The Masked Heiress

Chapter 1

The day of my wedding to Mark, my half-sister, Ashley, decided to swan dive off the roof. 

Her phone, clutched in her hand when they found her, showed a call log with my name right at the top.

Mom and Dad, sobbing over her body, turned on me like wolves.

“If you hadn’t come back, Ashley would still be alive!”

“Are you happy now that she’s dead?”

To get justice for Ashley, they dragged me to a memory extraction facility.

Even though they knew the procedure could kill me, they didn’t care.

They only begged for my forgiveness after they saw the truth.

…

I was standing at the altar, ring in hand, ready to slip it on Mark’s finger.

The pain from my illness was making my body tremble.

I tried to fight it, to have one perfect day.

But the agony was relentless, leaving me pale and drenched in a cold sweat.

My stomach felt like it was being gutted with a dull knife.

Even my hand holding the ring was shaking like a leaf.

“What’s taking so long? You wanna get married or what?” Mark grumbled, ever the charmer.

Just then, the doors to the ballroom burst open.

A jolt of dread shot through me, and my right eye started twitching.

“Mark, Ashley… Ashley jumped!”

My fingers clenched, and I reached out to take Mark’s hand, to face this together.

But he knocked the ring out of my hand, his face a mask of panic.

Before I could even process what was happening, he was bolting out the door.

My parents followed right behind him, not even a glance in my direction.

I stood there alone in that huge room, utterly abandoned.

Again.

When I finally got my wits about me, I stumbled after them.

Outside, I saw Mark cradling Ashley in his arms, his eyes burning with hatred as he looked at me.

A bitter taste rose in my throat.

I reached out, wanting to touch him, but Mom shoved me to the ground.

Sharp rocks dug into my hand, and blood stained my wedding dress.

The whole damn crowd surged toward Ashley.

I bit my lip, the fact that this was supposed to be my wedding day was almost too much to bear.

Why did Ashley have to steal this from me, too?

“You murderer! You killed my baby! You killed Ashley!”

My own mother, practically hysterical, collapsed into Dad’s arms, cursing me.

She even wanted me to die, to join Ashley in the grave.

I scrambled to my knees, trying to explain, but she kicked me away.

I saw the corner of Ashley’s mouth twitch upward. I lunged at her, wanting to tell them it was all an act, but Dad slapped me so hard I went sprawling.

“Ashley is dead because of you! What else do you want?”

I stared blankly at my bloodstained dress.

Mark was suddenly there, looming over me.

I reached for him like a drowning person, but he pushed me down again.

He shoved his phone in my face, and I squinted to make out the words.

“Don’t blame Fallon. It’s all my fault…”

Before I could say a word, the butler dragged me home and forced me to kneel.

It wasn’t until late that night that Mom and Dad finally came back.

Mark was with them.

Dad came at me, and for a split second, I thought he knew the truth.

Then he grabbed my hair and yanked my head back.

“What did you say to Ashley that made her jump?”

“I…”

I tried to explain, but a wave of pain crashed over me.

I could barely breathe.

I knocked my meds off the coffee table in my pain. My face was turning purple, and I crawled desperately toward the pills.

Almost there… just a little further…

Just as my fingers brushed against the bottle, Mark bent down and picked it up.

My heart leaped, and I looked at him with pleading eyes.

“The pills… please, Mark, the pills…”

He looked at me, his eyes filled with contempt.

Then he gripped my chin, his fingers digging into my flesh.

“I’ll ask you one last time, Fallon. Why did Ashley die?”

The pain cleared my head a little.

I shook my head, tears stinging my eyes.

When I didn’t answer, he let go of my chin.

He tossed the pills into the trash and stormed out of the living room.

I turned to my parents, pinning all my hopes on them.

But Dad looked away, and he and Mom turned and went upstairs.

I gasped for breath, clinging to the coffee table, forcing myself to calm down.

Then, with a burst of energy, I crawled toward the trash can.

I got the pills out and swallowed them, and then everything went black.

