Chapter 7 The doctor stepped aside to let them see my body clearly. My skin was gray, my lips purple. Thomas' pupils contracted sharply as he blurted out, "Is this really Cynthia?" The young woman on the bed was terrifyingly thin, almost skeletal. In his memory, though I was slender, I had been healthy. Joseph's voice was hoarse. "What was the cause of death?" "Late-stage pancreatic cancer, combined with severe allergic reaction and organ failure," the doctor said coldly. "But what was truly fatal was..." She lifted a corner of the white sheet, revealing the large bruises covering my body. "Ruptured pancreas from violent assault." "Thomas." Joseph stared at the bruises on the corpse, his voice strained. "When was Cynthia's last physical exam?" Thomas looked as if he had been struck hard and raised his head in confusion. "I can't remember... Maybe three years ago?" Sarah had returned three years ago. From that day onward, they never cared about me again, nor did they even look at me carefully, let alone bring me to any medical checkups. In fact, if there had been even one basic physical exam in those three years, they could've detected the cancer cells early. Joseph clenched his fists, muttering in incomprehension, "Why didn't she tell us?" As soon as the words left his mouth, he was startled. I had told them on Sarah's birthday, and he had slapped me in the hospital. Thomas was in a daze. "She was fine just yesterday..." The doctor sneered, "Mr. Sinclair, you threw your sister out yesterday. Did you forget?" Thomas' face turned deathly pale as he loudly protested, "Those were just words said in anger. If I had known her allergies were so severe, I wouldn't have let her leave!" Sarah began fake sobbing, throwing herself into Joseph's arms. "Oh God, how could this happen... If Cynthia hadn't been so stubborn and run away, would she have been okay?" Joseph instinctively held her, his eyes still fixed on my corpse. His voice shook. "She's... really dead?" The doctor gave a sarcastic smile. "What else? You're not waiting for her to suddenly jump up healthy and say it was all a prank, are you?" They felt like they had been caught and turned away in embarrassment. Thomas went down on one knee, trembling and not daring to touch my body. "Cynthia..." His voice was as gentle as if he were coaxing me to wake up. "Stop playing around. We're not mad at you anymore. Get up. We brought your favorite macarons.' 11 1/4 Joseph touched my cheek with shaking hands and collapsed to his knees. "Cynthia! Cynthia!" He actually cried, gripping my cold hand tightly. "I was wrong, I was really wrong! Please, please open your eyes..." Thomas held my other hand to his chest, tears falling on my wrist. Sarah kneeled and tugged at Joseph's sleeve. "Don't be sad. You still have me." Joseph raised his red-rimmed eyes and pulled Sarah tightly into his arms, choking up. "You're our only sister now... Sarah, we'll definitely protect you." I looked down at them and saw Sarah's hands trembling with excitement when she heard the words "only sister". They helped each other up and left. I merely watched them coldly. Alright then. Now, everything was back on track. Now, the two brothers could fully enjoy their "deep sibling bond" with their real sister. But for some reason, my soul still refused to depart. After returning to the Sinclair residence, Sarah thought she had gotten away with it and slept peacefully. The next day, while she was sleeping soundly, her bedroom door was suddenly kicked open by Joseph! "Mmm... Joe?" She rubbed her eyes drowsily, still not fully awake. That was when Joseph shoved his phone in front of her face, his complexion frighteningly pale. "Sarah! Is this you?" She was instantly jolted awake. On the phone was a trending post gaining momentum. "Shocking! Patient Assaulted in Hospital Ward! Security Concerns!" The accompanying image was a somewhat blurry photo, as if some passing patient had quickly snapped it in shock. In the photo, Sarah was viciously beating me, her face twisted with rage. Thomas rushed in to restrain Joseph. "Calm down! There's no way Sarah would do something like that! The photo could be doctored!" I floated in midair, looking at him in disbelief. Even now, he still thought this was fake! Just to protect his remaining sister, he would ignore the truth of my brutal death. Sarah began screaming, crying as she threw herself into Thomas' arms. "Tom, that's definitely fake! How could I dare do such a thing?" Joseph frowned tightly. "Sarah, tell the truth. You clearly said you didn't see Cynthia that day." She sobbed. "I... I did see her that day." 2/4 Chapte +25 Bonus Under their shocked gazes, she quickly added, lies flowing easily, "But she wouldn't come home with me! She cursed at me and said you were playing favorites! I was just so angry that I lightly... I really just lightly pushed her..." She looked up with tearful eyes, looking pitiful. "Besides, Cynthia always bullied me before. How would I dare treat her like that... I'm not even the one in this photo!" Sarah's tears streamed down her face. "You're my only family now... You can't abandon me." This tactic worked. Their sense of responsibility toward their "only sister" and the guilt from losing her as a child still prevailed. Joseph wearily rubbed his temples. "We'll take down the trending topic and get you the best lawyer. But Sarah..." He stared at her, his tone colder than ever before. "You really went too far this time. You shouldn't have hidden this." Thomas also looked away, his voice low. "Until this blows over, you're not going anywhere." Sarah saw the undisguised disappointment in their eyes and panicked. I leaned in with interest to study her expression, counting silently in my mind. Three, two, one... She suddenly clutched her chest. Her body began trembling violently, her breathing became labored, and her face turned deathly pale. "Joe... Tom! I... I feel terrible. I can't breathe..." Her "panic attack" had conveniently kicked in. Joseph's expression was complicated, but he ultimately reached out to steady her. "Take deep breaths." Sarah nodded through her sobs, visibly relieved. Thomas took her medication from the drawer, opening the pill bottle to shake out a few pills. Startled, she quickly snatched the bottle away. "I can take it myself." Thomas frowned slightly but said nothing, though his eyes remained fixed on that pill bottle. If they had retained even a shred of rationality when dealing with Sarah, they would've discovered that this bitch was just taking vitamins. Sarah clutched the bottle and curled up weakly. "I... I feel terrible... I want to rest now." The two men exchanged glances and left the room. Before leaving, I clearly saw Thomas quietly take the other bottle of pills from Sarah's desk. "I want to test the pills." Joseph furrowed his brows. "What's wrong with the medication?" Thomas stared at the pills inside the bottle. "I think we'll know once we test them. I just have a bad feeling about it." They stood outside Sarah's door in silence for a long time, clutching the pill bottle, before finally walking briskly downstairs. When they passed my room, I noticed they deliberately quickened their pace. I floated behind them, tilting my head with a smile. 3/4 After playing favorites with such peace of mind for so long, they were finally panicking after my death. Humans really were fascinating creatures. DONUS