When I turned fourteen. Mother was on the verge of divorcing our father for being useless.
It was then that we crossed paths with Cain.
It was a fine day, we decided to celebrate my birthday by picnicking near the river within our territory. Truth be told, we were just showing off a happy family for the sake of appearances.
Wandering around, I noticed a young man with bloodied hands and a swollen face. I brought him over to our parents.
When mother questioned him, he told us that he was driven out of the family estate, because his older half-brother unjustly accused him of conspiring with a rival family.
Father took pity on his situation and proposed to adopt him into the family. Mother immediately agreed, obviously seeing him as someone she can utilize to our family’s advantage.
However, it did not save our parents’ marriage. A year later, they still divorced.
Mother chose to have me, despite Shelly’s insistence to stay with her. She reasoned out that Shelly already made her debut in society, staying with our socially inept father will not hurt her. Rather, she can help father properly manage his assets.