Chapter 16

The Family That Stays Together…Falls Together

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Emil really has no choice...

He was caught between fear, guilt, and helplessness, all crashing into him at once as he finally stood before his sister...

His twin.

Emily.

That's right.

Emil has a twin sister, and no one else, not even his boss, Robert Vale, knows about it.

However, his sister now goes by different names to avoid the authorities.

The truth is, Emil's twin was a murderer, the one who was responsible for the deaths of the family who had taken her in and cared for her from infancy until she was ten years old. No one could believe that a seemingly innocent child like her was capable of killing anyone...

But she did...

And she had done it without mercy.

Emily was just ten years old when she poisoned her guardians by mixing pesticide into their drinks.

By the next morning, she had vanished without a trace.

So how did Emil know she was the one who killed them?

On the very day the family was killed, his sister came to him in person, carrying a medium-sized travel bag filled with several pieces of clothing, and said, "I'm finally free, brother. Please, come with me. Leave everything behind and be with me..."

But Emil couldn't agree.

He was terrified of his own sister.

The young boy naturally refused to go with his sister. He even threatened to report her to Madame Vicky and to the authorities. Left with no other choice, his sister fled. After that, Emil never heard from her again, nor did he learn anything about her whereabouts.

Since then, Emil tried to bury the memory and pretended that everything was normal for the next ten years. But then one day, while Emil was waiting for Robert to finish his three-day business meeting with a client, he saw her again: Emily was there, serving as a steward in the very house of Robert's client.

At the very least, Emil had hoped his reunion with his sister would be a happy one, unlike the last time they had seen each other, which had ended with them being torn apart. Part of him wanted to believe his sister might have changed, that they could make up for the years they had lost. But that hope was quickly shattered. Instead, he was met with her anger, repeating the same accusation over and over:

"You chose them over me."

That moment became the most terrifying and confusing experience of Emil's life. He wanted someone to know the truth, to save him from his sister's growing madness, but he couldn't bring himself to betray his own twin; the only remaining person who shared his blood and flesh.

Once again, Emily tried to convince Emil to go with her and leave behind those who had cared for him. But the young man refused. In the end, for the second time, Emil pushed his sister away, buried the truth, and tried to forget it had ever happened, even the fact that he had a sister, the very person he had once wanted to stay with.

Then, just a week after their reunion, sudden news broke about Robert's client. In this very household, Emil's sister had been working as a maid...

He had been killed by poisoning.

According to the investigation, the culprit was none other than the family's hired maid, who identified herself as Alice Christopher, one of Emily Weiss's aliases.

Since that day, Emil had not seen his sister Emily again. But before she completely vanished, she left him a short but chilling message:

"The next time you reject me, the person most important to you will be next."

That's when Emil realized that every time he rejected Emily, she would kill to make him feel guilty. And he knew she wouldn't stop there; she could do the same to anyone he cared about.

Maybe Grandma Vicky...

Or, worse...

The person he loved the most.

Robert.

And he cannot let that happen...

But he also couldn't bear the thought of seeing his only sibling sent to prison—someone who had become this way because of everything she had endured. She had been raised by others, suffered abuse, and never experienced the life of comfort and care that Emil himself had enjoyed.

Emil knew it was his fault.

As Emily's older sibling, he believed he should have been the one to protect her, to take responsibility for her. Yet he had no idea how to make up for all the neglect and pain that he and their mother had caused.

That's why he did what he thought was best to do in that situation.

"I'm begging you..." Emil began, trying to keep his voice steady despite his fear. "...please, leave."

"You know I won't leave until I get what I want," Emily shot back, almost unbothered by her brother's pleading. "Tell me, Emil...how does it feel? Living here in comfort and luxury all this time, treated almost like a family member by everyone, loved by everyone, and now—haha, look at you! You're even in a relationship with the master of this house! Meanwhile, here I am, your twin, completely forgotten by the very brother who promised to come back for her when they were still kids. Tell me, how does that make you feel?"

Emil didn't know exactly how he was supposed to feel.

He knew his sister had become like this because he had neglected her after their mother died. Yet he couldn't bring himself to go back to her. He had been so preoccupied with his own happiness among the people who had taken him in that he had assumed Emily was also fine with the people who cared for her when their mother could no longer raise them both.

But Emil knew one thing for sure...

"I won't let anyone get hurt because of me, Emily," he said. "And I can't let you continue to do bad things because of me, too. So I beg you, leave this place, before I—"

"Before you what?" She suddenly cut her brother's words and stepped closer towards him. Then, she brushed her fingertips against Emil's left cheek and said, "Will you report me to the police? Go ahead—do it."

Emily stepped back and opened her arms, as if daring him. "Go on."

Tears almost welled in Emil's eyes. He knew he couldn't hurt his own sister—and Emily knew it too. That was her advantage.

"See?" Emily smiled, almost delighted, as she turned back to face him. "I know that you love me, brother. I know you're the only one who truly loves me. But..."

She suddenly moved behind Emil and wrapped her arms around him. It was more than a hug—hatred and anger were burning in that warmth.

"Love alone isn't enough," she whispered. "What I want is for you to leave these people. Leave them...and come with me. Is that really hard to do, huh, brother?"

"You know I can't do that," Emil replied, clenching his fists as he fought back the emotions threatening to spill out. Emily, on the other hand, laughed in response. It wasn't the answer she had been looking for. Still, she could tell that her brother understood his position and that he was slowly starting to crack, considering giving in sooner or later, which was exactly what Emily had wanted all along.

And in that moment, if anyone held the upper hand, it was her.

"Alright... let's do it this way," Emily said, turning back to her brother and taking both of his hands in hers. "I've tried forcing you before, but maybe what you really need is time."

Her grip tightened slightly as she smiled coldly.

"I'll give you one month to decide. Either you leave everything you have here, or I'll do what's best for our situation. The Vales aren't truly your family, Emil. Unlike me." Her eyes locked onto his. "One month. That should be enough, don't you think, my dear brother?"

Emil couldn't answer. One month—was that really enough time to decide what he should do? Even so, he knew he had no real choice. If he rejected Emily again, she would turn her attention to Madam Vicky and Robert. If he reported his sister, his conscience would never let him rest. And if he asked others for help, the truth would come out—that he had hidden a criminal from the law all this time—and his own life would be ruined.

What Emily was offering him wasn't mercy.

It was a sentence.

And whether that sentence would be carried out, or softened, was entirely in Emil's hands.

So, at last, he answered his sister.

"A month..." Emil said, with his eyes nearly closed. "Give me a month to...say goodbye to them."

"Okay! Good!" Emily said, unable to hide her delight. But the sharpness in her eyes, burning with anger and revenge, didn't even match the joy in her voice.

"One month," she continued. "Don't worry. I won't hurt anyone. I'll be kind, I promised that. But..."

She paused as her smile started to thin.

"But the moment you change your mind..." Emily leaned in, her lips brushing close to Emil's ear as she whispered, "I won't hesitate to kill them, especially your man."

After that, Emily slowly pulled herself away. Any trace of tension vanished from her face as she reached up and straightened her brother's tie like a loving sister seeing his brother off.

"I know you won't let me down, brother," she said softly.

Emil stood frozen where he was. Her sister's words echoed painfully in his ears and pressed heavily in his chest.

One month.

That was all the time he had left.