“My period’s been late for three months. And that whole ‘two-kid school quota’ Chris mentioned? That brain-damaged kid of yours was never part of it.”
A thousand knives seemed to slash straight through my chest.
I naively hoped that Chris or his mother still felt some guilt, but I never expected them to use Matty, the person I care about most, to manipulate me.
Seeing how devastated I looked, Melissa’s smile grew even more triumphant.
“Actually,” she went on, practically buzzing with excitement, “the place in the city isn’t some little three-bedroom. Chris is the CEO of Eldridge Tech—yeah, the one that just went public. We’ve been living in a luxury villa.”
She lifted her hand and flashed the massive diamond on her ring finger.
“See this? Chris put it on me at the wedding this morning. It’s worth dozens of times more than those bargain-bin bracelets you’re wearing.”
Her smile twisted, turning mean.
“Nadine, Chris and I are the real family. You’re just a dirty little gutter hen. Don’t even dream about turning into a phoenix.”
I clenched my palms tight enough to feel my nails break skin, forcing back my tears.
“So you came back just to tell me all this?”