s my sister too...' he muttered inwardly.

Instantly, Sheena’s eyes turned ice-cold, as if looking at a sworn enemy. “Stephen, I will never waste another ounce of emotion on someone as vile as you for the rest of my life!”

Her words shattered the fleeting guilt in Stephen’s heart. His face twisted in anger. “Fine! Sheena, you’re really something!”

He grabbed her by the hair and dragged her into the storage room, slamming the door shut.

Before locking it, Stephen spat out his final words, his voice trembling with rage, “Sheena, you can stay there until you come to your senses and agree to make breakfast. If not, then rot in there for all I care!”

With that, he stormed off, taking Jasmin with him. Before leaving, he sternly instructed the servants. “Don’t let her out until she admits she was wrong and cook breakfast!”

What Stephen didn’t know was that Sheena was already running a high fever.

Her sprained ankle, untreated from the night before, had swollen grotesquely. On top of that, her skin had scraped against the rough ground as she was dragged, leaving raw, bleeding wounds.

The searing pain on her scalp from having her hair yanked was now the least of her worries.

At first, Sheena banged on the door and screamed for help. But before long, her strength gave out, and she collapsed unconscious.

The servants, following orders, ignored her silence and they didn’t open the door.

It wasn’t until Amanda casually asked about her that the truth came to light.

Since losing her youngest child, Amanda had suffered from chronic headaches, which had only worsened over the years. But things had slightly improved after Sheena returned from the countryside.

Although Sheena was cautious and distant in the Brooks household, Amanda noticed her daughter often stealing glances at her.

When Sheena discovered her mother’s headaches, she began secretly learning massage techniques during her spare time. Without access to professional instructors, she studied online tutorials instead.

She filled up four or five notebooks with detailed notes and practiced late into the night for two months straight.

To ensure her skills were effective, she tested the techniques on herself repeatedly before shyly suggesting she could help relieve her mother’s pain.

Looking at the daughter she had barely raised, Amanda couldn’t bring herself to refuse and reluctantly agreed.

By sheer luck, Sheena’s massages actually eased her mother’s headaches.

When she saw her mother’s furrowed brows relax, Sheena’s joy was beyond words.

From that day on, she faithfully massaged her mother every evening.

But two days had passed without Sheena showing up.

Suspicious, Amanda sent someone to find her.

They discovered Sheena locked in the storage room, her entire body burning with fever. By the time they carried her out, her breathing was faint and uneven, as if she were clinging to life by a thread.

Seeing Sheena lying lifelessly on the floor, curled up and pale, Amanda felt fear for the first time. She immediately ordered for her to be taken to the hospital.

Thankfully, due to the timely intervention, Sheena’s fever subsided.

When Stephen was summoned to the hospital, he was startled to the core. He never imagined things would escalate to this extent. Even now, he couldn’t quite understand why he had been so furious at the time.

Yet, when he saw the look of resentment on Sheena’s face, a chill had run down his spine.

'She’s my sister. How could she look at me like I’m her sworn enemy?' he thought.

Sheena, who had always been meek and eager to please him, circling around him like a lapdog, suddenly declared, “I will never waste another ounce of emotion on a piece of garbage like you, for anything, ever again.”

’What gave her the right to say that?' he internally muttered.

Amanda harshly reprimanded Stephen.

Jasmin hurried forward, tearfully defending her brother, “Big Brother didn’t mean it. Besides, it was Sis who made him angry first.”

“She was upset about being sent to the Wilson family and took it out on Big Brother. He’s been so distressed these past two days he hasn’t even eaten properly.”

“Mom, please don’t scold him anymore. If Sis still won’t forgive Big Brother, let her take it out on me instead. She can hit me or yell at me—I’ll take it.”

As she spoke, Jasmin began to sob pitifully.

Amanda immediately embraced her younger daughter. “Alright, alright. Sheena isn’t the type to hold grudges. She’ll be fine in a couple of days.”

No one noticed that Sheena, lying in the hospital bed, had already opened her eyes. She watched the scene before her with icy indifference.

The next day, Sheena was discharged from the hospital.

Although the doctor had advised her to stay two more days, the following day was the Wilson family’s final deadline.

Amanda arranged for her discharge. Initially, she planned to personally pick up Sheena, but as she was about to leave, Jasmin clung to her arm.

“Mom, you promised to take me to get my dress tailored today. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten?” Jasmin pouted.

“But I also promised Sheena I’d pick her up today,” Amanda hesitated.

Knowing Sheena was leaving for the Wilson family the next day, Amanda felt a twinge of guilt.

“But this dress is being custom-made by a master designer I worked so hard to find...” Jasmin’s eyes turned red as she continued, “You always kept your promises to me before. Is it because Sis is back that I’ve become less important to you?”

“If that’s the case, then I’ll just leave. After all, Sis tried to abandon me in the woods back then.”

At the mention of the past, Amanda’s expression darkened. She casually instructed the driver to pick up Sheena later before leaving with Jasmin.

The Brooks family’s driver, a shrewd man, had long noticed Sheena’s low status in the household. After receiving a subtle hint from Jasmin, he didn’t bother to go to the hospital that afternoon.

Sheena waited at the hospital entrance for three hours. Finally, with a bitter smile, she muttered to herself in self-mockery, "As expected."

She had already known this would happen. After all, tomorrow she would be sent to the Wilson family, never to return.

As she was about to hail a cab, a car pulled up in front of her.

Travis stepped out from the driver’s seat. When he saw Sheena, he barely recognized her.

In just three days, how had Sheena become so frail?

“Sheena, what happened? Why are you coming out of the hospital? No wonder I couldn’t find you at the Brooks house,” he said, his voice filled with worry.

“Do you know how scared I was when I couldn’t find you? I almost called the police.”