Dad didn't wait for me to speak. He shoved me toward Grace.
Grace shrieked, recoiling as if I were a monster. "I don't want her apology!"
Her voice was shrill, piercing my skull like an ice pick. The frustration and injustice I had bottled up for years finally exploded.
I couldn't hold it down anymore.
"Grace Fox, I never touched you! Who taught you to lie like this?"
My control snapped. My hand rose.
But Mom was faster.
*Smack!*
Her palm landed heavy and hard across my face. The force knocked my head sideways. A high-pitched whine filled my ears, and the copper tang of blood flooded my mouth.
Mom's eyes bored into mine. Profound disappointment. Cold disgust.
"You dare hit your sister right in front of us? I can only imagine how you bully her behind our backs."
"Get out." She spat the words like poison. "I don't have a daughter like you."
Dad gathered Grace into his arms, shielding her. "Michelle, if you can't be a good sister, then don't bother coming back."
I swallowed the bloody foam pooling in my mouth.
Bitter.
"Fine."
I turned on my heel and walked away. My movements were calm. Mechanical.
That slap had finally knocked some sense into me.
The truth was, I had lost my parents a long time ago.