My parents looked disgusted too.

“She wet herself the first time we met her. Is she stupid? Couldn’t she use the bathroom before getting in the car?” Ben snapped.

Mary sighed. “She really isn’t normal. Even if she had to go, couldn’t she just say something? Instead, she suddenly peed in the car. If word gets out, how will the Zeller family ever hold its head high?”

A bitter smile tugged at my lips.

So they had despised me from the very beginning.

They just never said it out loud.

The dream continued, clear and vivid.

When we returned to the mansion, the housekeeper had already cleaned up. I was greeted with a grand welcome that had clearly been planned in advance.

Everyone seemed genuinely happy to see me.

After the small celebration, I was given a bedroom on the third floor.

Emily helped me make the bed, still as cheerful as ever, comforting me about what had happened.

“Lily, don’t take it to heart. None of us care about that. Get some rest, and later I’ll take you shopping,” she said brightly.

She was so warm and kind.

At the time, I was still grateful to her. But I wasn’t naive. I had a faint suspicion there was something wrong with that lemon tea.

So I said gently, “Emily, did you add something weird to the lemon tea? I started feeling strange and lost control of my bladder right after drinking it.”

I had never imagined she did it on purpose, so I asked her directly.

Emily froze for a second, then turned and smiled. “Oh, so you figured it out? I didn’t think you’d notice. But it doesn’t matter. I just added a little diuretic.”

I stared at her, confused. “What’s a diuretic?”

After fifteen years in the countryside, I knew nothing beyond how to work the fields and endure beatings.

Emily let out a soft laugh. “It’s good for your stomach. You’re going to be treated like a princess now, so I wanted to help you get healthier first. You don’t mind, right? I didn’t expect you to actually pee in the car.”

Her smile shifted. The playfulness vanished, replaced by something sharp and smug.

That was when I realized it had all been her doing.

But after years of abuse and humiliation, I had already learned to stay silent.

I opened my mouth, but no words came out. All I felt was the dull ache in my chest.

Seeing me like that, Emily covered her mouth to hide a laugh. Then she stumbled out of the room in a dramatic rush, tears suddenly spilling down her face.

Startled, I stood up just as she ran straight into Steve’s arms on the stairs.

He immediately asked what was wrong.

Emily shook her head, pretending not to want to say. Steve frowned and pulled her closer. “Tell me,” he said.

“It’s my fault,” she sobbed. “I shouldn’t have given her the lemon tea. She wet herself because of it. She got mad and scolded me. I just wanted to do something nice for her.”

Her tearful words made Steve’s expression darken instantly.

My parents heard everything from downstairs and came up to comfort her.

They all stood outside my door, looking in at me without saying a word.

It felt like there was an invisible wall between us, one I could never cross.

I sank down on the bed and curled up.

So this new home wasn’t the paradise I imagined.

It had its monster too.

*

The distant memory brought tears to my eyes.

I didn’t want to see more.

I forced my eyes open.

Mr. Wilson stood in front of me, observing and taking notes.

Beside him, my parents and Steve removed their helmets one by one, taking a break. Their expressions were strange. They exchanged glances but said nothing.

Tears were still streaming down my face.

I wasn’t even sad anymore. It was just the force of the memory overwhelming me, squeezing tears out of me before I could stop them.

“Alright, stop crying,” Steve muttered. He pressed his lips together. “I misjudged you back then. Emily was just a kid, always playing around. Don’t take it too seriously.”

“Yes, Lily,” Mary said softly, trying to calm me down. “Emily has always been a little troublemaker. I’ll talk to her next time.”

Ben turned to Mr. Wilson. “There are still two chances left. Hurry up and make her recall where Emily went.”

“Please don’t worry, Mr. Zeller,” Mr. Wilson said confidently. “Miss Lily has been very cooperative. We’ll get results soon.”

My parents and Steve said nothing more. After a short rest, they sat down again and put their helmets back on.

Mr. Wilson gently wiped away my tears and began another round of hypnosis.

“Miss Lily,” he said in a calm voice, “you and Miss Emily are sisters. Tell me, what is the one thing you remember most clearly about her?”

The thing I remembered most clearly?

My memories began to blur, and the dream twisted into chaos. I couldn’t steady it right away because there were too many moments burned into my mind, each one sharp and impossible to forget.

They surfaced in fragments, scattered and broken.

One after another, the memories began to flash before me.

“What’s wrong with me smoking, huh? If you dare tell Mom and Dad, I’ll kill you!”

Outside the school gates, Emily had been smoking when I caught her. She grabbed me by the collar and cursed at me.

I swore I wouldn’t tell anyone. She smiled sweetly, then suddenly lifted my skirt. “I believe you won’t snitch, but I still have to teach you a lesson. I’m wearing a skirt today too, so you shouldn’t be.”

Before I could react, she pressed the lit cigarette into my thigh.

There was a sharp sizzle, followed by smoke rising from my skin. I screamed in pain as she laughed.

“Not bad, huh? You’ve got nice legs. That burn looks perfect!”

