The Gamma’s Regret Chapter 07

The Gamma’s Regret Chapter 07

After that, Jack and Mia never dared bother me again.

Whatever Liam’s people said to them, I didn’t ask. Didn’t care.

My friends proposed a trip around the world.

In my past life, I’d never left this city. Trapped by family. By Arthur. By the kids.

Now I had means. Time. No strings attached.

Only one hesitation-I wanted to be even more comfortable.

I decided to sell the penthouse I’d shared with Arthur.

The first buyer who came to see it was Jack.

His eyes were red. He looked wrecked. He stood in the middle of the living room, voice cracking. “Mom… we

lived here for decades… How can you do this?”

“Dad and Mia miss you… I miss you too… After Dad got paralyzed, Clara cleaned out his accounts and ran. Dad says it every day-Elaine was the only one who ever really cared. Elaine would never abandon me…

Mom, we know we were wrong. Please come back.”

My face was stone. My voice was business. “Buying or not? If not, leave. I don’t have time.”

Jack ended up taking out a loan and buying the place.

His company was already circling the drain. Buried in debt.

I didn’t understand why he was so desperate to buy it. Not my problem.

The day before my trip, the guards reported a woman named Mia at the gate asking to see me.

I told them to let her in.

Mia looked hollowed out. Gaunt. She clutched a bag of fruit I used to love. Her face was all desperate, groveling submission.

“Mom… my brother told me you live here. Why didn’t you ever tell us you had such powerful family… I was so stupid before… Can you forgive me? Please?”

I looked at her and spoke quietly. “It’s not that I didn’t want to tell you. I just didn’t want to trade my status for your fake respect.”

Mia’s face burned red. She dropped her head in shame.

She pushed the fruit through the gap in the gate. “Mom, your favorite…”

I didn’t take it.

“Mia, it’s not that you didn’t know better. You’re in your thirties. You’re just selfish. Cold. Incapable of seeing anyone but yourselves. You never truly saw me as your mother.”

I didn’t wait for her reply. I signaled the guards to close the gate.

It rained hard that afternoon.

Later, the guards told me Mia stood out there in the downpour for three hours. A man finally came and

dragged her away.

I just said, “Oh.” Nothing else. Not a ripple.

The next day, my friends and I left to see the world.

Europe to North America. Tropical islands to desert dunes.

At first, I was hesitant. Nervous. Out of practice.

But slowly, I let go. And I realized how vast and beautiful the world really was.

I finally understood. In my past life, my family didn’t trap my body. It was my own ignorance, weakness and obsession that trapped my soul.

After the trip, I started learning again. Picked up hobbies. Did charity work with my friends. Dabbled in small

business ventures.

Busy days. But full. Happy. Free. With dignity.

Not long after, the news trickled in.

Jack’s company collapsed completely. Drowning in debt. Lily unbonded their bond and took the kids. He had

nothing.

Mia got fired for a massive error at work. Too proud for any job she could actually get. She ended up back

home, leeching off whatever was left.

The siblings couldn’t afford a caregiver. They fought constantly-screaming, even hitting each other-over whose turn it was to deal with Arthur.

During one fight, Arthur got shoved. Hit his head. Brain bleed. Partial paralysis. Slurred speech. Memory loss. A complete wreck.

Finally, fed up, they dumped him in the cheapest, most notorious nursing home-the same one I’d rotted in

during my past life. The one with all the abuse scandals.

Clara got caught in an international financial fraud scheme. Sentenced to thirteen years.

Jack and Mia rushed to tell me the moment Clara went to prison. They thought I’d be thrilled. Vindicated.

I just said, “Oh.”

I’d seen the truth long ago. Without Clara, there would’ve been some other woman. The people who ruined

my life were never the third party.

It was Arthur. Jack. Mia. Their selfishness. Their cold hearts. Their bottomless ingratitude. Their instinct to

crush anyone who actually loved them.

A few years later, word came. Arthur was dead.

In my past life, with my devoted care, he survived fifteen years. This time, he didn’t make it to five.

After he died, Jack and Mia wouldn’t even spring for a burial plot.

The funeral home called me. Asked what to do with the remains.

I was at a card game. On a hot streak.

I said flatly, “If they don’t want him, scatter him.” Then I hung up and drew my next tile, laughing with my

friends.

Such vile people and things don’t deserve to ruin my rest of life.

The sun was warm. The breeze was gentle.

Around the card table, my friends laughed and joked.

Outside the window, my roses bloomed fierce and bright.

In this life, I finally lived for myself. Free. Strong. Joyful. At peace.