The temptation of my brother-in-law-Chapter 95 - ninety five

Chapter Ninety-Five

Alicia’s POV

We just got home and I immediately took Sophie up to her room. She was still quiet. Withdrawn. The complete opposite of the bright, chattering girl she usually was.

I helped her out of her school uniform and into comfortable clothes. Pajamas even though it was only mid-afternoon. She needed comfort right now, not structure.

"Do you want some tea?" I asked. "Or hot chocolate?"

"I’m not hungry."

"That’s not what I asked."

She managed a small smile at that. "Hot chocolate, then."

I went to make it myself, not trusting the kitchen staff with something this important. When I returned with two mugs, Sophie was sitting on her bed hugging her knees to her chest.

I’d always seen Sophie happy whenever she was talking about this David guy. She’d mentioned him before. The boy who shared cookies with her at lunch. Who helped her with math homework. Who made her laugh.

She’d talked about him with this shy excitement that made me think maybe she had a little crush. That maybe this was her first experience with liking someone.

I wondered why the switch up happened all of a sudden. What had changed? Had there been warning signs I’d missed? Had he been inappropriate before and she hadn’t told me?

The guilt twisted in my stomach. I should have paid more attention. Should have asked more questions.

I sat down next to her on the bed, handing her the hot chocolate. "Sophie, do you want to talk about it? About what happened with David?"

She shook her head, staring into her mug. "Not really."

"Okay. We don’t have to. But if you change your mind—"

"I know. You’re always here." She took a sip of the chocolate. "Thank you for coming to get me."

"Of course. Always."

We sat in silence for a few minutes. Not uncomfortable silence, just the quiet that comes when words aren’t enough.

That was when I noticed her hands. Really noticed them.

Her knuckles were bruised and swollen. Scraped raw from the impact. There was dried blood mixed with dirt.

"Sophie, your hands," I said, reaching for them gently. "Why didn’t you say something?" 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"They don’t hurt that much."

"Let me clean them properly."

I went to her bathroom and got the first aid kit. Came back and carefully took her right hand in mine.

The knuckles were worse up close. Definitely going to bruise darker. I cleaned them gently with antiseptic, trying not to hurt her more than necessary.

"You really got him good," I said, trying to lighten the mood.

"I didn’t mean to hit him that hard. I just wanted him to stop."

"You did what you had to do. You protected yourself. That’s what matters."

I finished cleaning the right hand and moved to the left. This one was less damaged but still needed attention.

"Does it hurt a lot?" I asked.

"A little. But not as bad as before." She watched me work. "You’re good at this."

"I’ve had practice." Too much practice. From taking care of my own injuries after our father’s rages. From patching us both up when there was no one else to help.

I applied antibiotic ointment and wrapped her knuckles in gauze. Not too tight, just enough to protect them while they healed.

"There. All done."

"Thanks, Alicia."

I set the first aid kit aside and sat beside her, stroking her back in slow, soothing circles. The way our mother used to when we were scared or hurt.

Sophie leaned against me, her head on my shoulder. "I’m sorry I ruined everything."

"You didn’t ruin anything. None of this is your fault."

"But now I can’t go to school for a week. And people will talk. And—"

"Let them talk. You did nothing wrong." I kept stroking her back. "And a week off school might not be the worst thing. We have that trip coming up anyway."

"The family trip?"

"Yeah. We leave Friday."

Sophie was quiet for a moment. "Will it be weird? Being stuck with all of them for two weeks?"

"Probably. But at least we’ll be together."

"And Malachi will be there. He’s nice. He makes you happy."

The observation caught me off guard. "What makes you say that?"

"You smile different when he’s around. Like you mean it." She looked up at me. "It’s okay if you like him, you know. He’s way better than Travis."

I didn’t know how to respond to that. How much had she noticed? How much did she understand?

"It’s complicated," I said finally.

"Everything with this family is complicated." She yawned, the exhaustion from the day finally catching up with her. "I’m really tired."

"Then sleep. I’ll stay here until you do."

She didn’t argue. Just settled back against her pillows, her eyes already closing.

I kept stroking her back, watching her breathing even out. Within minutes, she was asleep.

I stayed for a while longer. Making sure she was really out. Making sure the nightmares wouldn’t come immediately.

Finally, I stood up carefully and tucked the blanket around her. She didn’t stir.

I left her room quietly, closing the door with barely a sound.

In the hallway, I leaned against the wall and took a deep breath. The day had been too much. Too overwhelming. Pa Wood’s announcement. Sophie’s incident at school. The constant weight of everything happening around us.

I needed a moment. Just one moment of peace.

My phone buzzed in my pocket.

I pulled it out, expecting it to be a message from the school. Or maybe Cassie checking in.

But it was from an unknown number. No caller ID. No name.

I opened it.

The message was short. Simple. Chilling.

"Did you like the anniversary gift?"

I stared at the words. Read them again. And again.

Anniversary gift. What anniversary gift? The only gift I’d gotten was from Malachi. The necklace I was still wearing.

Unless they meant something else. Unless they meant the scandal. The photos. The financial information about Travis.

My heart started racing. This was the person who’d sent those messages. Who’d orchestrated the entire disaster at the party.

And now they were contacting me directly.

I looked around the empty hallway, suddenly feeling exposed. Watched. Like whoever sent this was nearby. Observing my reaction.

My fingers hovered over the keyboard. Should I respond? Should I ask who this was? What they wanted?

But something stopped me. Some instinct that said engaging would be dangerous. That responding would give them what they wanted.

Instead, I took a screenshot of the message. Evidence. In case I needed it later.

Then I just stared at those words.

"Did you like the anniversary gift?"

Like it was something benign. Something celebratory. Not the calculated destruction of multiple lives.

Who was this? Who had that kind of access? That kind of planning ability?

And more importantly, what did they want from me?

The phone buzzed again. Another message from the same number.

"Don’t worry. There’s more where that came from. See you during the trip."

My blood ran cold.

They knew about the trip. Knew we were leaving Friday. Knew we’d all be together in close quarters for two weeks.

This wasn’t random. This wasn’t just about exposing scandals. This was personal. Targeted.

And whoever it was, they weren’t done. They were just getting started.

I stood in that hallway, gripping my phone, feeling the walls closing in.

Someone was watching us. Playing with us. Treating our lives like pieces on a chess board.

And I had no idea who they were or what their endgame was.

But I knew one thing. I needed to tell Malachi. Needed to show him these messages. Needed to figure out who was behind this before they could do more damage.

Because this person, whoever they were, had just made it clear.

The anniversary party was just the beginning.

And whatever they had planned for the trip was going to be much, much worse.