Her Cold Heart: Left to Rot in the Dark

I gasped, my body convulsing in agonizing pain on the cold floor. I begged and cried, pleading with my own sister to stop, but all I got in return was her freezing, disgusted glare.

Jonah has a weak heart, Evelyn snapped, her voice devoid of any warmth. As his brother, what's wrong with giving him yours? It's just a simple heart transfer.

She locked me in the dark basement, completely indifferent to my agony.

She turned around and showered Jonah with the utmost tenderness and care.

"Are you feeling better, Jonah? If that useless trashs heart doesn't suit you, don't worry. I will find you a better one."

I was locked in that pitch-black room, bleeding from my eyes, nose, and mouth, falling into utter despair.

A month later, Evelyn finally remembered me.

"Now that Jonah is fully recovered, drag your useless body out of there," she muttered coldly to the empty hallway.

She had no idea.

I didn't survive her cruel ritual. I had died in that dark room weeks ago, and my body was already rotting away.

Evelyn carefully fed Jonah chicken soup, spoon by spoon, her face filled with deep, maternal concern.

"Jonah, how is your body recovering?" she asked softly.

"If Coles heart feels uncomfortable in your chest, just tell me. Ill find you another matching donor."

Hearing this, Jonah looked deeply moved, his eyes glistening with tears. "Evelyn, you are so good to me."

But as he spoke, a flash of mockery crossed his eyes. He lowered his head, pretending to hesitate.

"But... after the ritual, Cole hasn't come home for a month. Is he angry with me?"

"If he's mad, maybe I should give his heart back. I don't mind the pain. I don't want to ruin your relationship with him."

Evelyns heart ached for him, and she immediately pulled him into a comforting embrace.

"Don't worry about that ungrateful trash. He does this every single time. He throws a tantrum, runs away from home to threaten me, and eventually crawls back on his knees to beg for my forgiveness."

"This is just his pathetic way of trying to get my attention."

I hadn't actually left. I was standing right beside them, but they couldn't see me.

If this had happened in the past, I would have gone mad, desperately trying to pull my sister away from Jonah.

Jonah had stolen the love that rightfully belonged to me. Evelyn was my only remaining family, and I couldn't bear the thought of losing her.

And because of that jealousy, I used to get screamed at by Evelyn every time I tried to interfere.

But now, as I stood right in front of them, I felt nothing.

I was completely numb. Because my heart was gone, and I was dead.

After the Heart Transfer Ritual, the violent organ rejection had tortured me to death.

After my physical death, my soul had detached from my body. With a gaping, hollow hole in my chest, my spirit was bound to Evelyn, forced to watch her every move.

Just then, Thomas, our old family butler, walked in with trembling steps.

"Lady Evelyn, about Master Cole..."

Evelyn frowned, her face darkening with annoyance.

"What about him? Didn't I tell you? I don't care about anything regarding Cole anymore."

"Running away for a whole month over a petty fight. How childish. When will he ever grow up and be as mature as Jonah?"

Thomas kept his head low, his voice shaking.

"My Lady... Master Cole didn't run away. He... he has been locked in his room for a month. No food, no water."

Hearing this, Evelyns frown deepened.

Seeing her reaction, Jonah quickly chimed in, putting on a guilty face.

"Evelyn, Cole must be really angry. Maybe I should go and apologize to him in person."

"After all, I'm just an outsider. I can't let myself cause a rift between you two."

Evelyn immediately snapped at the butler, "Don't bother with him. No food or water for a month? He'd be dead by now if he was actually fasting. Does he really think this cheap trick will make me worry about him?"

She sneered, her voice icy. "What a pathetic drama queen. If he loves pretending to be dead so much, let him starve."

Thomass face went pale. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but stopped.

Seeing his hesitation, Evelyns expression hardened. "Fine. If you're that worried, Ill go check on him myself later."

"But only on one condition: once he apologizes to Jonah and promises never to bully him again, I will let him out of that room."

Hearing her words, a phantom pain shot through my hollow chest, as if someone had poured crushed glass into my empty ribcage.

I instinctively clutched my chest. My heart was currently beating inside Jonahs chest, yet she wanted *me* to apologize to *him*?

In the past, Jonah was always the one who set me up, but Evelyn never believed me.

She was my biological sister, yet she treated me with nothing but cruelty.

I still remembered the day of the ritual. Lying on the cold floor of the basement, I had cried and screamed, telling her how much it hurt.

But she had looked down at me with pure disgust.

"This little pain is nothing compared to what Jonah suffered," she had said coldly.

