I Got a Second Chance, So I Stopped Saving My Brother Chapter 12

I Got a Second Chance, So I Stopped Saving My Brother Chapter 12

The abandoned brickyard stood outside town and had been deserted for years.

It was nearly dark when I arrived.

Mason sat in his wheelchair with two thugs standing beside him.

My parents had been tied to support columns, their mouths covered with duct tape and their faces drained of color.

The moment they saw me, they began struggling desperately against the ropes.

I set the bag of cash on the ground.

“The money is here. Let them go.”

Mason laughed.

“You actually came alone.”

I looked at him.

“The money is what you wanted, isn’t it?”

His expression changed.

“Don’t talk to me like we’re still family. It makes me sick.”

I nodded.

“Fine, Mason Bennett.”

He suddenly burst out laughing.

“Mom, Dad, do you see this? Look how calm your precious daughter is.”

Tears streamed down my mother’s face.

My father made muffled noises behind the tape covering his mouth.

Mason pulled out a packet of documents and threw it at my feet.

“Sign them. Transfer the building-supply store and the rental properties to me.”

I glanced down at the papers.

“Do you honestly think you’re capable of managing any of it now?”

His expression twisted with rage.

“You think I’m useless too?”

“That isn’t an opinion,” I said. “It’s a fact.”

He furiously tried to propel his wheelchair toward me, but one of the wheels caught between the broken bricks.

Seeing him trapped there reminded me of my last life, when I had dragged myself toward my family on two shattered legs.

Suddenly, I no longer felt like pretending.

“Mason, do you know why I didn’t stop you from saving Paige?”

He froze.

“Because in my last life, I did stop you.”

His pupils contracted.

I continued slowly, “In my last life, the beam shattered Paige’s spine, and she killed herself. All of you blamed me because I stopped you from trying to save her.”

I turned toward my parents.

“You beat me. You forced me to kneel for days. You sent me back to that mountain town. In the end, I was mauled to death by a dog.”

My mother shook her head frantically.

My father stared at me with wide eyes.

“So this time, I gave all of you exactly what you wanted.”

I smiled.

“Mason wanted to save her, so I let him. You chose your son over me, so I stopped fighting it. Every step that brought you here was one you chose for yourselves.”

Mason’s face turned white.

“That’s impossible. You’re lying!”

“Deep down, you know I’m telling the truth.”

I took a step toward him.

“Didn’t you love Paige more than anyone? Then why did you end up wanting her dead?”

“She did this to me!” he screamed. “She’s the reason I ended up like this!”

“No.”

I stared at him coldly.

“Your own blind favoritism destroyed you.”

Mason suddenly snatched the knife from one of the men beside him and threw himself at me.

He had forgotten that he could barely control his wheelchair.

I stepped aside, and he pitched out of the chair onto the floor.

The two men realized the situation had fallen apart and tried to run.

Police sirens sounded outside.

Of course I had called 911.

I was not stupid.

As the officers restrained him, Mason continued screaming at me.

“Willa, I hope you die a horrible death!”

I crouched in front of him.

“I already died once. This time, it’s all of you.”

After my parents were untied, they cried and begged me to forgive them.

My mother clutched my hand.

“Willa, I was wrong. I’ll make it up to you from now on.”

I pulled my hand away.

“It’s too late.”

Mason was convicted of kidnapping for ransom and aggravated assault. He received a lengthy prison sentence.

The shock sent both my parents’ health into a steep decline, and neither of them could manage the family business anymore.

I sold the building-supply store and the extra rental properties.

I divided the proceeds into several portions, keeping one for myself and donating another to the foster group home that had once taken me in.

On the day I left, Paige sent me a message.

Paige: [I got into a performing-arts conservatory out of state.]

Paige: [Willa, let’s never look back again.]

I replied: [Okay.]

As the plane climbed into the sky, the city beneath me grew smaller and smaller.

I leaned against the window and watched the sunlight beyond the clouds.

In this life, I no longer wanted anyone’s love.

I wanted money, freedom, and a life I could live openly and proudly.

From that day forward, I would live for myself.