Chapter 105: Things That Can’t Be Replaced
But just as Owen thought she was about to relent, Yunice’s tone suddenly shifted, calm yet distant. “If you really want to cheer me up, it’s very simple. Want to know how?”
Owen’s eyes lit up instantly, like a fool who would agree to anything the moment she opened her mouth. Staring into those bright, eager eyes, Yunice only felt a bitter coldness sinking deeper into her heart. He played the role of a good brother so perfectly, yet in his world, even blood ties could be weighed and measured.
She sneered, her voice sharp. “Return my identity to me. Get Elsie to give it back, then I’ll forgive you.”
Owen did not move. But those shining eyes dimmed, in a subtle, almost imperceptible shift, into something cold and indifferent.
A few seconds later, his face darkened with anger. “Why are you still hung up on Elsie? You’re marrying into the Powell family now, and Wyatt is backing you. What more do you want? Why must you keep fighting her?”
His words made it sound like marrying Wyatt was the greatest blessing in the world, as if he had already forgotten how, just days ago, no one believed this marriage would ever happen.
Yunice said quietly, “That ID was mine to begin with. It wasn’t gifted by any of you.”
“So what if it was yours?” Owen snapped. “You almost killed Elsie. This is your compensation to her!”
Yunice laughed coldly. “And what about the three years I spent rotting away in a mental asylum? Was that not enough punishment? Even prisoners get to keep their identities. Was I so vile that mine had to be stripped away?”
Owen was momentarily silenced, words stuck in his throat. Looking at his embarrassed, furious expression, Yunice found herself pathetic too. Knowing full well what kind of person he was, yet still foolish enough to ask, hoping for a different answer.
“Forget it if you won’t,” she said, turning to leave.
But Owen, caught up in rage, grabbed her wrist with his bloodied hand. His voice trembled with resentment. “I’ve taken your revenge, and I’ve accepted it! My hand is ruined because of you; I’ll never be able to operate again! And the jewelry box you’ve been dreaming of, I was willing to build a new one for you! Are you heartless? Why do you never see my sacrifices?”
Yunice flung his hand away. “Was that hand injured for me? You took that knife for Elsie, not me!”
Her fury ignited. She stepped closer, forcing him to meet her eyes. “And your so-called sacrifices, what are they? One injury, and you think that erases a thousand days and nights of my suffering in the asylum?”
She snatched the saw from his hand and smashed it hard against the walnut wood beside them. “These worthless scraps of wood…”
Yunice scoffed. “Who cares about things that can be easily replaced? The only reason you won’t return my identity is because you know it can’t be replaced.”
She laughed, cold and sharp. “Between me and Elsie, you’d choose her every single time. But it doesn’t matter anymore. I no longer recognize you as my brother, and you don’t need to waste your time pretending, only to turn around and accuse me of being heartless.”
Pain and rage twisted Owen’s face. “So what you said the other day wasn’t just angry words. You really want to cut ties with the Saunders family!”
“That’s right,” Yunice replied without hesitation. “I’m already a person without a name, without a home. Even if I don’t officially sever ties, I have nothing to do with the Saunders family anymore. Isn’t this exactly the result you wanted, Owen?”
Owen clenched his fists, blood dripping silently from between his fingers as if he could not even feel the pain. He held…
Yunice did not look back. Behind her, Owen kicked over the pile of precious walnut wood in a fit of rage.
Forget the jewelry box! I won’t finish it!
Outside the room, Cill hurried to catch up as soon as she saw Yunice exit. She had waited nervously by the door the whole time, afraid Yunice might suffer.
Back in Yunice’s hospital room, Gill poured a cup of water for Yunice, stealing glances at her with a conflicted expression. Yunice noticed.
“You think I’m too cold-blooded too?” she asked quietly.
“Of course not,” Gill whispered. She only felt a bit sorry for Owen. After all, he had genuinely loved Yunice once. But now…
Yunice’s voice drifted in the quiet room. “He suffers once, and everyone pities him. But in those three years, I don’t even know how many times I went through the same thing, and no one ever thought that was strange. No one ever thought I had the right to be angry.”
Gill’s eyes reddened instantly. Thinking of Yunice’s ordeal, she felt deeply ashamed for having pitied Owen earlier. Her voice trembled, “Ms. Saunders, you were just a girl. How did you survive in that asylum?”
Yunice’s gaze grew distant, as if lost in those dark memories. She had been only eighteen when they threw her into that hellhole. Too frail to fight, too weak to run. If Kingsley had not protected her, she might not have lived to see another day.
Yunice lifted her head and smiled faintly. “Maybe I’m just good at taking a beating…”