Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"What are you implying? It is just a few meals! We have been living off Mom and Dad's insurance money all along, so stop acting like a saint! Who knows how much of that money you secretly pocketed!"

Sienna yelled at me, her face contorted with anger.

Her words chilled me to the bone. All these years, she genuinely believed I was squandering our dead parents' money instead of breaking my back working.

I let out a bitter, cold laugh.

"If that is what you think, I will print out every single bank statement tomorrow so you can see who really paid for everything."

I turned on my heel and walked away. Behind me, her shrill voice echoed down the hall.

"Nora Bailey, if you walk away now, don't you dare ever come back!"

I didn't turn back, nor did I answer.

The hospital shift was a lie, but the first thing I did after arriving at the clinic was cancel the authorized card linked to my bank account.

I pulled up the indoor security camera on my phone.

Sienna had dragged Logan Mercer into the living room with great difficulty. When he groaned and asked for water, her hand hovered over her own mug before picking up mine instead.

Nausea rose in my throat at her disgusting lack of morals.

She stood three feet away from him, handing him my mug with visible revulsion on her face.

I smirked and closed the app.

There was nothing valuable left in that apartment anyway. I was glad I had already packed my important documents for work, saving me from any risk of infection.

Lying on the narrow bed in the staff dorms, an overwhelming wave of relief washed over me.

I had never truly rested in my entire life. Between school, clinicals, part-time jobs, and catering to Sienna's every whim, I had been running on fumes.

I had thought things would get easier after she graduated, but she quit her first job after two days and went back to being a couch potato.

For ten years, I had never slept more than four hours a night.

Now, all I wanted was a peaceful night of sleep.

Around two in the morning, my phone began vibrating violently on the nightstand. Afraid it was a medical emergency from the ER, I groggily answered.

Sienna's ear-splitting screech blasted through the speaker.

"Nora, what the hell is wrong with you? Why did you freeze my card? Are you trying to starve me to death?"

Of course. She never cared what time it was or whether someone was sleeping. In her mind, her needs always took priority over the entire world.

"You are an adult," I said coldly. "I have zero legal obligation to support you."

My voice was hoarse from exhaustion. I had not intended to cut ties so aggressively, but her behavior was utterly sickening.

As I moved to hang up, Sienna shrieked into the receiver.

"Nora Bailey! I am younger than you! You are obligated to take care of me until the day we die!"

Her screeching words made my body stiffen.

Ever since we were little, relatives and neighbors had shoved that toxic burden onto me.

"Nora, you are her big sister. You are the only family she has left. You must protect her."

I thought I had done everything a human could possibly do.

I remembered the day our parents died. Little Sienna had wept in my arms, asking innocently if we had no Mommy and Daddy anymore.

Back then, I had swallowed my own grief, held her tight, and promised that she would always have me.

I had completely forgotten that I was just a child myself.

"Sienna, I am only three years older than you," I whispered, my voice hoarse.

Three years. A tiny gap that had crushed the first half of my life.

There was a brief pause on the line, followed by a cold scoff.

"Even if you are three seconds older, you are still my sister! Turn the card back on right now. I need to take Logan out for a nice dinner."

Hearing that same entitled tone, my heart turned completely to ash.

Without saying another word, I hung up and blocked her number and all her social media accounts.

She had burned me to death in our past life. How dare she demand anything from me now?