The Fake Heiress Had Me Killed

The year I turned eighteen, my brother, Harrison Ford, got jumped by a pack of street thugs. After stabbing one of them, he took off like a shot, abandoning me there. When they couldn't get their hands on him, I became their punching bag for payback. By the time my parents and the police found me, I was half-dead, my tendons severed, clothes in tatters, unconscious in a pool of blood. In the end, those thugs were slapped with twenty-year sentences. But two months later, I found out I was pregnant with one of their bastards. My mother hauled me to the clinic and made me get rid of it. The doctor's verdict was final: I'd never have kids, ever. My parents were a wreck, crying nonstop. Then my brother brought home a girl my age called Sierra Ford, and I became some hick's kid. At last, my parents sighed with relief. The day their "real" daughter Sierra got into the famous Vane University, my old injury flared up again. But the painkillers had run out, and the pain was eating me alive. As I crawled toward the door, begging my brother to buy more ointment, I overheard his conversation with a friend. "Harrison, are you really gonna hide this from your parents forever?" Harrison's voice was laced with annoyance, "I did this so they wouldn't spend their lives drowning in regret over Maisie." "If they believe she's not their real daughter, they can move on. Otherwise, they'll keep blaming themselves for what happened to her," he continued, "it's too late for Maisie. But Sierra? I just want her to be happy." The words crushed me. I collapsed onto the cold floor, the searing pain in my old wound tearing through my nerves. So, I wasn't switched at birth. But this truth, arriving years too late, cut deep like a rusty blade, leaving me raw and bleeding. I lay there, physical and emotional pain twisting together, the world starting to fade to black. Then came the rumble of a car engine and my parents' voices downstairs. Gritting my teeth, I dragged myself toward the door. When Mom walked in, I'd tell her I was their real daughter! "Mom! Dad! You're finally back!" Sierra's voice was sickly sweet, dripping with fake innocence. "Our Sierra is amazing! Getting into Vane University, you'll go far, sweetheart! You've made us so proud!" Mom's voice was dripping with pride. "Oh, it's all thanks to Mom, Dad, and Brother's guidance," Sierra said sweetly. Their laughter cut through the door, sharp as broken glass. I crumpled to the floor, no more than a thrown-away mutt. So this was why they'd returned early, to celebrate Sierra getting into Vane University. Meanwhile, their real daughter couldn't even get pain relief ointment. Footsteps thudded upstairs before my door swung open. Mom looked down at me, her face tight with impatience. "Maisie, what now? The ointment was right by your bed." Tears blurred my vision as I gasped, "I used it all... the pain, it's eating me alive." With a sigh, she tossed a few hundred-dollar bills that fluttered to the floor. "The driver will get more later. We're celebrating Sierra's acceptance at The Grandview tonight. In your condition, you should stay put." She turned away like I was a waste of her valuable time. I bit down until my lip split open, blood filling my mouth as I stared at the money on the floor.