Unwanted Blood (Harper) novel Chapter 2

Harper’s POV

I changed into my black skirt. Downstairs, voices drifted up.

I knew relatives came the second I heard my name mixed in with swear words. The way they said “Harper” made it sound like a curse. I could almost feel the hate leaking through the walls and into my room.

The door opened without a knock.

Our maid, Mina stood there, arms crossed, looking at me like I was something stuck to the bottom of her shoe. “Go downstairs, bastard,” she said. Then she made a face, twisting her lips.

She would never dare speak to me this way in front of my brothers, in front of them, she played the dutiful maid. But when they weren’t around, she made my life a living hell in all the small, cruel ways she could manage.

Not that my brothers would care if they knew.

“Coming,” My voice came out hoarse.

Mina didn’t move from the doorway, forcing me to squeeze past her. I took a deep breath at the top of the stairs, trying to prepare myself for what was coming.

‘Just survive it as usual’ I tried hard to calm myself.

Each step down felt like walking toward my own execution.

“Oh, look, the bastard’s here.” Their sharp voices drifted over.

Even I kept my head lowered, eyes fixed on the stairs beneath my feet, I could feel their stares that could drop me to the ground.

I just wanted to die.

Ryder sat at the head of the table after Dad passed away last year. He never hit me or yelled at me, but his indifference was somehow worse. He let my brothers do whatever they wanted and never said a word to stop them.

I walked past him cautiously and found my seat. Across from me sat Grayson and Colton, my third and fourth brothers. Only three years older than me, but they hated me the most. They were the ones who came up with the rules. The ones who made sure I followed them. .

To my left was my second brother Logan. He didn’t say mean things out loud as much as the others, but he did other stuff like destroyed my things, putting something bad in my water or meal.

To my right sat Aunt Vanissa. Lily’s mom. Everytime she stared at me like I was the murdered to kill her sister.

Maybe I was.

My plate had almost nothing on it. A few soggy vegetables. Two small pieces of bread. No meat. I picked up my fork and tried to eat. My stomach twisted right away. I swallowed it once, twice. Then a small retch escaped before I could stop it.

Aunt Vanissa laughed. Sharp. “Oh look, the princess thinks the food isn’t good enough for her. If it’s not to your taste, darling, maybe you shouldn’t eat at all.”

Colton leaned forward, grinning. “Seriously. She’s been mooching off us since the day she crawled out and killed Mom.”

The words landed like punches. I gripped my fork tighter and my knuckles turned white.

‘Just ignore them’ I said in my heart.

Aunt Vanissa reached over suddenly. She grabbed my plate and tipped it. Hot soup poured straight onto my lap and chest. It soaked through my dress instantly. The burn hit hard, sharp, stinging pain that spread across my skin. I gasped. Tears rushed to my eyes, but I blinked them back fast.

Everyone laughed. Just quiet chuckles, like they were sharing a joke I wasn’t allowed in on.

Lily was the only one who didn’t laugh.

I lowered my head more and kept picking at the hem of my shirt, trying to breathe through the pain.

“I still don’t understand,” Colten said, his voice casual, “why Mom even kept you in the first place? What’s the point?”

“She’s useless anyway. She belongs curled up in the corner like a dog, eating whatever scraps we leave behind.”

“Oh, today’s your birthday, right? Happy birthday to our walking curse!”

“Curse!”

I didn’t even know who said them. Their voices blended into the laughter, stabbing me over and over like blades straight to the heart.

And finally, they made it, they broken me. I couldn’t take it anymore.

My chair scraped violently against the floor as I shot to my feet.

I didn’t say anything nor look at anyone. I just moved, stumbling toward the stairs, desperate to escape.

Then my foot caught on something.

Someone had stuck their leg out their leg and suddenly I was falling. My knees cracked against the tile. Pain exploded up my legs. My palms hit next, skin scraping.

“Oops,” someone said behind me. Colten or Grayson, I could barely recognise their voice in pain.

“Did you trip, Harper?” Another voice, mocking. “You should really watch where you are going.”

I wiped my face with the back of my hand. Slowly, I pushed myself up. My knees shook. My palms burned. I walked the rest of the way without looking back.

I reached my room. I slammed the door shut and locked it, then immediately collapsed against it, sliding down until I was sitting on the floor.

My breathing came in short, broken pieces.

Then my eyes landed on the wall.

There was a new photo of my mother. Someone had printed it big and taped it up. She looked beautiful while smiling. Next to it was a picture of me. My school photo from last year. Someone had drawn over my face with black marker with ugly lines and crossed-out eyes. And in bright red pen, right across my forehead: MURDERER.

I didn’t know when and who put it there, but everything I’d been holding back broke loose.

I lunged forward. My hands shook as I ripped my photo off the wall. The tape tore. Pieces fluttered to the floor. I kept tearing up until nothing was left but scraps.

Then I dropped to my knees in front of my mother’s picture. Tears fell fast.

“Why…” My voice came out hoarse. “Why did you give birth to me? Why didn’t you just… let me die with you?”

I stared at her face.

But she kept smiling. Like she didn’t know what she’d left behind.