Crippled By The Fake Heiress — And She Regretted It Chapter 04
After leaving the hospital, I received another message from Gina.
In the photo, she held her son and leaned against Alessio’s chest. My parents sat on either side. A family of five, beaming in a sprawling villa. On the wall behind them hung a calligraphy piece in Don Scarla’s own hand: [Harmony Brings Prosperity].
Those five characters seared my eyes until they stung. Their family had never included me.
I drifted home like a ghost and lay in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
I don’t know how long I lay there before the housekeeper’s voice sounded outside the door—they were back. The bedroom door opened gently and Alessio walked to the bedside, leaning down to embrace me.
“Honey, I’m sorry. I’ve been so busy with work these past few days—haven’t had time to be with you.”
“Your birthday’s the day after tomorrow. Mom and Dad and I talked it over—we want to throw you a proper celebration.”
I said nothing.
He pressed a kiss to my forehead, tucked the blanket around me, and left.
The memory surfaced unbidden—five years ago, on my birthday. My parents had announced my engagement to Alessio. That was what had pushed Gina over the edge, driven her to run me down with her car and leave me crippled.
In the five years since I’d been brought home, I’d always felt out of place. I could never be as natural as Gina, never lean into my parents with casual affection.
At our birthday parties, Gina always seemed like the only star of the show. She’d work the room, greeting people I didn’t even recognize.
“Only I deserve this party,” she’d said. “You’re just an orphanage kid. You don’t belong here.”
She’d always loved stealing my spotlight. This time would be no different.
I knew her too well. So when I saw her at the birthday banquet, I felt not a single ripple of surprise.
Gina was dressed as a waitress, wearing a face mask, standing right in front of me. The moment my family realized it was her, their expressions were priceless—each one more entertaining than the last.
“What are you doing here? This is reckless! If she notices you, everything we’ve done will have been for nothing!”
Don Scarla’s voice was a hushed snarl.
But Donna pleaded beside him: “Gina hasn’t been home in years. She just missed us—why be so harsh?”
“Besides, dressed like this, Valentina would never recognize her.”
Even Alessio was moved by her pitiful act.
“Babe, it’s my birthday too. I want to cut the cake later.”
“Sure—Valentina’s in a wheelchair anyway, it’d be inconvenient for her. Go ahead.”
Just like that, right in front of me, Gina cut the birthday cake—over a meter tall, meant to be mine and mine alone.
She even made a cruel little game of it, snapping my chocolate figurine atop the cake clean in two. Then, without warning, she shoved the entire cake toward me.
Crash!
Everyone turned to stare.
The steel support rod inside the cake stand nearly struck my face. Alessio flinched, rushing over to check on me frantically.
“Honey—are you all right?”
Then he turned and put on a perfunctory show of scolding Gina:
“Clumsy idiot—can’t even cut a cake properly. Get out!”
I suppressed the mockery in my eyes. I almost wanted to laugh.
He’d clearly seen that Gina did it on purpose. Quick reflexes, though. Truly the sharp, clever son-in-law my parents had chosen. Impressive.
My parents exhaled with relief and went to find someone to clean the floor.
The grand ballroom was bustling with guests, and Alessio was occupied in every direction. I wanted some fresh air. A pair of hands appeared behind my wheelchair.
Gina pushed me toward the garden.
“Sister. Long time no see.”
Her voice dripped with triumph.
“Did you see? Just now, when they sang happy birthday—the whole family was looking at me.”
“After all these years, they still love me more than you!”
“I don’t know why you bothered. You were perfectly fine as an orphan—but no, you had to come back and fight me for everything. And look at you now. A cripple. Even your husband is mine. If I were you, I’d be so humiliated I’d kill myself on the spot!”
I raised my eyes to meet hers. “If anyone should be humiliated, it’s you. The man you wanted was going to be engaged to me, and you couldn’t handle it—so you resorted to something extreme, nearly went to prison for it. Now you’ll spend the rest of your life under a fake name, hiding like a turtle in its shell. You can’t even see me without disguising yourself like this. And you don’t find that pathetic?”
I’d struck a nerve. Gina kicked my wheelchair, hard.
“What the hell are you so smug about, you cripple? Mom and Dad destroyed the evidence. No matter how high and mighty you act, you can’t touch me!”
She shoved my chair forward, fuming, and when we reached the edge of the swimming pool, she smiled.
“Today, I’m going to show you exactly who they care about more!”
With that, she pushed the wheelchair—and both of us—into the pool.
The freezing water engulfed my nose and mouth instantly.
“Honey!” “Sweetheart!”
Alessio and my parents came sprinting toward us in a frenzy.
The surface erupted with violent splashing. Alessio swam toward me at full speed. I struggled, reaching out my hand—only to watch him pass right by me and grab for Gina instead.
Then my parents hauled her out from the pool’s edge.
I let out a bitter smile and withdrew my hand, sinking downward.
Just as consciousness began to slip away, Alessio returned and dragged me to the surface. We lay side by side on the pool deck.
My parents hovered over Gina, calling out for their daughter to wake up.
Gina opened her eyes slowly and offered her explanation: “She suddenly accelerated her wheelchair—I tried to save her and got pulled in…”
People around us whispered among themselves.
“I heard the adopted sister ran over her leg five years ago—on her birthday too. You don’t think she tried to… you know, because of the memories?”
A flicker of guilt passed through Alessio’s eyes. Don Scarla’s expression carried something like dread.
Donna threw herself over me, sobbing.
“Sweetheart—why would you do something like that? We’ll take care of you for the rest of your life!”
I watched their performance with cold eyes, a thick bitterness spreading through me. Just moments ago, the one they’d worried about was Gina. Yet here they were, putting on a show for the outsiders.
What a joke.