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Henry frowned. “There’s no need to – consider her. She’s not missing; she’s just acting up. Investigating her would waste police resources.”
The assistant was about to say something more when his phone rang. Henry glanced at the number, his eyes filled with scorn. He slowly removed his gloves and answered the call.
“Who are you trying to scare with this missing person stunt? Do you think Tobey will cry for his mommy? Let me tell you, he won’t. Do you think this will make me bring you back? Impossible. Either stay dead outside or come back and take care of Sophie. You owe her that.”
There was a long pause on the other end before a hesitant voice came through. “Mr. Hawke, this is HR from the Honde Group. Ms. Blunt hasn’t shown up for her new position. Since your number was listed as
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the emergency contact, I’m asking if she’s not joining us after all?”
Henry stiffened momentarily before. replying coldly, “Oh, you might as well consider her dead.”
In the past, whenever he found me bothersome, he would block my number, but I always managed to get through using a new one to make peace.
Sadly, this time, it wasn’t me.
In the school’s group chat, Tobey’s teacher repeatedly tagged the parents, asking for a response. [Tobey’s parents, he forgot his error correction notebook again, and you didn’t complete the parent checklist yesterday.]
Tobey was in an accelerated class now, where competition was fierce. He sent a furious voice message: [Dad, didn’t I tell you? Check in for me every day! And hurry up and bring my stuff over!]
After some thought, Henry dialed my
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number, only to find it turned off. The teacher’s nagging continued.
These little tasks were usually left to me; Tobey was expected to be the genius, and Henry was the high–flyer.
Looking at his own yellowed, wrinkled white shirt, he ran out of patience. He scrolled down and found my profile.
[Is this how you’re supposed to be a mother? You can’t even manage Tobey’s affairs. You’re less competent than Sophie, who just happens to be the aunt.]
[And call my mom too. What did we do to you to feel so wronged that you had to go out and work? Stop embarrassing yourself.]
I looked at my phone, then at him, my throat tightening.
I thought, What did they do to me? Isn’t that clear enough? Even now, you just think I’m being dramatic and embarrassing, with no concern for my safety at all?
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Henry’s last message to me was: [Take what you can get and stop playing games.]
Sophie moved in with them quickly, effectively taking over their lives.
Tobey’s face glowed with excitement. “Ms. Wilde is staying for good now. If Rachel never returns, it would be perfect.”
Henry, with a helpless yet indulgent smile, shook his head. “I’ve got a case going on right now, so I can’t spend much time with you. You’re not mad, are you?”
Sophie wore a sly smile. “Henry, we’ve got all the time in the world. You’ll always have time for me.”
Tobey chimed in, “And me, me too! I want to be part of this ‘we have all the time‘ thing.”
I stood there, numb, watching the three of them interact so harmoniously.
It was clear that Tobey had quickly embraced Sophie, and any notions of him
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longing for a mother figure were dashed.
From their very first conversation, Tobey had idolized her.
They often talked about jargon and competition questions that were beyond my comprehension. Each time I tried to chime in, Sophie would pause with a hint of irritation.
“Rachel, I’m sorry, I don’t quite follow what you’re saying.”
Meanwhile, Tobey would shoot me a dismissive glare.
“Can you just not speak? Every time you open your mouth, you reveal just how intellectually backward you are.”
Over time, I grew quieter and quieter, becoming a silent, invisible presence in their midst. Of course, they soon found me dull and boring.
“Ms. Wilde is so smart, she knows.
everything. Ms. Wilde, if you were my
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It turned out that all my embarrassment and heartache had been noticed, but simply not cared about.
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