I kept my eyes shut tight, yet every single word Mom spoke drifted straight into my ears without fail.
"The night you were born, our whole family was being hunted down." Mom's voice sank to a hoarse whisper. "We bribed the hospital nurse to swap you and Shirley on purpose. We only did it out of selfishness, just to keep you alive."
Holly froze on the spot.
"While we were on the run, assassins came after us countless times. Little Shirley only ate and slept the whole time, never letting out a single cry. That quietness was exactly what let us slip past wave after wave of killers.
"The only time she cried until her throat went raw was when she caught a high fever after getting soaked in the rain.
"Your father and I were wracked with guilt and took her to see a doctor. That detour wou