When I woke up, they were reading my diary aloud, using it against me.

“May 23, 2018. It’s so big here. My new Mom and Dad are really rich. But they look at me like I’m dirt… Why did Ashley pour hot water on me? Does she hate me?”

“June 27, 2018. Mom’s taking me to a party. She told me not to embarrass her and bought me a pretty dress. But why did Ashley ruin my dress?”

…

“August 6, 2028. Ashley doesn’t like me. She always blames me for things, and Mom and Dad never believe me. I wish she would just disappear. Then it would just be me here, and Mom would care about me…”

Hearing those words, I lunged at Mark, trying to rip the diary out of his hands.

“Stop reading that!”

My brother shoved me away.

“You’re a piece of work, Fallon. Even your diary is a lie.”

“Trying to make Mom and Dad feel sorry for you? You’re so manipulative!”

“Ashley told me to look after you! And you wanted her to disappear? You’re smearing her name!”

“Tell me what you said to Ashley that made her jump!” My brother raged, grabbing my throat.

Choking, I managed to choke out, “She’s dead! You are just believing what was said on her phone!”

Mom threw the diary at me.

A suicide note slipped out from the middle, written in Ashley’s handwriting.

“Mom and Dad, please forgive me for what I’ve done. I don’t want to leave you, but I don’t see any other way…

My existence is a mistake. Only if I die can Fallon have the life she deserves. The family will finally be happy and stable. And Mark, take care of Fallon after I’m gone. Be good to her. Forgive me…”

My hands trembled as I clutched the note.

Mark grabbed my neck, demanding to know what I had said to Ashley.

Seeing their anger, I laughed bitterly.

If I had died, they would have celebrated.

They weren’t going to get the truth from me, because I had never said a single word to Ashley to make her want to leave.

For ten years, I had been the one who was bullied.

But they didn’t believe me, and I had nothing to say to change their minds.

I closed my eyes, and tears slipped silently down my cheeks.

Ten years ago, they brought me here.

I learned that the people who beat and abused me weren’t my real parents, and the wealthy couple standing before me were.

I was happy, thinking that I was finally going to have the life I always deserved.

But from the moment I stepped into the Blackwood home, all I got was scorn.

Everyone despised me, the real Fallon Blackwood, while they praised Ashley, the perfect daughter.

“Ashley is so talented! She can do anything!”

“Yeah, she won the piano competition!”

“Ashley is the pride of the Blackwood family. You’re just a hick.”

People said things like that to my face, and even Mom and Dad were clearly uncomfortable around me.

To catch up with Ashley, to make my parents proud, I studied day and night.

But all I got was more scorn, told that I was a joke, a wannabe.

I was their daughter!

But I never got a shred of love.

The memory brought more tears, and Dad pointed at me, his face twisted with rage.

“Don’t think I won’t do something about this, Fallon!”

It was like being stabbed in the heart.

I had gotten used to their coldness.

But to hear those words, to know they didn’t trust me, still hurt.

Dad, playing the righteous parent, had people haul all my designs, my trophies, and the gifts Grandpa gave me out of my room.

They tore up my designs, smashed my trophies, and took away anything I could use to contact the outside world.

They said I would only get one meal a day and that I was not allowed to leave my room.

A few days later, I collapsed in my room.

Long-term malnutrition, coupled with starvation, had taken its toll.

Through the haze, I heard Mom and Dad and my brother open the door, look down at me on the floor, and start talking.

“She’s sick anyway. Might as well send her to the lab to extract her memories and find out why Ashley died.”

I tried to move, but all I could do was twitch a finger.

No one noticed.

When I woke up again, I was strapped into a sleep pod.

I recognized the equipment. It was in our own research lab.

Mom and Dad were talking to a scientist in a white coat.

The scientist looked shocked, frowning slightly.

He hadn’t processed what Dad was asking.

“Fallon’s not in good shape. Her body is weak from her illness. I don’t recommend forcing memory extraction.”

