Chapter 1

"Hayden, how could you peep at Lily while she's showering and also steal her bra? She's your sister!" At the Sterling residence, Morgan Sterling, who was dressed in a tailor-made suit and wearing a Patek Philippe watch, gaped at Hayden Sterling in disbelief and reproach. A frosty look colored Julia Sterling's face as she fixed her contemptuous gaze on Hayden. She bit out icily, "We were wondering what happened to all our bras. Now, it seems that we have our culprit! We never should have brought a creep like you home, Hayden!" Hayden's sister, Lily Sterling, stormed out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel. Lily was the second daughter of the Sterling family. Her long, bare legs ate up the distance between them. She snatched the incriminating bra out of Hayden's hands and then slapped him across the face. "You're not worthy of being a part of our family, you low-life creep!" she said, seething. Hayden's school shirt, the color of which had faded from too many washes, hung off his gangly build as he reached up to touch his stinging cheek. He was in a daze when he realized that he was still alive. No, not alive—but reborn. He touched his unmarred chest. He had gotten into a car accident in his previous life, and he could still feel the excruciating pain that had coursed through his body as he had suffocated. His expression turned grim as memories from his past life flickered through his mind. In his past life, Hayden had been kidnapped as a child. He was 15 years old when someone from the Sterling family had secretly brought him home. The Sterlings regarded themselves as a prestigious family in Stonybrook, and they were terrified that Hayden, who had been raised outside the family's values and traditions, would ruin their reputation. As such, the Sterlings had kept his identity a secret and allowed him to stay with them as the butler's son. However, Hayden had been so desperate for kinship at the time that he hadn't objected to the arrangement of his father, Francis Sterling. Hayden had been so naive back then. All he had wanted was to reunite with his biological parents and have his family around him. He thought that it was a stroke of great luck, given how much he had wanted a real family and a sense of belonging. When Hayden first moved into the Sterling residence, he had been eager to please his parents, his three older sisters, and the Sterlings' adopted son, Morgan. He did not mind lowering himself if it meant that they would tolerate his presence. However, his efforts were for nothing. Not even his biological mother, Charlotte Pearson, cared about him. He might as well have been invisible to her. A mother's love knew no bounds, or so Hayden had thought. But when he lay in bed with a burning fever that peaked at 104 degrees and showed no signs of breaking, Charlotte did not even so much as check on him. Instead, she had gone with Morgan to the veterinarian for his puppy's vaccination. In other words, even her foster son's dog was more important to Charlotte than her biological son. Such was Hayden's place in the Sterling family. After that, Morgan had orchestrated an elaborate car accident to get rid of Hayden. The collision had left Hayden with a few broken ribs and punctured lungs. His skull had caved from the impact, and his limbs had either been twisted at odd angles or broken entirely. He had laid in a pool of his own blood, his injuries a horrifying and grotesque sight. But when the Sterlings heard about the accident, not a single one of them had asked about Hayden. Francis and Charlotte, along with their three daughters, had huddled around Morgan to comfort and reassure him, even though he had gotten out of the accident with only a few abrasions. Hayden hadn't even been able to muster the strength to call out to them. He had merely watched as they had gathered around Morgan and fussed over him. "Guys… I'm hurting too. Aren't you going to take a look at me?" Hayden had croaked in his family's direction as he lay in his blood, his tears mixing with crimson. There was only sorrow in his bloodshot eyes as he stared at his family. He had died seconds later. Even as his soul had left his body, he kept hoping that his family would glance over at his corpse after they were done consoling Morgan. Perhaps they might regret overlooking him and shed a tear for his death. However, they had done no such thing. They had left the scene of the car crash with Morgan and called for someone else to take care of Hayden's body. Only then did Hayden let go of any foolish hope. Like dandelion fluff, he was destined to wander far away and never return. The Sterling residence was certainly not his home. To the Sterlings, he was nothing more than a stranger who shared their blood. They wouldn't have bothered bringing him home if they weren't so terrified of the scandal