Chapter 4

“What about now? Where were you when I was hurt?”

Maddox was taken aback.

“When were you hurt…”

As his mind wandered to the moment he had dumped me on the overpass, Maddox was at a loss.

“Naomi, hear me out—”

“Save your breath, Maddox. If you still have even a shred of conscience, you should just leave me alone.

“We are done.”

Shaking off his hand, I took strides to leave.

It was nearly time for rehearsal, and the last thing I wanted was to be late.

Maddox stood there in a daze, lost in his thoughts.

That night, I got his message.

“I’m sorry, Naomi. I know I was wrong. I won’t make you give up your spot to Charlotte.

“She’s honestly just like a sister to me. Can we not break up?”

While breaking out in goosebumps from sheer disgust, I blocked and deleted Maddox’s contact number again.

Maddox was absent from my life for the next few days.

My family, on the other hand, was out of control. These men were never ones to frequent social media. Yet, they had been updating their feeds three times a day.

Today, Caleb bought Charlotte a necklace set.

The following day, Tucker spent the whole day with Charlotte in the theme park.

Arthur and Rhys set their social media cover photo to a family portrait of five. They even dropped hints in the family group chat.

“I’m blessed to have such a well-behaved and sensible daughter.”

Rhys took a more direct approach. He helped Charlotte move her things into my bedroom.

His caption read, “Forever the best sister.”

I saw all the posts and liked each and every one of them.

Heck, I even took the time to comment on Rhys’ updates.

“Don’t forget to burn the sheets I’ve slept on.”

By the time I refreshed the page, the post was gone.

A minute-long voice note popped up in the family group chat.

Instead of tapping to listen, I removed myself from the group chat.

It was another day of rehearsals that ended at ten at night. I routinely slapped a pain-relief patch onto my wrist before packing my things to head back to the dorms.

The conductor approached me.

“Naomi, we have a change of plans. Someone is taking your place.

“I’m afraid you won’t be joining us for the performance next week.”

…

My mind went blank.

From the age of seven to twenty-one, I went through fourteen years of tough seasons, just to gain this opportunity.

I was just one step away from realizing my dream and fulfilling my mother’s dying wish.

Yet now…

Gritting my teeth, I asked heart-wrenchingly, “Sir, may I know who has been given my role?”

For all I knew, it could be Natasha Lorde, the runner-up who lost to me by a hair in last year’s awards.

Maybe it was a piano-playing relative of one of the orchestra’s board members.

The conductor shook his head and murmured, “It’s Charlotte, the daughter of the prominent Clarkson family. Word is, she has connections to the late Talia Clarkson. She was a student of hers.

“Talia was a remarkable pianist, and her death was untimely, so the orchestra felt obligated to give her student a chance.

“You need to accept it, Naomi.”

Without a word, I turned around.

Talia was my mother.

I was her last student.

To think my family would exploit my mother, who has been dead for over a decade, just to secure Charlotte a spot in the orchestra.

Blinded by rage, I dialed a number.

The person was the country’s youngest piano talent and the only student Talia ever publicly acknowledged.

“Hello, Desmond? It’s me, Naomi.”

On the other end of the line, a man in his thirties jolted to his feet.

“Naomi? You finally called. What’s the matter? Are you crying?”

Picking up on the anxiety in his voice, I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore.