We Are Even

The day our company went public was the day the cops led me away in handcuffs for embezzlement.
My wife’s old flame became the new CEO, and I was sentenced to three years in prison.
My little sister, my only family, died of a broken heart trying to clear my name.
After I got out, I heard a conversation on my car’s dashcam that shattered my world. It was my wife, Sophie, talking to her assistant.
"It was you who embezzled the funds. You who framed Aiden and sent him to prison. Do you ever regret it?"
"Not for a second," Sophie's voice was ice. "If Rick and I were never meant to be husband and wife, then the least I could do was give him the best of everything. A life free of worry. Think of it as my twenty-fifth birthday present to him."
"But the company was Aiden's to begin with! He has nothing now."
"And you wanted me to just stand by and watch others tear Rick down?"

1
There was a pause.
"As for Aiden," she continued, "he grew up tough. What's it to him to have a little less? Besides, I married him. I have the rest of my life to make it up to him."
"Then why not clear his name now? Let people know the truth."
"The last time he went out to buy me tampons, people pointed and called him a monster who abandoned his wife and drove his sister to her grave. He was shaking so hard he pissed himself in public."
"He was brutalized in prison. His right hand is permanently damaged, and he has severe depression. If you told the truth, it might give him some peace."
Sophie’s sudden shout made even me, just listening to the recording, jump.
"Never! Everyone in Northwood City knows Aiden is a prodigy on Wall Street. If he walked out of there clean, where would that leave Rick? Absolutely not. My Rick has to be number one. No one will ever drag him down."
"So you'd rather let your own husband live in darkness? Let him hurt himself day after day with no one to comfort him? Have you forgotten his sister, her face pale as she knelt and begged you?"
"Aren't you afraid that if Aiden finds out the truth, he'll destroy everything you've built?"
A soft, chilling laugh. "He won't. Aiden only has eyes for me. We're very happy now."
The blood drained from my face. I couldn't breathe. I saved the recording.
I thought Sophie was the light of my life. I never imagined she was the source of all my suffering.
She was the one who pushed me into the world of high finance, the one who gave me the resources to succeed. I thought she was my muse. But she only built me up so high to make the fall that much more devastating.
If I hadn't needed to replace the dashcam’s memory card, I might have spent the rest of my life living under the same roof as my nemesis.
I stared at my numb right hand, a sickening suspicion coiling in my gut.
I was so lost in the horror of it all that I didn't even notice Sophie wrapping her arms around me from behind.
"What's wrong, Aiden?" Her voice was sweet, concerned. "Why are you crying again?"
"Sophie," I rasped, my voice cracking. "Why can't I feel my hand?" My right hand was a mess of fresh, bloody cuts, but there was no sensation.
She moved with practiced ease, retrieving the first-aid kit from behind the door. She gently disinfected the wounds, applied ointment, and bandaged them with care.
"Oh, Aiden. Why do you keep hurting yourself?"
"Every time I open my phone, I see them… calling me a monster who abandoned his family. I didn't, Sophie. I swear I didn't. Please… please, tell them the truth, won't you?"
Her hands paused for a fraction of a second. I saw it then—a flicker of disgust in her eyes before it was gone.
"Then just turn off your phone. Don't look," she said, her tone hardening slightly. "I've told you so many times, I don't care that you have a record. I don't care that you're hurt."
She softened her voice again, a masterclass in manipulation. "I've taken ninety-nine steps toward you, Aiden. Can't you just take one toward me? When you hurt, I hurt."
She let out a choked sob, a performance worthy of an Oscar. "It's Crystal's memorial in a few days. I'll take you to see her."
Even knowing the recording was real, hearing her say my sister's name was like a knife twisting in my heart.
I turned my head away, unable to look at her.
"You should rest. I'll go get your medication."

