Chapter 3
Gently telling Nora to rest early, Mom received a call from my brother.
“Nolan, when will you finish your business trip? Your sister is waiting for you to watch her match!” Mom asked before my brother could speak.
The day I was brought back home, my parents were comforting a crying Nora, but only my brother took my hand, telling me not to be afraid. The only warmth I felt at home came from him.
My brother was taken aback on the other end of the line, “Is it Lydia’s math competition? Isn’t that next month…”
Mom, annoyed, interrupted, “Lydia, Lydia! Nora is the sister you’ve spent years with! I’ve told you countless times, Lydia was raised poorly outside. She’s not fit to be part of our family.”
My brother sighed, seemingly unable to understand Mom’s hostility towards me, “Mom, you shouldn’t always believe everything Nora says. Lydia is kind and hardworking. If you paid more attention to her, you would see that.”
“I just tried calling Lydia. She didn’t answer, and she hasn’t replied to my messages from days ago. Isn’t she home?”
Mom scoffed, coldly saying, “Her legs are her own. Do you expect me to tie her down? I suspect she’s out messing around again. Tomorrow is Nora’s tennis match. If you can’t make it, fine.”
Pausing, she added harshly, “Tell Lydia if she doesn’t come to watch Nora’s tennis match tomorrow, she shouldn’t bother coming back. It’s better without her in the house anyway!”
Ignoring my brother’s attempts to defend me, she hung up the phone coldly. Dad returned with his team, seeing Mom’s displeased expression, and asked, “Is the body giving you a hard time?”
Mom shook her head, complaining, “It’s Lydia again, probably calling Nolan to complain. Now her brother is playing this disappearance game with her.”
I paused for a moment, and My mom sharply remarked, “Tell Lydia to stop playing dead or vanishing. If she doesn’t attend Nora’s tennis match tomorrow, she should never come back. Frankly, it’s better without her at home!”
Ignoring My brother’s attempts to defend me on the other end of the call, she hung up the phone coldly.
Dad returned with his team and noticed My mom’s displeasure. Curious, he asked, “Is the case giving you trouble?”
Mom shook her head, complaining, “It’s Lydia again. She’s probably complaining to Nolan, and now Her brother is playing disappearing games with her.”
Dad sighed deeply, frustrated. “They know we’re busy with work, yet they pull these unnecessary stunts. So immature! I’ll call her and set things straight!”
But no matter how many times he tried, the calls went unanswered.
“Rebellious daughter, it’s almost better if she doesn’t come back. All she does is cause trouble!”
The forensic specialist, who had been listening, sighed, “Remember when Little Lydia was abducted, and you both took a year off to find her? How did it come to this, where now that she’s back, it’s like she’s an enemy?”
I couldn’t help but press my lips together, a bitterness rising within me.
Because the one they found and brought back was me, an awkward, timid country girl.
When I was found at fifteen, in the grand living room, my Parents were comforting a sobbing Nora patiently.
I stood there awkwardly in patched-up clothes, staring down at the rubber shoes with a toe poking out.
When Nora saw me, she stopped crying and asked with feigned innocence, “Who’s this little beggar?”
My Parents’ faces darkened instantly, but not because of Nora.
It was because I wasn’t the Daughter they had imagined.
“Officer Lin, Medical Examiner Blake, I’ve checked the records. There have been no reports of missing persons in recent days,” an Officer approached with the report.
“A Daughter goes missing and the family doesn’t even notice. Could it be their relationship is bad?”
“Are there really Parents like that? Not caring about their kid at all!”
Hearing the whispers around me, I couldn’t help but feel a deep sadness.
The weight of sorrow enveloped me, making it hard to breathe.
My Parents would feel for the deceased’s parents who didn’t report their child missing in time.
But they never considered if I was safe during the days I was gone.
Back when I was abducted, they even left work to find me. Now they suspect my disappearance is just a stunt to get their attention.
Maybe from the start, when I was found, I shouldn’t have returned to the Lin household.
This was Nora’s home, not mine.
The years my Parents cared about me were long occupied by Nora.
The affection and love that should have been mine would never tilt toward me again.
My mom handed the acid-corroded paper to the forensic specialist.
She rubbed her sore back, sighing as she spoke to Dad, “I hope this paper brings some results. Did you remind Little Nora to lock the doors?”
Dad nodded gravely, hesitating before speaking, “Wife, what if something really happened to Lydia? She’s not answering, and Nolan hasn’t responded either. Should I have someone investigate…?”
My mom interrupted, annoyed, “Enough! Don’t you know her by now? She’s hiding, waiting for us to find her! It’s not the first time she’s done this.”
“She just doesn’t want to go to Nora’s game. By tomorrow, she’ll be calling us in tears to apologize.”
The last time I went missing, it was during summer break when Nora locked me in the school bathroom.
The school was empty during the holidays; no one could hear my cries for help.
I exerted all my strength to climb out, filthy and with a twisted ankle, and walked home.
What awaited me was Dad’s large palm and My mom’s scolding.
“Nora said she saw you go to a motel with some thug? How did I raise such a shameless thing like you!”
I couldn’t defend myself, only watch as Nora secretly smirked in triumph.
My brother applied ointment for me, gently advising, “It’s not that Mom and Dad don’t love you; they just don’t know how to relate to you.”
But I knew that compared to the smart and clever Nora, I, who wasn’t articulate, would never receive my Parents’ attention.
The scales of affection always tip toward the one they love more.
Sadly, that person isn’t me.
If I were still alive, I would be the one making nourishing soups for them to take to the station when work kept them from coming home.
But unfortunately, this time, I can’t appear and apologize as my Parents expect.
After all, I’m just a dead person.
The forensic results came out quickly; the paper was a receipt.
The killer, in contempt, forced the paper into my mouth, making me swallow it: “Bought this for your Parents? They’d probably just throw it in the trash.”
Dad, puzzled, asked, “Where is this place?”
The forensic specialist hesitated, then said, “I checked. It’s a place that sells charms and blessing bags.”
When my Parents and other Officers entered the shop, the shopkeeper jumped in surprise.
She took the tattered receipt, looked at the numbers in the upper right corner, and flipped through the orders.
“A young girl came to buy it some time ago, said it was for her Parents because their work is dangerous.”
“But she never came to pick it up, and there was no answer when we called.” Saying this, the shopkeeper took out two red blessing bags, whispering, “The words ‘peace and joy, long life’ are on them, symbolizing safety and longevity.”
Dad took the blessing bags, sighed, and asked, “Do you still have the surveillance footage from then?”
The shopkeeper nodded, “The girl was very quiet, took a long time choosing the style for her Parents’ blessing bags. I remember her clearly.”
But when the footage played, all the Officers present fell silent.
My mom swallowed hard, staring at the screen, “Why does this girl look so much like Lydia?”
The shopkeeper heard this and said, “Lydia? That’s the name on the order!”
Dad’s expression wasn’t good either, trying to remain calm, “Maybe it’s just someone with the same name. Lydia must be hiding, laughing at us somewhere!”
“Shopkeeper, are you in cahoots with Lydia, daring to mess with the police?”
The phone suddenly rang, and My mom answered shakily, “Little Lee?”
The examination department’s voice was urgent: “Sister Blake, we have the DNA test results of the deceased.”
I’m sorry, but it seems there isn’t any specific Chinese text given for translation. Could you please provide the text you’d like translated?