*

“Hey, it’s raining outside. My nightgown blew off the balcony. Go get it.”

It was pouring that night. Emily stood by the door, smirking as I reached for an umbrella.

She snatched it from my hand and shoved me outside. “You’re just a filthy stray dog. What do you need an umbrella for? Go on, get wet.”

The door slammed behind me. I stood there, drenched from head to toe, while she laughed from inside.

*

“You little brat. I’ll give you a hundred grand if you go back to that small town you came from. I can’t stand the sight of you.”

Emily was always trying to get rid of me.

She tried threats, bribes, and even pretending to be nice, but I refused to go.

Her temper finally broke. “So you’re staying? You really think you’re some kind of princess? Let me tell you something. I’m the only princess in this house. Get on your knees.”

She loved making me kneel. Maybe it made her feel powerful.

When I refused, she didn’t hit me or yell. She just smiled, took out a stack of cash, and waved it in front of me.

“Kneel and bow, and it’s yours.”

I bit my lip, took the money, and did as she said.

She laughed loud and hard. “You little money-grubber. Looks like I don’t even need to try with you. All it takes is cash. And that’s one thing I’ve got plenty of.”

Yes. For money, I would do anything.

“Enough!”

The voice cut through the dream.

Steve tore off his headset and shouted, “What on earth is this, Mr. Wilson? You really think these memories are real? That liar is slandering Emily!”

My parents pulled off their helmets too, their faces pale with shock.

Mr. Wilson bowed respectfully. “In theory, memories can’t be fabricated.”

“Ugh!” Steve kicked a chair, speechless with rage.

Ben’s expression was hard and unreadable. After a long silence, he finally said, “Lily brought this on herself. She didn’t fight back because she wanted the money. That only encouraged Emily’s behavior.”

Mary nodded and sighed. “That’s true. Emily was young and liked to tease people, but Lily shouldn’t have let her. In a way, she’s at fault too.”

I listened to Mary’s voice, and the dream slowly began to steady. The chaos faded away.

All I had ever wanted was her love. But she never seemed to love me.

Mr. Wilson glanced at the monitor and said quickly, “Mr. Zeller, Miss Lily’s memories are still continuing. Would you like to keep watching?”

My parents and Steve exchanged a look, then hurried to sit down again and put their helmets back on.

This time, I dreamed of Mary.

She had a high fever.

She lay in bed, half-conscious, groaning every now and then. Ben was out of town, and Steve was at the office. Other than the housekeeper, only Emily and I were home.

Using what I had learned back in my small town, I brought in a basin of hot water, soaked a towel, and gently wiped Mary’s forehead, arms, and back again and again.

She drifted in and out of sleep after taking her medicine.

Emily glanced at me and scoffed. “Mom already took her medicine. The doctor said she’ll be fine. Why are you acting like it’s such a big deal?”

“I’m just trying to cool her down,” I said quietly. “Back home, a woman once had a fever like this and never recovered. She ended up simple-minded afterward.”

Emily burst out laughing. “Are you kidding me? This is a major city, not that little town you came from.”

I ignored her and kept caring for Mary.

Worry gnawed at me. I couldn’t eat or sleep, terrified she would get worse. I stayed by her side all night, wiping away sweat each time her fever returned.

By dawn, the fever finally broke. She fell into a deep sleep, breathing evenly.

Exhausted but relieved, I cleaned up the basin and towel, then lay down on my bed.

It was barely morning when Steve stormed into my room and yanked me up.

He dragged me to the foot of the bed and slapped me hard across the face.

“How dare you sleep like nothing happened? Mom was burning up all night! Where were you?”

Rage filled his voice. “And you told everyone she didn’t need looking after because she took her medicine? What do you think she is, made of steel?”

My face throbbed. I was too stunned to speak. “I… Mom…”

“Shut up, you worthless thing. You only show concern when money’s involved.”

Steve turned to leave. “Emily stayed up all night taking care of her and almost fainted this morning. And look at you, sleeping like a baby.”

That was the first time he ever hit me. He had disliked me for a long time, but that day, his hatred finally broke loose.

Tears streamed down my face, and the pain burned deep inside me.

I ran out, desperate to explain, but stopped when I saw Emily holding Mom’s arm, laughing softly as they walked down the hall together.

I looked at Mary. She met my eyes for a moment, and for the first time, I saw nothing but coldness there.

The motherly love I had longed for all my life shattered completely.

Then a voice cut through the dream.

“Wait… it was Lily who took care of me that night?”

I slowly opened my eyes.

My parents and Steve had removed their helmets and were staring at me in shock.

My thoughts were hazy. I couldn’t tell if I was still dreaming or awake.

Mary’s eyes were red as she hesitantly reached out to touch my face. “Lily, why didn’t you say something earlier? I misunderstood you.”

I said nothing.

Those memories were too painful. They numbed me more than anything.

Ben let out a long sigh after a heavy silence. “Lily really is hopeless. She never speaks up about anything. By keeping quiet, she only encouraged Emily’s behavior.”