“The product is still in testing, and memory extraction is painful. It could kill her…”

Mom and Dad interrupted him, listing my crimes for the benefit of the scientist.

“Ever since she came home, Ashley has been trying to help her!”

“She’s always worried that Fallon isn’t eating or sleeping well. And all Fallon has done in return is drive her to suicide!”

“I’m doing this to get justice for my daughter!”

The scientist looked uneasy. “Even if the memory extraction is successful, there could be side effects, like amnesia or dementia.”

My brother spat in my direction and pressured the scientist.

“This is our lab. Who do you think pays your salary?

You wanna lose your job?”

Reluctantly, the scientist came over to me.

He handed me a contract.

I clutched the paper, a bitter taste spreading through my mouth.

I signed my name, brushed away the tears, feeling like I had nothing left.

I asked the scientist, “How will my memories be seen?”

When I learned that my memories would be projected onto the screen next to me in the form of a video,

I signed the contract.

As I lay down, their smug faces were the last thing I saw.

If they knew Ashley’s true face, would they still love her like they do now?

After I lay down, my brain was forced open, and I was drenched in sweat from the pain.

My mind was slipping away.

Because it was my own memory, I could clearly see images from my childhood flashing before my eyes.

It was the first day I arrived at the Blackwood house.

Ashley took my hand with a smile, calling me “sister,” and told me she would take me upstairs to change into some pretty clothes.

Mom and Dad’s praise for Ashley was clear as a bell.

“My Ashley is so sweet. She’s taking Fallon to change.”

“Honey, isn’t Ashley the best?”

But then, after a while, I heard Mom’s voice, full of disbelief.

“No… there’s no way Ashley would do that!”

I opened my eyes and looked at Mom and Dad.

Their shock was almost funny.

They had always treated me like I was worthless, but now they didn’t believe Ashley could be so cruel.

After all, in their minds, Ashley had always been their pride and joy.

In my memory, Ashley was pushing me hard on the ground at a blind corner.

Looking down at me on the ground, she said, “You’re just a hick from the backwoods!

Mom and Dad will never love you. So what if you’re their real daughter?

I’m the one they raised!

I’m the only real Blackwood daughter! You’ll always be a hick!”

Then she kicked me hard.

I was thrown on the ground, the palms of my hands scrapped raw.

Then the sounds of footsteps came from downstairs, and someone asked, “What was that?”

Ashley gave me a look of triumph and fell down the stairs herself.

I scrambled to my feet, terrified, and looked down the stairs.

She was clutching her leg, crying, and the whole family gathered around her.

When I saw myself standing in the corner, thin and scared, not saying a word,

My heart ached.

That night, the whole family rushed to bandage Ashley. She didn’t say it was me, but she cried and said she was scared of me.

“Sister, I won’t take Mom and Dad away from you.

Don’t blame her. I fell down myself.”

“Mom and Dad, I’ve made my sister unhappy. Maybe I should just go.

This isn’t my home anyway.”

Then she burst into tears in Mom’s arms.

Everyone sided with Ashley, blaming me.

Mom was cold to me, saying that I was jealous of Ashley and that’s why I pushed her down the stairs.

No matter how I explained, the family didn’t believe me.

After all, Ashley was really willing to hurt herself.

Compared to her, I was in the corner, acting timid and unsure of myself.

Now, standing in the lab, Mom still didn’t believe what she was seeing.

She grabbed the scientist’s coat and yelled, “There’s something wrong with your machine! My Ashley would never do that!

She’s always been such a good girl!”

My heart broke as I listened to her screams.

My mom was never going to believe me.

But that was just how it was in Mom’s memory.

In reality, Ashley had never been a “good girl,” but every time she did something wrong, she pushed me out to take the blame.

She would stand to the side and defend me.

Sometimes, she would even try to lecture me.

Her torture went far beyond that.

The scientist looked annoyed.

He glared at Mom, his face twisted with fury.

“There might be side effects, but the memory extraction is accurate!”

Before Mom could say anything else, the next image flashed on the screen.

Everyone’s face froze.