2
After Sophie handed over the company, we moved into her family’s old estate, where I endured the daily scorn of her parents.
They never missed an opportunity to berate me, lamenting how their brilliant daughter was now wasting her life washing and cooking for a "cripple."
Today was no different. Sophie’s father barged into the room, his eyes immediately fixing on my bandaged hand.
"You useless cripple. How is it that something like this didn't just finish you off?"
I met his venomous gaze and spoke calmly. "I want to divorce Sophie. I don't want to be a burden on her life anymore."
I added, "And I need the papers finalized as soon as possible."
The triumphant smirk on his face vanished, replaced by a scowl.
"You dare make demands? If Sophie hadn't begged us not to divorce you, do you think you'd still be living in this house? Back then, if she hadn't threatened to kill herself just to marry you, someone like you wouldn't even be fit to clean the toilets here."
He jabbed a fat finger at me. "A wreck like you should have been out of my daughter's life long ago. You'll get your divorce in thirty days. The moment you have it, you get the hell out of my house."
He stood there, his big belly practically hanging over my bed, ranting. I could only clench my fists under the covers.
Bang. The door slammed shut.
While I was in prison, her family had sent divorce papers several times. I never received them. I later heard it was because Sophie had threatened suicide, and I'd believed it was some grand, romantic gesture.
How naive. The truth was, she was terrified that if we divorced, I'd get back on my feet and threaten Rick’s position.
As I drifted into a medicated sleep, the familiar scent of herbs filled my senses. I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder, a soft voice urging me to wake up and take my medicine. It felt like my mother's touch.
But I couldn't wake up.
The next morning, I had just made it downstairs when I saw Rick sitting across from Sophie. She looked incredibly tense.
I ignored them and headed for the kitchen to get some breakfast.
"Aiden," Rick suddenly stood up, his voice trembling as he reported to me like a subordinate. "I was just asking Sophie about some company matters." He subtly moved to stand behind her, his eyes welling with nervous tears.
He’d been terrified of me ever since he took over the company.
"If… if you don't want to see me, I can go."
I didn't answer him, just poured myself a glass of water.
Sophie, however, became animated. "It's fine, Rick, Aiden doesn't mind. Why don't you stay with us for a few days? We can go over the other details properly."
Rick glanced at me nervously. "Would Aiden be okay with that?"
The hand holding the glass trembled. A sharp pain lanced through my heart.
"It doesn't matter," I said, my voice flat. "This is her family's house. It's not my place to say."
That's right. This was their home. I was the outsider. Besides, I would be leaving soon anyway.
Sophie flashed a satisfied smile. I didn't look at her again and walked straight out the door.
She blocked my path.
"Where are you going?"
"To see Crystal."
"Is that Aiden's sister?" Rick's voice piped up from behind her. "Sophie, I'd like to go too. We were classmates, after all."
He gave a small tug on Sophie's sleeve. Without so much as a glance in my direction, she made the decision for me.
I was shoved into the car, and I stopped fighting. I ignored the two of them. All I wanted was to see my sister.

3
I held the bouquet in my left hand, gently placing the flowers on Crystal's gravestone.
Suddenly, my face felt wet. Tears were streaming down my cheeks without me even realizing it.
Crystal’s photo smiled back at me, her eyes seeming to look right through the picture and into my soul.
"Crystal," I whispered, my voice thick. "You have to believe me. Your brother has lived his life with a clear conscience."
Growing up, it was always just the two of us against the world. She was the only family I had left.
And I wasn't even there to see her one last time.
"Let me tell you the truth, Aiden," Rick's voice, slick with venom, cut through my grief from behind. "You know, we were originally going to feed your sister's body to the dogs."
My blood ran cold.
"Do you know why? Because Sophie was afraid the police would trace it back to me. Before she died, your sister kept screaming 'no' under me. I'd already given her a double dose of the stuff… Still, there's nothing quite like the first time, is there?"
His words, each one a hammer blow, struck my mind. My scalp tingled, and a raw, agonizing pain tore through my chest.
If it weren't for you, if Sophie hadn't found me, none of this would have happened to us.
It was him. He killed Crystal. My reason evaporated.
I spun around and threw a punch.
But Sophie appeared out of nowhere, blocking my fist. She returned my punch with a vicious slap that echoed through the silent cemetery.
"Aiden, how dare you hit him?"
Her voice dripped with disappointment. "I don't care that you've been to prison. I don't care that you're a cripple. But how can you resort to violence?"
"In front of your sister's grave? Do you want her to never rest in peace?"
She kicked the flowers I had placed, stomping on them again and again.
"Since prison clearly didn't teach you anything, since you can't get rid of these thuggish habits, maybe a little time in the basement will help you learn."
Suddenly, several large men in black suits appeared behind me. They blindfolded me and dragged me to the family estate’s basement, where they began to beat me mercilessly.
The clubs they used were studded with thorns, each blow tearing into my flesh.
My numb right hand was mangled again, a bloody mess. Blood poured from my left, staining the concrete floor a deep crimson.
Through the haze of pain, I heard them talking.
"Doesn't the Missus love this cripple the most?"
"Are you kidding? She only loves Mr. Rick! The way she looks at him… she wouldn't let anyone else even touch him."
Love. I had stopped hoping for love long ago.
So why did my heart still ache, as if it were being carved out with a dull knife?
Rick came down to the basement. The timid, teary-eyed act was gone. He walked straight up to me.
He stomped his foot down hard on my bleeding left hand. The barely-clotted wounds burst open, and I cried out in pain.
"Aiden, you should know by now that Sophie has only ever loved me. So why aren't you dead yet? After all this, how are you still alive?"
He leaned in close, his voice a hateful whisper. "If it weren't for you, Sophie and I would never have been apart for so long."
"I was this close to being crowned the Prince of Wall Street, to inheriting billions and marrying Sophie. And then you showed up. You ruined everything! Now I'm stuck with this shell of a company, and I can never set foot in my own family's house again."
His face contorted with rage. "Tell me, why won't you just die?"
The blood from my left hand was turning black at the edges. My vision blurred.
So that was it. Sophie only got close to me to tear me down, to clear the path for her one true love. I already knew, so why did the pain still feel so sharp, so real?
"Rick! Rick..."
Sophie's voice echoed from the top of the stairs. Rick's expression shifted instantly, a dark, cunning look I'd never seen before.
He grabbed a knife from one of the goons, plunged it into his own thigh, and then draped my bloody right hand over the handle.
"Sophie! Sophie... I'm down here!" he cried out, his voice filled with fake terror.
Sophie practically flew down the stairs. She shoved my hand away and cradled him.
"You really are hopeless," she snarled at me, her eyes filled with pure hatred. "After all I've done for you. You're nothing but a worthless animal."
A doctor rushed in and did a quick examination.
"Ms. Sophie, he's lost a lot of blood. He might need a transfusion, but getting a match from the blood bank will take at least an hour..."
The doctor hadn't even finished his sentence. Sophie’s eyes, cold and murderous, locked onto mine. There was no hesitation.
"Use Aiden's blood."

4
They tied me to a makeshift operating table. A thick needle pierced the vein in my left arm. The pain from my battered body was nothing compared to the agony in my heart.
I don't know how long I served as a human blood bag before I passed out.
When I woke up, Sophie was feeding me medicine. My left arm was bandaged, but I couldn't lift it. It felt just as dead as my right.
"You're awake? Here, drink this."
I turned my head away. Sensing my anger, she softened her tone.
"Alright, making you give blood was my fault. I apologize. But you have to take your medicine, even if you're angry. Your body can't handle any more stress."
I remained still. With an exasperated sigh, she stood up, pinched my cheeks to force my mouth open, and poured the bitter liquid down my throat.
As the herbal concoction hit my stomach, my consciousness began to fade again.
"He drank it all." That was her voice.
"Good. Then we can begin." Rick's.
"Your leg..."
"It's just a scratch. You know how strong I am. You'd better give me a baby this year."
Sophie’s playful protest faded away, replaced by the unmistakable sounds of their lovemaking. The sounds drifted into my ears, a final, cruel torture. I wanted to wake up, to scream, to demand the divorce they owed me.
But my eyes wouldn't open.
I was startled awake by the shrill ringing of my phone. Unable to lift it with either hand, I managed to hit the speaker button with my knuckle.
"I've got the divorce certificate. Now get the hell out of our lives."
It was Sophie’s father. It was the best news I'd heard in years. The pain in my body seemed to lessen at his words.
"I'll be gone immediately. I won't trouble you again."
Finally. I was leaving. And I would take back everything I had lost.
"Trouble who? Leaving where?" Sophie walked in, holding a glass of water.
"Nothing. Just listening to an audiobook," I lied.
The suspicion in her eyes faded, replaced by something else. "Aiden, Rick wants to thank you for the blood. He's invited you to a big dinner tomorrow to show his gratitude."
I looked at my lifeless left hand and managed a twisted smile.
"Sure."
Sophie looked like she was about to jump for joy. "Great! I'll go help him with the arrangements."
I dragged my broken body to find her father and collected the divorce certificate. Then, I immediately booked the next flight to Australia.
I didn't see Sophie for the rest of the afternoon, and the relief was intoxicating.
I asked the butler to deliver the divorce certificate to the restaurant where they were having their "thank you" dinner. Then I took a cab and left the city behind.
I had no luggage. There was nothing from that life I wanted to take with me. Nothing except my sister, and I didn't have the power to do that yet.
"Crystal," I vowed, watching Northwood City shrink below me. "Don't worry. Your brother will get justice for you, even if it's the last thing I do."
A sense of euphoria washed over me as the city disappeared. It was over. I was heading toward a new life, one that belonged only to me.

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