Chapter 1: The Broken Screen
“Don’t you dare lie to me after everything I’ve done for you.””
Those were the last words I expected to hear before my stepmother’s hand hit my face.
The sound was sharper than the pain.
For a few seconds, the entire kitchen went silent. The only thing I could hear was the faint buzzing of the refrigerator and the tiny crackle of broken glass beneath my feet.
I had spent years trying to earn my place in that house.
And in one second, I realized I never had one.
My name is Emily Carter, and I was sixteen years old when my stepmother, Victoria, slapped me over a broken tablet that wasn’t even broken the way she thought.
The tablet belonged to her daughter, Lily.
My stepsister.
The girl everyone in our house protected.
The girl who could do no wrong.
I still remember that afternoon because it started like any other ordinary day.
I came home from school carrying my backpack, my science project, and a test paper I was proud of. I had gotten the highest grade in my class, and for once, I thought maybe Victoria would actually say something nice.
Maybe she would smile.
Maybe she would say, “I’m proud of you.””
But when I walked into the living room, I saw Lily standing beside the coffee table with tears running down her cheeks.
Her tablet was lying on the floor.
The screen was completely black.
Victoria turned toward me slowly.
“Emily,” she said.
The way she said my name made my stomach drop.
“What happened?””
I looked at the tablet, then back at her.
“I don’t know. I just got home.””
Lily immediately covered her mouth.
“She was the only one here,” she whispered.
I stared at her.
“Lily, what are you talking about?””
Victoria walked over and picked up the tablet.
The case was cracked.
The screen had a spiderweb of broken lines across it.
“You broke this?”” she asked.
“No.””
Her expression changed instantly.
It wasn’t disappointment.
It was anger.
“You expect me to believe that?””
“Yes,” I said quietly.
“Because it’s the truth.””
Lily stepped closer.
“Mom, maybe she dropped it accidentally.””
I almost felt relieved.
For once, Lily sounded like she was defending me.
But then she added:
“Although… she was pretty upset this morning.””
I looked at her in disbelief.
“What?””
Victoria narrowed her eyes.
“Why were you upset?””
“Because you grounded me for something I didn’t do.””
The memory came rushing back.
That morning, Lily had spilled juice on the couch. Victoria had assumed it was me because I was the only one who had been sitting there earlier.
I had tried to explain.
Lily had stayed quiet.
And I had been punished.
Again.
Victoria placed the tablet on the table.
“You always have an excuse.””
“That’s not fair.””
“Fair?”” she snapped.
“You live under my roof. I feed you. I pay for your clothes. And this is how you repay me?””
My chest tightened.
I hated when she said things like that.
Because she made kindness sound like a debt I could never repay.
“I didn’t break it.””
Victoria stepped closer.
“Then who did?””
I looked at Lily.
She immediately looked away.
That was when I knew.
She knew something.
“Lily,” I said.
“Tell her.””
Victoria looked between us.
“Tell me what?””
Lily opened her mouth.
Then closed it.
“I…”
“What?”” Victoria demanded.
Lily’s eyes filled with tears.
“I don’t know.””
That was the moment everything inside me collapsed.
Because I realized Lily wasn’t going to save me.
Not even this time.
Victoria shook her head.
“I’m done listening to excuses.””
“I’m not making excuses!””
“Enough!””
Her voice echoed through the house.
Then came the slap.
My hand flew to my cheek.
I didn’t cry.
Not because it didn’t hurt.
But because crying in front of Victoria always made things worse.
She looked at me like she expected me to apologize.
Instead, I whispered:
“One day, you’re going to realize you punished the wrong person.””
Victoria laughed bitterly.
“Is that supposed to scare me?””
“No.””
I looked at Lily.
“It’s supposed to warn you.””
I grabbed my backpack and walked upstairs.
I locked my bedroom door and sat on my bed.
For twenty minutes, I stared at nothing.
Then my phone buzzed.
It was a message from Lily.
I almost ignored it.
But something made me open it.
There was only one sentence.
“Emily, I need to tell you what really happened before Mom finds out.””
My fingers froze over the screen.
A second message appeared.
And that was when I saw the photo she had sent.
A photo that proved the tablet had never been broken by me.
It had been destroyed by someone else.
Someone I never expected.
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And underneath the picture was Lily’s final message:
“Please don’t hate me… but I think Mom has been lying to you for years.””