"You triggered Jonah's heart attack. If I don't teach you a lesson and make you feel his pain, I don't deserve to be your older sister!"

I had begged and apologized frantically, even though Jonah had faked the whole thing.

I apologized because the pain of having my chest ripped open was too much to bear. I just wanted my heart back.

But Evelyn didn't care. She had ordered Thomas to lock me in the dark room.

"If you learn how to behave and show Jonah some respect, I might consider finding you a healthy donor heart in the future."

She had slammed the door, leaving me in the dark.

And in that darkness, my soul had withered away, and I died in absolute silence.

"You may leave now, Thomas," Evelyn commanded the butler. "Later, go unlock his door and tell him to come straight to Jonah to apologize. If he refuses, I'll lock him up for another three months."

"Pretending to go on a hunger strike... how pathetic. Anyone with a shred of maturity wouldn't resort to such childish tactics."

Thomas opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but Evelyn waved her hand impatiently, dismissing him.

Jonah smirked slightly when Evelyn wasn't looking, then put on a fake worried face.

"Evelyn, once Cole apologizes, please forgive him. After all, he's your only blood relative. What if he really runs away for good this time...?"

Before he could finish, Evelyn scoffed.

"Id be thrilled if he did. A useless, malicious parasite like Cole doesn't deserve to be my brother anyway."

"If he hadn't stolen the gift you made for me, your heart wouldn't have failed in the first place."

With that, she gently hugged Jonah, her eyes filled with tenderness.

Watching this, a bitter smile crept onto my face. Even without a heart, why did my soul still feel this stinging pain?

The "gift" Evelyn claimed I stole was actually a Sirens Wax Candle. I had spent an entire month crafting it by hand.

Burning a Siren's Wax Candle could protect a spellcaster's spiritual aura during high-level rituals.

I knew Evelyn worked late nights casting spells, so I wanted to make this for her.

I had stayed up for weeks, burning my fingers so badly that my skin was peeling off.

But Jonah had found it and tried to snatch it away from me.

During our argument, Evelyn had walked in.

Jonah had immediately dropped to the floor, clutching his chest and panting dramatically.

"I know I'm just an adopted brother, Cole. I know you hate me. But I worked so hard to make this candle for Evelyn."

"I saw her working in the dark every night, and I just wanted to give her some light. Why did you have to take it from me?"

He looked up at Evelyn with tear-filled eyes. "My chest hurts so much... I think my heart is failing again. Evelyn, please take care of yourself if I don't make it."

His acting was flawless.

Evelyn didn't hesitate. She slapped me across the face so hard my lip split, then rushed to cradle Jonah in her arms.

"Jonah, hold on! Please don't leave me! I can't live without you!"

I had tried to explain.

But Evelyn cast a silencing spell on me, locking my jaw so I couldn't utter a single sound.

As the head of the Vance Coven, Evelyn was highly skilled in the mystic arts and healing.

If she had bothered to check Jonah's pulse for even a second, she would have known he was faking it.

But she was so blinded by her favoritism that she didn't even give me a chance to speak.

And when she coldly carved open my chest using our family's forbidden magic, I finally understood.

She wasn't just biased. I simply didn't matter to her at all. Jonah was her true brother; I was nothing.

"Cole, is this how you treat Jonah when I'm not around? Stealing his gift and causing his heart attack?"

"Fine. Since you love hurting him, Ill give him your heart. Let's see how you like living with a broken chest!"

To avenge Jonah, she performed the forbidden Heart Transfer Ritual, swapping my healthy heart into Jonahs chest.

Then, she threw me into the dark basement.

A month had passed since then. Only now did she think of letting me out.

But the only thing waiting for her in that room was my decomposing corpse.

Thomas returned, cold sweat dripping down his forehead, his face pale as a ghost.

"My Lady... I went to deliver your message to Master Cole. He... he didn't answer. I opened the door slightly, and... and a horrible smell came out."

"It smelled like... like a decaying corpse!"

I looked at Evelyn, curious to see her reaction to the news of my death.

To my surprise, she laughed. It was a cold, amused sound.

"A decaying corpse? What kind of game is Cole playing now? Is he pretending to be dead just to see if Ill cry for him?"

"Since he loves playing dead so much, tell the staff to lock up all the food. No one is allowed to give him a single crumb. Let's see how long he can keep up this act."

I laughed silently, a bitter, hollow sound.

In the past, she had used all kinds of cruel punishments to force me to bow down and apologize to Jonah. I had long become numb to it.

But this time, she wouldn't get what she wanted.

Because my body had already been half-eaten by the rats and insects in that dark room.

