- 5.
They weren’t home yet when I got there.
It was the first day of summer. They must
have taken Ashley shopping to celebrate.
I was used to it. It wasn’t my family.
I put down my bag and started cleaning my
room. I hadn’t been back in weeks.
After cleaning, I took off my mom’s necklace
and put it away. Then I took a shower.
く
The water was so loud, I didn’t hear them
come home.
When I got out of the shower, Dad and my
brother were in the kitchen, making dinner.
I dried my hair and went to my room. As soon
as I walked in, I saw Ashley in front of my
dresser, holding my necklace. She was
turning it over and over, checking it out.
My stomach dropped. That necklace was the
only thing my mom had left me.
She’d given it to me right before she died,
barely able to pull it off her neck and put it in
my hands.
r
Before Ashley came along, Dad used to hold
me and tell me about it, choking up.
He told me to take care of it, because it
would protect me.
Ever since Ashley had moved in, she’d tried
to take everything from me.
My snacks, my toys, even my room.
But she couldn’t have my necklace. No matter
how much she cried, or how many times I got
hit, I never gave in.
I walked over to her, trying to stay calm, and
reached for my necklace.
<
Ashley held it behind her back, like a game.
She stumbled, and her back hit the corner of
my desk.
She winced. Then she glared at me and threw
the necklace on the ground, as hard as she
could.
It shattered.
My head was spinning. I knelt down, shaking,
and picked up the pieces.
The sharp edges cut my hands, and blood
dripped onto the floor.
<
I didn’t feel it.
I held the pieces and started to cry.
I stood up and grabbed her shirt, my eyes
burning.
“Why? I let you have everything! Why did you
have to break the only thing my mom left
me?”
I had tried to be nice, to give her whatever
she wanted. But she had to destroy the last
thing I had.
Ashley didn’t look sorry at all. She slapped
L
- me.
“It’s just some dumb necklace! I wanted it, so
I was going to take it. Anything in this house
that I can’t have, I’ll destroy.”
“Everything here is mine now, including
anything your dead mom left you! I can do
whatever I want!”
I was too angry to think straight. I yelled and
lunged at her.
Her sharp nails cut my face, but I didn’t care.
I wouldn’t let go.
Dad and my brother ran in, yelling. They saw
<
us and froze.
Then they grabbed me and threw me on the
floor.
“Sarah, what is wrong with you? Look how
scared you made Ashley!”
I looked up at them, my face covered in
blood. They were looking at me like I was a
monster.
I was the one who was hurt. I was the one
who had been wronged. But they didn’t seem
to notice.
Ashley, who had been hiding behind them,
started crying, all innocent.
“I’m sorry, Sarah. I didn’t mean to break it. I
just wanted to look at it when you weren’t
here.”
“I accidentally dropped it. It’s okay if you hit
me.”
Dad and my brother looked down at me,
disgusted.
“You start a fight over a dumb necklace?
Everything in this house is for Ashley. She’s
our heir! Got it?”
“Every dollar you spend is because your
く
sister lets you!”
“Apologize to her now, or you’ll be sorry.”
I held out my bloody hand, showing them the
broken necklace.
My voice was shaky, about to crack.
“Ashley broke the necklace my mom left me!
Why are
you protecting her?”
