“Your sister.”
My concerned expression drops, along with my voice. “I don’t have a sister.”
“Oh, don’t say that.”
The voice. The voice I refuse to think is real speaks as she enters my room. My hands are in fists, ready to attack if she gets too close. But she knows me well enough and doesn’t get closer than just behind Ruby, keeping her between us.
“I know you never liked me since my mom married your dad, but I’m still family. I care about you. We all do. We’ve missed you since you ran away.” Her sugary-sweet voice is lost on me, as are her fake-ass tears.
“What are you running from?” Ruby’s face contorts as if she’s been betrayed. As if I were the one who did that.
I just shake my head. “I wasn’t running.”
“It’s okay, Barbra. You don’t have to be embarrassed. These things happen all the time to people.”
“Your name isn’t Natalie?” Ruby’s expression changes quickly to one of rage, and again I shake my head.
“It is. Barbra is the nameshegave me. How did you find her?”
“We found you, actually. They put out enough information on the web for us to realize it was you and not some random person. We contacted them. And Barb, seriously, we’ve been over this. Mom and Dad changed your name legally. You are Barbra.”
“They had no right.”
The face she puts on for Ruby is comical. Acting like I’m a silly child throwing a fit. They decided to change my name when I was nine. Nine! Why? Because they felt like it. Because my bitch of a stepmom didn’t want to be reminded that my dad was with someone before her. Thatshewas second in his life. So they picked a name she wanted. And it was a name that made her smile a cruel smile. I don’t think she even liked the name, but she liked it better than me being named after my mom, Natala.
“Are you ever going to stop punishing us? Me?” She sniffs, and Ruby looks back, fucking falling for this bullshit. “We tried not to. We really did. But we fell in love, Barb. Real love. I told him we shouldn’t. I knew he was promised to you, but he chose to leave his family’s job to be with me. He sacrificed everything for love. I know you wanted to marry him, get the cushy lifestyle and all that he brought with it, but he chose to be poor for me. Can’t you just be happy for us? I’m sorry that he was your fiancé. We should have—I know we should have told you we were together when Mom and Dad announced your engagement. We had no idea Dad would force you into marrying him. I thought I was doing youa favor when we spoke up. We thought you’d be happy. We had no idea you would be so upset. If it were just money that you wanted, you could have asked for it. You didn’t need to steal it from us. From Mom and Dad. They would have understood.”
I just can’t stop shaking my head. What complete and utter crap.
And from the look Ruby just gave her, I know she doesn’t believe it. Not all of it. She’s known me for over six years. Money has never been a thing I’m after. Ever.
And my evil stepsister must realize she pushed the wrong con, as her eyes shift to Ruby and see she isn’t buying it.
“But don’t you worry. Everything will be fine now. I’m here. I’ll take you back.”
“To what? To watch you and him be together? Why would she be down for that?” Ruby asks with a skeptical look on her face. One I want to cheer at but don’t because I’m still so mad at all of this.
Why is she even here? I made sure that no one knew where I was. Or so I thought. Sure, I saw a few people who might be part of the family, but I scared them off.
Fucking hell, I was kidnapped for like three weeks. There was no way anyone was looking for me. How did Ruby find her?
“No. I wanted my sister, not him. I decided to turn down love and pushed him away. But she had already run before I could tell her.” She sniffs again and touches her eyes like she’s trying to hold her tears in. “I want to get her home. She needs to rest. Regroup. So do I. It’s been a long roadgetting her back. I can see why she likes it here. It’s… peaceful. I guess that’s why she stayed. It’s just what the doctor ordered.”
I roll my eyes at the acting job. If I didn’t know her, I would believe her. Instead, I want to applaud. She would be perfect for Broadway.
“You should see it in the fall.” Ruby’s voice comes out whimsical, as I’m sure she’s remembering some of her favorite things. And one of them is the fall here. She likes being able to rock her leather but not be too cold. The crunch of leaves under her boots and an excuse to snuggle under a blanket and drink hot beverages without people calling her psycho for also enjoying it in the blaze of summer.
I smile at Ruby, and we share a moment. Memories of the fall and of us together over the past few years. Some of the best moments of my life. I know we aren’t close, but I lived for those moments. Ones where I could just be me and not pretend to be anything else.
A moment that’s shattered when my stepsister speaks. “I’d like that. Maybe you could show me.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, visiting hours have ended for this morning. You can come back in the afternoon, but we need to get you out so I can do vital scans and help her get showered and fed.”
Oh good, a nurse is here to make me look weaker. Something my stepsister lives for.
“Of course. Ruby, want to get a coffee?” Back to her syrupy sweetness that I just want to punch in the face.
Ruby looks at me, and I see it. I see the distrust in me. I get it. Sort of. She was never honest with me. I mean, herdad wasn’t dead. I went to the funeral. Talk about lying. And what about everything else she hid from me? She kept me close, but only for herself, not to bring me closer to her family and friends.
