206–I Am The Worst Stepsister
Nora:
Everyone was silently staring at the bottle. Cain was the first to step forward and pick it up, showing it to me.
“What is this?” he inquired, his eyes full of judgment.
I shook my head, my mouth agape and my eyes following his gesture with the bottle. I quickly turned to see Lord Atwood’s reaction, and for the first time in a year, he appeared shocked, tears welling in his eyes. This could break him if I didn’t prove my innocence soon.
“I don’t know how it ended up in my purse,” I stammered, trembling now, at a loss for words to defend myself.
“Maybe—just maybe—you’re the one who wrote that because you hated the fact I was dating Natalya, and you wanted to punish me by tarnishing my image. Is that what this is about, Nora?” Cain grimaced, and I noticed no one stepped forward to defend me this time.
They all seemed lost and helpless.
“Why would I jeopardize my own reputation getting ruined?” I asked Cain, whose jaw clenched and teeth gritted, as if he struggled not to say something, yet had the perfect response for me.
“It’s just that—I get it,” I recalled another detail. Amidst the turmoil, memories surfaced in fragments.
“When I chased after her, I dropped my bag. She then pushed me to the ground and ran towards my bag. I saw her stop and do something, but
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because it was so dark, I couldn’t catch her putting this in my bag,” I explained, a broken smile crossing my lips as I hoped it would make sense. But the way Cain scoffed and shrugged, I could tell they thought I was lying through my teeth.
“I can’t believe this is happening.” Silas softly commented, looking disappointed in me.
“You all think I did it?” I asked, searching their faces.
“Really? Is there another excuse, the most outrageous one you want to tell us?” Cain scoffed.
“Dad, look at me and tell me you don’t think I’m capable of doing it,” I requested, sitting at Lord Atwood’s feet.
He tried to meet my gaze but then turned his face away.
“Nora!” he said my name, and after sighing, he added, “Maybe you’re just not happy here anymore?”
His words stung like a bee. I couldn’t believe my own ears. Lord Atwood had always believed in me, so seeing him so indifferent hurt deeply. Not only that, I felt guilty because he had done so much for me, and now he was being told that I had deceived him by pretending to be innocent when I wasn’t.
“It happens sometimes. People make mistakes. Maybe you were angry at Cain?” Nash spoke gently, believing I was the culprit this time but still treating me kindly.
This was why I hated the situation even more. What had I done to Natalya? Why was she so determined to kick me out of here?
“But I didn’t do it. I swear. Natalya and April are trying to make me
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11
look like a vicious person,” I explained, but their body language seemed indifferent. They wouldn’t even make eye contact with me
anymore.
“Go to your room. And I don’t want anyone to talk about this incident again.” Lord said in a stern voice, instructing the others. It was the first time he had used this tone with me. When his eyes met mine and he realized he had raised his voice, guilt flashed across his face.
I had no more excuses or explanations. What I had told them was true, but it sounded like a fabricated story. Even I would have been suspicious if someone had lied to me that much.
I hung my head and walked upstairs, holding back tears. Little did I know, someone had been following me the entire time, and I heard at voice from behind as I reached my room.
“Don’t! She already looks guilty,” Nash warned someone.
“I deserve an explanation or at least a reason why she did that,” Cain insisted, wanting to confront me in private.
I believe he wanted to say the things he couldn’t express in front of the others. Once in my room, I waited for Cain because I didn’t want to run away and hide when I wasn’t guilty. As expected, he knocked so hard. that the door opened by itself. That’s why I hadn’t locked it completely. I didn’t have the strength to tell him to come inside, but I was glad he found his way in..
He entered and slammed the door shut behind him. I sat on the bed with my legs hanging over the edge and my head down. He paced across the room with his hands in his pockets, his body radiating tension.
“I want to know why. What did I do wrong for you to harbor so much
206-1 Am The Worst Stepsister
animosity toward me?” He finally stopped and faced me, hands still in his pockets.
“Why are you so angry with me when I am not the one who was wrong in our situation,” he hissed, confusing me that he didn’t consider choosing Natalya over me and hurting my feelings to be something Wrong.
I slowly lifted my head and met his gaze. He seemed genuinely hurt, but so was I.
“Do you truly believe I’m behind all these mischievous acts?” I asked softly, staring into his eyes.
I held his gaze, hoping he would see in my eyes that I was not malicious.
“Tell me, do you think I would do that to you?” I pressed on as his jaw clenched.
“You really gotta ask that after every evidence points towards you?” He didn’t answer my question directly. I didn’t want him to look at the evidence. It could be planted. I just wanted him to look me in the eye and tell me if he thinks I would do something so disgusting.
He stepped closer, looming over me, and gently grabbed the hair at the back of my neck, tilting my head back to face him.
“You are capable of anything. Lying is your favorite hobby!” he accused bitterly.