Thomas stood frozen, cold sweat pouring down his face.

"My Lady..."

Evelyns patience finally snapped. "What are you still standing there for?"

"Are you disobeying my orders now?"

Thomas clenched his fists, his voice trembling. "My Lady, I truly believe something has happened to Master Cole!"

"Please... just go and see for yourself!"

Evelyn lost the last of her patience. "How much did Cole pay you to put on this ridiculous show with him?"

"I need to spend time with Jonah. Tell Cole to get his pathetic self over here and apologize right now, or he will regret it!"

Jonah hid a smirk behind his hand, pretending to be worried. "Evelyn, what if Cole really did get hurt?"

Evelyn scoffed. "Then good. At least Ill only have one brother to worry about from now on."

Hearing this, I clutched my empty chest as phantom tears poured from my eyes.

The pain of having my heart ripped out returned, sharper than ever.

The Vance family was an ancient coven of powerful mystic spellcasters.

For generations, many dark covens had eyed our secret spellbooks.

Our parents had died in a brutal magical war when we were young.

Evelyn had fled with me and our familys ancient grimoires, running for our lives.

She practiced magic day and night while raising me.

Eventually, we both mastered the mystic arts. Evelyn avenged our parents, and we rebuilt the Vance family name to its former glory.

That year, Evelyn was eighteen and I was sixteen. We were hailed as the twin prodigies of the magic world.

But everything changed when I suffered a severe magical backlash while practicing a high-level forbidden spell. My magical core was shattered, and all my power was completely drained.

At first, Evelyn wept, holding my hand and whispering, "As long as you're alive, Cole. I will carry the Vance family name for both of us."

But as time went on and my attempts to rebuild my magical core failed repeatedly, Evelyn grew cold.

The warmth and affection in her eyes when she looked at me slowly vanished.

I tried desperately to please her, doing whatever chores and favors I could, but she remained completely indifferent.

Then, one day, she brought Jonah home, announcing that he was now our brother.

To make Evelyn happy, I treated Jonah like a real brother.

But Jonah saw me as an obstacle. He constantly provoked me in secret, then ran to Evelyn crying, making himself look like the victim.

Evelyn grew more and more disappointed in me, distancing herself further each day.

Jonah replaced me. He became Evelyns new brother.

The memory sent another wave of phantom pain through my soul.

Humans are such strange creatures. Even without a heart, the soul can still ache.

My spiritual form grew slightly fainter as my tears fell.

"Evelyn, it's been half an hour. Why isn't Cole here yet?" Jonah asked, his tone dripping with fake concern.

Evelyns brows furrowed in deep annoyance.

"He really thinks he's important enough for me to go beg him. He won't learn until he faces real consequences."

"Clearly, a month in the dark wasn't enough. I'll lock him up for another three months until he truly repents."

With a dark expression, Evelyn stood up and marched toward the backyard.

She walked so fast that Jonah could barely keep up.

When they reached the door of the basement, they found it wide open. Thomas, the butler, was lying unconscious on the ground.

A wave of an incredibly foul, putrid odor rushed out of the room. Evelyn winced, covering her nose.

She conjured a splash of cold water, throwing it onto Thomas's face to wake him up.

"What happened here? Did Cole knock you out? Where is he?"

Thomass face was deathly pale. He pointed a shaking finger toward the dark room, but his jaw trembled so hard he couldn't form words.

Watching this, I smiled bitterly.

I knew exactly why Thomas had fainted.

After the Heart Transfer Ritual, my body had suffered from severe organ rejection. I had bled from my eyes, nose, and ears, dying in a horrific state.

Moreover, my body had been locked in a warm, sealed room for a month.

The insects and rats had long turned my corpse into their breeding ground.

Evelyn let go of the butler, pinching her nose as she shouted angrily into the room:

"Cole! I'm here! Stop playing these disgusting games! You're just a magicless loser now. How dare you bully Jonah? Get out here and get on your knees right now, or I will make you pay!"

Evelyn stepped forward, but the overwhelming stench of decay brought tears to her eyes.

Infuriated, she screamed, "Cole! You think this disgusting smell will stop me from dragging you out?!"

She quickly chanted a spell, summoning a violent gust of wind.

The wind tore through the basement, ripping the door off its hinges and blowing open the roof.

Along with the wind, a swarm of black flies, scurrying rats, and my decaying corpse were thrown into the open yard.

As my skeletal remainshalf-eaten bones with chunks of rotting flesh still clinging to themslammed onto the grass, a dark, shriveled organ lay exposed in the center of my shattered ribcage.

Evelyn's eyes widened in horror.