Chapter 3 - The Uninvited Guest
Before Richard could formulate a retort, a sleek white luxury sedan pulled up sharply against the curb in front of my house, the engine purring before the passenger door flew open.
Sabrina stepped out.
She wore a pristine cashmere coat, her blonde hair perfectly styled, her face flushed with the kind of indignant panic that only a spoiled twenty-four-year-old could manage. She slammed the car door shut and marched up the walkway, high heels clicking sharply against the frozen concrete.
“Are you out of your mind, Hannah?!” Sabrina shrieked as she stormed past our parents into the entryway. “My engagement party is in two weeks! Do you have any idea what kind of press this is generating for us? People are calling Mom and Dad asking why we weren't at the funeral, and now everyone in town knows you just got a multi-million dollar payout while we’ve been struggling with the venue deposit!”
I stared at my sister, a cold, humorless laugh escaping my lips.
“Struggling with the venue deposit,” I echoed softly. “Sabrina, my seven-year-old son and four-year-old daughter were crushed to death by an out-of-control truck. Jonathan died trying to shield them. And you are standing in my hallway complaining about your wedding venue?”
Sabrina blinked, momentarily taken aback, but her entitlement quickly rushed back to fill the void. “Well, obviously that was terrible! But you’ve been ignoring our calls for half a year! If you had just told us about the lawsuit, we would have been there for you! We’re family!”
May you like
“Family,” I whispered, stepping back and swinging the front door wide open, revealing the empty, grey street beyond. “You forfeited that title six months ago when you decided my tragedy was an inconvenient scheduling conflict.”
Clara gasped, clutching her pearls. “Hannah Marie! We are your parents! You cannot speak to your sister that way! After everything we’ve done for you—after raising you—you’re going to sit on millions of dollars and turn your back on your own blood?”
