Even my closest pals, Emily and Noah, were unaware of it. I didn’t want to drag them into peril.
A few nights before graduation, I happened to overhear a furious quarrel behind my father’s study door one evening when I returned home for dinner. My mother’s worried voice stopped me as I was about to pass.
Richard, are you certain that this is required? What happens if someone discovers?”
My dad had a harsh, low voice.
“Don’t you understand? She has sufficient proof already. She won’t need us ever again after adding the inheritance. She has the power to destroy the entire business.
As she responded, my mother’s voice faltered.
“However, she is our daughter.”
My father interrupted her, saying, “No.” She poses a danger. A covert probe has already been started by the FDA. We lose everything if Harper speaks.
With my heart racing, I held my breath. Each word struck my skull like a hammer strike.
My father’s voice then became quieter, yet it was still audible to me.
“The idea is to just put her in the hospital and make her ill for a few days.” We will also handle the paperwork and maintain the records during that time.
In the worst case scenario, the funds return to us if she passes away before the trust is disbursed. The law is that.
With freezing sweat streaming down my face, I stood motionless behind the door. As the girl they brought into the world, I was the target of a scheme by my own parents.
Furthermore, the $10 million wasn’t the only factor. Silencing my truth regarding the West Facility was the goal.
I wanted to yell and charge in at that moment. However, another internal voice murmured:
“No. They’ll find another means if they know you’ve heard. Something far worse
I took a step back, making myself go back to the living room and act as though nothing had happened.
Sophia sat next to me that night and talked happily about her employment at the company. She inquired as to whether I intended to apply to an international environmental group after graduation.
I gazed at her gorgeous, self-assured face, totally oblivious to our parents’ plot. Then it occurred to me that Sophia had not participated in that discussion. She had nothing to do with their schemes.
I was never the adversary, yet I was still the distant older sister to her.
My chest constricted as I watched her giggle. A part of me wanted to shield her from being used as collateral in our parents’ power struggles, while another part of me was angry at her for being loved without conditions.
I had to be prepared since I knew that everything will blow up in a matter of days.
The days leading up to graduation appeared happy and bright from the outside.
However, they hung thick like a black fog over me. My parents smiled a lot and spoke softly, but everything they said and did was deceptive.
I had a persistent fear that the celebration they were organizing was intended to kill me rather than praise me.
The most terrifying aspect was that I was unable to tell anyone, not even my loved ones, for fear that they would be dragged down with me.
At that moment, I realized that the fight for my life had begun and that I, Harper Lee, would have to travel alone to the truth.
It was finally the night of my graduation celebration.
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