Chapter 1

My hands are bleeding again.

The harsh bleach at the Brooklyn laundromat this morning cracked the skin, the deep fryer at the burger joint blistered it, and now, this is my third shift of the day. I am scrubbing floors as the lowest-ranking janitor at this exclusive, members-only private club.

Five jobs. Five years.

Ever since Arthur—my older brother, my only blood relative—sat me down and told me the Hale family trust was wiped out, leaving us with a mountain of debt, my life became a spreadsheet of pure survival. When he got the diagnosis of progressive Multiple Sclerosis a month later, my world completely shattered.

I dropped out of Harvard pre-med. I gave up everything. I went from Evelyn Hale, Boston’s brightest socialite, to the girl willing to scrub strangers’ vomit off the floor for twenty bucks.

My walkie-talkie crackled, the supervisor’s voice sharp and annoyed. "Evelyn, VIP lounge three. Someone hurled. Bring the heavy-duty stuff."

I grabbed the mop bucket. Every step sent a sickening, needle-like pain shooting through my joints. Lupus. Specifically, advanced lupus nephritis. My doctor warned me last week that my kidneys are failing. If I don't get the surgery before winter, I’m dead.

But surgery’s out of the question. The bills are astronomical, and I haven’t scraped together enough cash for Arthur’s next round of specialty injectable meds yet. He’s cooped up in that ratty studio apartment, supposedly suffering nonstop from his “terminal” illness. I’m his only living blood relative—I can’t stand by and watch him die.

I pushed open the VIP lounge door to absolute chaos. Bottles of expensive champagne spilled across the floor, thick clouds of cigar smoke tangled with expensive designer perfume hanging heavy in the air.

I kept my head down, mechanically scrubbing the mess, when a voice I’d know anywhere cut through the chatter.

“Arthur, how much longer you gonna keep this act up? Your sister’s probably slinging dishes on some street corner right now.”

I froze. The rag slipped from my bleeding fingers, hitting the Persian rug with a wet slap.

I knew that voice. It was Arthur's best friend.

Slowly, I peered through the gap between the couches.

There, sitting in the center of the room, was my brother.

No wheelchair. No gaunt, shaking hands. He wasn't shivering in a freezing apartment. He was draped in a bespoke Tom Ford suit, swirling a glass of Macallan like he owned the damn city. He looked healthier and sharper than he ever had.

“Just a little while longer,” my brother chuckled, thick with condescending arrogance. “Evelyn’s always been spoiled and completely lacking empathy. She pushed Lily to the brink of suicide all those years back—I needed to teach her what it’s like to scrape by at rock bottom.”

My breath hitched.

Lily. Our adopted sister. The girl who fake-cried to Arthur that I was abusing her.

“I gotta say, man, you're cold-blooded,” Chase said, sounding a little uneasy. “She's your own flesh and blood. A Harvard pre-med genius who dropped everything for you. She's in her early twenties, but she’s worn down like an old woman. A few days ago, she was three hundred bucks short for your 'meds' and actually came begging to me.”

Arthur’s face darkened instantly. “Did you give it to her?”

Chase shook his head helplessly. “You gave us a strict death order, man. You think I’d dare? She knelt on my porch for a whole afternoon. Passed out from low blood sugar, and I didn't even dare take her to the clinic. Eventually, she just woke up and dragged herself away.”

Standing in the shadows, my breath hitched. 

Chase left out the most pathetic part. 

He didn’t mention how desperate I was that day. I had practically thrown myself at him, half-unbuttoning my work shirt, telling him he could touch me, do whatever he wanted, just for that three hundred dollars. Arthur had been out of his "imported injections" for a week, and I was terrified his condition would worsen. I had nowhere else to turn. 

Instead, Chase had looked at me like I was a ghost and frantically kicked me out of his house. 

Now I get it. 

It wasn't that he didn't want to lend me the money. He couldn't.

Arthur let out a cold scoff. “Listen up, all of you. Until I bring Lily back home, no one lifts a finger for Evelyn. I don't care if she kneels, begs, or drops dead right in front of you—you ignore her. Lily is highly sensitive. She has severe anxiety. It took five years of her relaxing in Europe for her condition to finally stabilize. If I cut Evelyn's punishment short by even one day, it might upset Lily and trigger a relapse. If anyone here makes my sweet sister unhappy, I will personally ruin your entire family.”

The room went dead silent. The guys exchanged awkward glances, clearly thinking this was totally unhinged. 

Someone nervously cleared their throat. “But Artie... aren't you worried Evelyn will find out the truth and just... leave you?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Arthur burst out laughing. 

“Are you kidding me? We're blood. No matter how bad it gets, it's just family business. Evelyn treats me like her goddamn lifeline. You could hold a knife to her throat and she wouldn't leave me. Besides, it's just a little lesson. Lily is different. She's adopted, she's always felt out of place and insecure. It's only right that I spoil her.”

I stood there in the shadows, my mind going entirely blank.

He didn't lose a dime. He never had MS.

For five years, I worked myself to the bone to buy "medicine" that didn't exist. Lily is shopping in Paris on his dime, while I dig through the trash for half-eaten sandwiches so I can afford his rent.

A brutal, tearing spasm ripped through my abdomen. My knees buckled slightly as my failing kidneys screamed in protest. I clamped a hand over my mouth just as a hot, metallic liquid forced its way up my throat.

Blood.

I swallowed the copper taste back down, my eyes fixed on my brother’s smiling face one last time.

Then, I turned around, picked up my bucket, and wanted to slip out the door.

Arthur thinks he's a god playing a game. He thinks he can just snap his fingers in a few months, say "lesson learned," and welcome me back into his mansion.

He doesn't know his terminal illness is a lie.

But mine is very, very real.