Chapter 21
The butler had truly hoped that, for the sake of the twenty–odd years they’d spent as siblings, Nettie might find it in her heart to forgive Calvin
you serious?%
But Nettle just stared back at him, unmoving, as if to say, Are you s
Whatever else the butler wanted to say stuck in his throat. With a heavy sigh, he turned and left in silence.
Nettie couldn’t help but find his words almost laughable.
Calvin, innocent? If anyone here was innocent, wasn’t it her?
She’d grown up sheltered and adored, wrapped in the warmth of her family and her brother’s boundless affection. Yet she had done nothing, and he had turned his love toward another woman. Not only that, but he had hurt her again and again for this woman, painted Nettle as the villain, and even pushed her down a path that nearly killed her–all for someone else.”
And then, after she’d gone, he wept bitterly, bemoaning his regret and supposed innocence, never once realizing the gravity of his own mistakes. Everyone pinned the blame on Charis. No one thought for a second that Calvin might be at fault; they all said he’d been deceived, as if that excused everything.
But why should he be forgiven? Why should the executioner walk free after the deed is done? There was no justice in that.
Nettie knew, deep down, that no one in this world would punish Calvin for her. So she decided to take matters into her own hands.
The rain that night wasn’t heavy, but it cut through the air with a bleak chill.
On the empty street, a lone, slender woman walked slowly toward the hospital, umbrella in hand.X
Inside her head, the system’s voice wouldn’t stop pressing her with questions
“I thought you said you’d take your time punishing him. Why the rush now?”
Nettie smiled, her eyes cold as ice.”
“We’ve been siblings for over twenty years. I thought I understood him. I really believed that, when he saw me–the ‘stand–in‘–again, he would break down, hold me, apologize, admit his faults, and beg for my forgiveness. “R
“But he did none of that. All he did was try to make it up to me, again and again. I gave him so many chances, but he never cherished any of them. I’m done wasting my time. I’ll let the law deal with him.”
“I’ve got all the evidence of Calvin’s crimes. You could just hand it over to the authorities. Why go see him at all?” the system pressed.
Standing beneath the hospital’s awning, Nettie closed her umbrella and shook off the rain.
She replied coolly,
- ly. “You know, all these wounds may have been caused by Charis, but it was Calvin who carried out every act of
punishment.“&
“So before the law takes over, I want him to taste, just for a moment, the pain I went through.”
The deserted corridor echoed with the sharp click of her heels, a sound that sent an uneasy shiver down any listener’s spine.
Nettle paused outside Calvin’s hospital room, gathering herself before quietly opening the door.
On the bed, Calvin looked ghostly pale, eyes squeezed shut, forehead slick with cold sweat–locked in a nightmare he couldn’t escape.X
Suddenly, his eyes shot open. Seeing Nettie standing there, half–shadowed by the light, he felt his heart stop.
“Nettio?”
Not fully awake, Calvin couldn’t tell if she was the stand–in or his real sister.
couldn
Nettie let out a small laugh. “Calvin, who do you think I am? Or maybe, who do you want me to be?”
Her strange question left Calvin at a loss. His hand, hanging at his side, clenched into a fist. “…”
“You already know the answer, don’t you? But why are you so afraid to face me? Why can’t you say all those things you’ve kept bottled up, brother? What exactly are you scared of?“%
I
“Are you afraid I’ve come back to take revenge? Or is it just easier if I stay dead and gone?”
Each question drove the color from Calvin’s face. Suddenly, he reached out, desperate to grab her.
“No, Nettie! Please, let me explain=”
“Enought” Nettie cut him off sharply. “Why do you think I’d listen to your excuses? How many times did I try to explain myself before? Not once did you ever listen.”
She wasn’t here to argue or listen to his confessions–she’d d only come to see him off.
“Calvin, you were right from the start. I am your sister—the very one you put on that cruise ship, who you left to die in that explosion, But I’m not so easy to kill. Does that disappoint you?”
She watched his face, reading every flicker of emotion. “You always said that anyone who does wrong must face the consequences.“”
“If you won’t accept your punishment willingly, then let me help you.”
With that, Nettie pressed her hand hard against Calvin’s face. A flash of white light filled the room, and Calvin screamed, a raw, piercing cry B
“No, don’t-
