Chapter 7
338 Words
When Lucas was three years old, I watched him crush the little hamster that Mom had bought for him.
The next day, he falsely accused me, claiming that I had accidentally killed it.
He had always been overbearing, refusing to let anyone take what belonged to him.
Mom could only have him as her child. That was what he told me himself.
Whenever I came home, he acted sick, making Mom think we shouldn't stay in the same house.
His injury might have been connected to the conversation Mom had with the nanny a few days earlier.
With Christmas approaching, the nanny asked Mom if I was coming back.
Mom opened her planner, slapped her thigh, and exclaimed, "It's been a year since Kate left. Why hasn't she returned yet?"
She tried to call me, but after more than ten attempts, she couldn't reach me.
Panic set in, and she called my counselor.
The counselor told her, "Kate Garcia? She left a few days ago to find her dad."
Mom hung up without giving it much thought.
Perhaps she saw my search for Dad as a relief for her.
Lucas stood at the top of the stairs, eavesdropping on their conversation.
I saw him through the glass.
He didn't hear what the teacher said on the phone. He only caught that Mom wanted to bring me back.
So this time, his intentional injury was to prevent Mom from coming to get me, wasn't it?
Lucas took up all of Mom's time, leaving her so busy that she forgot about me.
She might think of me for a moment, but then she would forget again.
The second floor of the villa always had a room reserved for me, and the nanny cleaned it every week.
At night, I would drift to my room and lie down.
I felt that this was enough. At least I could be close to Mom.
It didn't matter that she couldn't see me. When I was alive, she couldn't see me either, could she?
- Writer
