Chapter 10 I Can't Call You Brother Anymore

Owen warned Paul, "Don't forget, you're the one who wanted to break off the engagement to marry Elsie. If you're having doubts now, how is Elsie going to face everyone in the future?"

Paul shot back, "Yes, I want to break off the engagement, but that doesn't mean Yunice and I have to sever all ties. Besides, we'll still see each other often..."

Before Paul could finish his sentence, Owen cut him off coldly. "You and Yunice have to sever all ties. You know better than anyone that Yunice is possessive and vengeful. In her mind, you belong to her. If you marry Elsie, she will only seek revenge."

Owen sighed heavily. "I just hope you and Elsie get married as soon as possible. Once she moves into your family, I won't have to worry about her every day."

However, Paul barely registered the second half of Owen's words. His mind was still fixated on one sentence: "You belong to her."

*I used to believe that, too. But now Yunice is the one who wants to end the engagement...*

After a moment of silence, Owen realized Paul wasn't responding at all. He raised a hand and gently punched his shoulder. "You're still thinking about Yunice, aren't you?"

*I noticed it earlier. When we were in the living room, Paul was sitting next to Elsie, but his eyes were constantly on Yunice.*

*This bastard-does he think he's some kind of tragic romantic hero?*

Paul, growing impatient, rubbed his shoulder and retorted, "I think you're all too cruel to Yunice. Don't forget, she's also a Saunders. But you didn't even give her a decent room in her own house, and even a housemaid can accuse her of stealing."

The Saunders mansion was a private villa with many rooms. Even Oscar's room on the second floor was empty-why couldn't they provide a proper room for Yunice?

Owen's face reddened with frustration as he yelled, "And you're any better? You're rejecting Yunice because you think she's mentally ill and you're afraid of the embarrassment if word gets out. That's why you chose to marry Elsie, isn't it?"

Paul was choked by his words. He felt annoyed and went home.

---

That night, Owen tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Paul's words echoed in his mind.

Staring at the ceiling, he thought, *this is the house Yunice lived in for eighteen years.*

Before Dad passed away, he held Oscar's and my hands, and his last words urged us to take good care of our younger sister.

But now, not only have I failed to care for her, I've treated her so badly that even Paul, a special kind of playboy, could criticize me.

Owen calculated in his mind. There were four well-lit rooms, occupied by myself, Oscar, Yunice, and Dad's master bedroom.

After Dad died, Elsie and her mother shared the master bedroom for two years. It was only after Yunice was sent to the mental hospital that Elsie finally got her own private space.

*Who should swap rooms with Yunice?*

Elsie suffers from asthma and is the youngest in the family-she can't be made to suffer.

Mom is an elder, so it's impossible for a younger member to take her room.

Oscar, as the eldest child, can't be expected to live in a smaller room.

And I have too much office equipment-a small room couldn't possibly fit it all.

He turned over, still unable to sleep.

Finally, he got up and turned on his computer.

After searching for a while, he found a death certificate from a year ago.

*Lauren Drake, female, 19 years old. Admitted to Silverburgh Psychiatric Hospital. Died from accidental mechanical asphyxiation.*

His hand, clutching the mouse, trembled slightly. Owen's eyes flickered.

Yunice hadn't been lying-the mental hospital was a place where a will could cause people to die.

Imagining a weak, helpless Yunice, her hair yanked, her spine crushed under a knee, her delicate fingers scratching the floor in agony-it made Owen gasp for breath.

Emotions surged within him. He reached for the kettle to pour a glass of water to calm himself down, but the hot liquid splashed onto his hand. The searing pain made his scalp tingle, and he couldn't help but cry out.

As he irritably examined his reddened skin, an image suddenly flashed in his mind: Yunice plunging her hand into the blazing embers that day.

He stared at his own hand, his eyes filled with shock.

*So this is what a burn feels like.*

*My skin is only red, yet the pain is unbearable. But Yunice's palm had been burned to raw flesh and blood, and even though her whole body trembled, sweating from the cold, she didn't make a single sound.*

Owen's lips parted slightly. Only now did he finally understand what it meant to be numb to pain.

She must have suffered so much at the mental hospital, so much that she eventually became numb.

His eyes were red with heartbreak, but the next second, anger erupted. He wiped away his tears furiously, blaming Yunice for being so stubborn!

Why didn't she seek help from the nurses when she was bullied at the hospital?

Why didn't she call her family to stand up for her?

She just held a grudge against them, refusing to bow to her own family. That's why she bore so much suffering in silence.

He truly didn't understand-what had the family done wrong that she would be so opposed to them?

What was she holding on to?

---

At dawn, someone knocked on Yunice's door.

Owen stood in the entryway, one hand in his pocket, his brows furrowed as he listened to the slow movements inside.

When Yunice opened the door, Owen observed her carefully. She looked much better than she had a few days ago. Remembering her injuries, Owen softened his tone. "Get ready. We're going to the hospital for a full check-up."

Yunice replied, "Forget it. I don't have an ID card. I can't register."

"It's our own hospital; rules don't apply." Owen watched her and felt she was just being difficult.

His gaze fell on the woman's hanging hand. Holding back his anger, he said, "I haven't found your bracelet yet, but I'll return it as soon as I do. Mom and Oscar's rooms aren't an option, but don't worry; just wait. I'll buy you a house of your own after the hospital's monthly salary comes through."

*Wait?*

*He wants me to wait again?*

*I've been deceived by this word too many times. When Elsie first arrived in the Saunders family, they coaxed me by saying, "Just wait a little longer; Elsie will stop taking Mom away from you. Just wait a little longer; she'll be more considerate. Just wait, and she'll get closer to you."*

*I won't believe their empty promises again.*

*And I know Owen won't buy me a house. Tomorrow, he'll use the same promise to placate Elsie.*

Owen waited for a reaction. In the past, if he said he'd give her a gift, she would smile to herself, no matter how angry she was. Now he was offering her a house-she should be happy, right?

But Yunice still looked unhappy.

Owen was confused. "I've promised you your room and your bracelet-what more do you want?"

Yunice laughed. "They were mine from the beginning. Are they gifts now?"

Owen was caught off guard. He felt embarrassed and noticed something was off about Yunice. "You haven't even called me 'brother' since you came back; are you going to cut ties with your family?"

Yunice smiled. "It's not that I want to cut ties; it's that I can't call you 'brother' anymore."

Owen's brows furrowed. *What does she mean?*

He didn't understand. A moment later, Yunice let him hear it, "You said you'd take me to the hospital, so when your subordinates ask about me, how will you introduce me?"

Owen was about to speak; Yunice cut him off, "Elsie went to school for me, interned at my family's hospital for me, and studied for my master's degree; her social circle has long been integrated with the name Yunice, and anyone who recognizes her will only know her and not me."

Yunice looked at Owen and analyzed, "You're taking me to the hospital; of course you can't say my real identity. You can only say that I'm one of your younger sisters, or else Elsie's identity that has been operated on for so many years will be tainted. You wouldn't want Elsie to be misunderstood as a fraud and a liar, would you?"