Driven to death by my older brother, he knelt and begged my forgiveness

I stood on the roof of the eighteen-story building, the wind whipping around me. Down below, the giant LED screen in the town square was broadcasting the “wedding of the century” between my brother, Lucas, and socialite heiress, Olivia Harrington. I dialed a number I knew by heart, yet felt foreign now.

"Lucas, congratulations," I said.

His voice, as always, was cold. "Sarah, you’re still alive?"

I smiled, and as I jumped, I whispered, "As you wished."

1.

The day Lucas returned from overseas, he came to pick me up from Serenity Mental Health Center. Standing in the doorway, squinting in the sunlight, I saw him – a shining figure against the glare. It had been eight years since I’d seen my brother. I took slow, heavy steps towards him. He leaned against his black Mercedes, a cigarette dangling from his lips, the ash about to burn his fingers, yet he seemed oblivious.

Dr. Lewis, the director, trailed behind me, muttering, "Sarah, don't think you're free of our control just because you're leaving. I have a hundred ways to bring you back. Remember your place."

I flinched, stopping in my tracks, and nodded vigorously. Dr. Lewis plastered on a fake smile and presented me to Lucas. He frowned, reaching for my backpack.

I recoiled. "I can carry it myself."

He didn't respond, just got in the car and sped away. The past clouded my vision like a thick fog. Lucas used to be the person who loved me most in the world. No matter what trouble I got into, he would defend me against our parents. Even if it meant getting punished himself, he always shielded me. "Sarah’s my little princess, nobody can hurt her," he’d say.

When did things change? Eight years ago.

Mom and Dad were driving home late to celebrate my birthday when their car collided with a truck. They never woke up. I remember Lucas kneeling beside their bodies, sobbing uncontrollably. He pointed a trembling finger at me and screamed, "You jinx! You killed them! If it weren't for you, they'd still be alive!"

I’ll never forget that look in his eyes. As if I, not the truck driver, was responsible for their deaths.

Later, the Harringtons took us in. Lucas was brilliant, and Mr. Harrington arranged for him to study abroad. He was gone for eight years.

2.

Lucas broke the silence in the car. "Olivia told me you were sick. Why didn't you call me?"

Was I sick? Yes, I thought, I really was.

When we first arrived at the Harringtons', they treated us well. So well, I almost believed that even without Mom and Dad, Lucas and I had found a new family. I was wrong.

After Lucas left, Olivia tormented me. She’d tear up my homework and tell her parents I was being difficult. She turned my classmates against me; no one dared to befriend me.

One rainy night, two men dragged me into an alley. They ripped off my school uniform, groped me, and laughed cruelly. They took pictures of my violated body and threatened to spread them everywhere, to tell everyone I was a…slut.

I managed to call Lucas. Before I could...