that would befall them if word got out that their biological son had been kidnapped and raised outside the family. Perhaps the fact that Morgan had murdered Hayden kept the latter from going into the light. Hayden spent the next decade sticking by Morgan's side. The day after the horrific car crash, he saw Morgan paying the truck driver who had caused the collision that had killed him. That was how he had found out the truth behind his death. He had also caught Morgan peeping at Julia, Lily, and Anna while they were in the shower. But Morgan had pinned the peeping incidents on him in the previous life, and his sisters had deemed Hayden a pervert ever since. It seemed like Hayden had been reborn into that exact moment when Morgan had accused him of peeping at Lily. Hayden glanced at the bra in Lily's hand and pointed at Morgan, saying, "Morgan's the one who handed me the bra just now. He was the one who stole your underclothes and peeped at the three of you while you were showering. "Feel free to check Morgan's room if you don't believe me. He's hiding your bras in the last drawer of his closet." Morgan's expression shifted, and a second later, he looked like he was close to crying. "How could you pin the blame on me, Hayden? If you're sick of having me around the house, I can leave. I know you don't like me. I can leave the family and move out of the house if you want." His crocodile tears streamed down his cheeks, and he sounded so resentful that he might as well have been playing the role of a martyr. "Morgan, don't be silly. You're our brother, and this is your home! You're our family," Julia said as she hurried over to Morgan and threw her arms around him. She then shot Hayden a frigid look and said, "If anyone should go, it's you, Hayden! It's one thing to steal our bras and peep at us in the shower, but to blame someone else for your own crimes? "Come on, Hayden. Your creepy behavior makes me sick! Only uncultured and savage low-lives like the Caldwells and the people at the orphanage could raise a scumbag like you!" Lily stood next to Morgan and patted his shoulder in comfort. She glared at Hayden and said angrily, "I knew that bringing him home was a mistake! We don't need another brother, with Morgan here." Morgan wiped away his tears, but he could not wipe away the smug gleam in his eyes. However, he muttered mournfully, "Julia, Lily, don't say that. Hayden's your biological brother, not me." Lily insisted, "I've never acknowledged him as my brother! He's not worthy of being called our brother!" Hayden simply watched as Morgan continued his act. He then swept his gaze across the trio and sneered. "You might want to watch your boundaries even though you aren't biologically related. You're already 18, Morgan. It's gross for a grown man like you to sob and snivel away while lying on Julia's bosom." Julia snapped, "Shut up! I'm just comforting Morgan. And besides, he's not a creep like you!" "Fine. Do whatever you like. You guys can cry your hearts out later, and it would have nothing to do with me," Hayden drawled. He didn't feel like defending himself or arguing, so he turned around expressionlessly and got ready to leave. In his previous life, he might have tried to explain himself and clear his name lest his sisters got the wrong idea of him. But now, it didn't matter anymore. He couldn't care less what they thought of him or what they wanted to do. "Stop right there, Hayden! Explain yourself! I will not have a creep skulking around this house, stealing our bras and peeping at us while we're showering!" Lily demanded, stopping Hayden from leaving. Hayden pointed out coolly, "If it bothers you that much, I suggest you check the last drawer in Morgan's closet. Then again, even if you did find your missing bras there, you might say that I'd planted them there to frame Morgan. "You could always call the cops and have the forensics department verify the fingerprints on the bras. I don't mind being interrogated or assisting with the police investigation." He left without so much as a backward glance and headed for the basement. After entering the maid's quarters, where he was staying, he locked the door. The room was dim, damp, and musky—the opposite of the splendor of the Sterling's living area above. It was a run-down space furnished with a cheap bed no bigger than a cot, a work desk, and a simple closet. Hayden lay on the bed and closed his eyes, his cheek still burning from Lily's slap. He had to give the young lady credit for packing so much strength into the slap. To make matters worse, he was hungry. He couldn't remember ever having a full meal in the three years he lived with the Sterlings. But none of that mattered. All he wanted to do now was sleep, for he was both physically and mentally exhausted. He felt a bone-deep weariness from which he might not recover.