842 Days in the Asylum: My Family’s Gift Chapter 06
Lyra’s POV
For the first time in years, Matteo was defending me. The feeling was so strange I didn’t know what to do
with it.
“Matteo…” Lily whispered, tears spilling over.
An uncomfortable silence settled over the room.
Eventually, Mama forced a smile and stepped forward, “Alright, alright. If Matteo says he got into a fight, then he got into a fight. Let’s not argue today.”
Her voice softened, gentle once more. “Lyra, I apologize. I misread the situation and blamed you. You’re a good girl-you wouldn’t ever hurt your own family, would you?”
She stepped closer, reaching for my arm. “We’re all so happy to have you home. You’ve been away for
almost three years.”
Instinctively, I stepped aside.
Her hand closed on empty air. For a brief second, hurt flashed across Mama’s face. But all I felt was the familiar urge to put more distance between us.
“Just keep spoiling her,” Papa scoffed as he stood.
On his way past me, he shot me a look full of irritation. “If she did something wrong, she should be
punished.”
He shook his head. “First day back home, and you’ve already upset everyone here. Why do you always bring such negative energy into this house? Can’t you learn something from Lily?”
His voice grew more approving as he spoke about her. “She didn’t grow up with the advantages you had, yet look at her. She’s been helping with the casino for two years and has already brought in over a billion. dollars in revenue. And you?”
His eyes swept over me coldly. “You’ve spent years living comfortably with people bringing food to you. Reading books. Watching television. Why are you carrying so many grudges?”
“That’s enough.” Mama gently nudged him. Then she turned to me with a forced smile.
“You know your father. He always sounds harsher than he means to.” Her voice softened. “He told us all to wait until you came home before dinner. He loves you, Lyra.”
The words almost made me laugh.
I looked at Papa. He hadn’t changed much over the years. That same face and that same commanding
presence.
The way he looked at me… His expression was filled with the same habitual annoyance I’d seen for years.
The words died in my throat. “He loves me?”
Would a man who loved me beat me with a belt? Would a man who loved me lock me in the basement and leave me hungry for two days just for punishment?
Maybe Papa had loved me once. But the day he found out I wasn’t his biological daughter, whatever love had existed disappeared.
“Let’s eat,” Papa said impatiently, already heading toward the dining room. “Lily must be starving.”
“Come on.” Matteo reached for my sleeve.
I stepped away before he could touch me.
“Did I ask anyone to wait for me?” My voice was barely above a whisper. “I didn’t come back for some happy family dinner.”
I turned to Lily. She was still standing beside Mama, looking innocent as ever.
“I came for the address.”
Lily blinked. “What address?”
“The one you sent me while I was in the asylum.”
For the first time, something flickered across her face. “Lyra, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I narrowed my eyes.
“The address of my real family.” My voice hardened. “You sent it to me. You told me I could go find them
after I was released.”
Lily’s face lost a little color. But she still shook her head. “I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Something inside me snapped. I crossed the room and grabbed her sleeves. “Give it to me!” I demanded.
My fingers tightened around the fabric. “Give me that address, and I’ll leave.”
My voice cracked. “Just give me the address!”
“Enough!” Papa thundered. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“My real family’s address.” My fingers tightened around Lily’s sleeves. “I’m going to find them.”
Lily shrank farther behind Mama. “Let me go! You’re crazy!”
“Give it to me. I knew you have it.” My voice dropped into a desperate plea. “Just give it to me. Then I’ll disappear. I’ll never come back.”
Mama tried to calm me down. “Lyra, what are you talking about? This is your home. We are your family.”
“No.” I shook my head frantically. “I mean my real family. My biological parents!”
Panic was rising so fast I could barely breathe.
Why was Lily pretending she knew nothing? She was the one who sent me that address. Wasn’t she? Or had I imagined the whole thing? Had the pills finally broken my mind?
I grabbed Lily’s arm even tighter. “Give me the address!”
Lily stammered. She looked almost terrified that I had brought it up.
“Lyra…” Her voice trembled. “Isn’t this family enough for you? You-”
I started shaking her. “I have to find my real family. I want to go home. I want my own family. Just let me go!”
Matteo rushed over and grabbed my wrists. “Lyra, please.” His voice sounded exhausted. “Can you calm down? Just calm down for a minute.”
Then he turned toward Papa. “Just tell her!”
The shout echoed through the room. “Tell her the truth!”
Everything inside me froze.
Truth? What more truth?
Papa and Mama exchanged a long glance.
Then Papa sighed heavily.
“Lyra…” His voice was unusually strained. “You are our daughter.”
He continued after a beat, “Lily isn’t our biological child. She’s your Aunt Alice’s daughter.”
My mind went blank.
“Alice had Lily when she was thirty. Not long after she was born, someone stole her away. Lily’s father
spent years searching for her before he died. And when Alice was on her deathbed, her final wish was
simple-to find Lily, raise her as our own and make sure she grew up loved and cared for.”
I stared at Papa, unable to move or breathe.
“When we finally found Lily in an orphanage, your mother and I made a decision. We thought it would be easier for her if she believed she was our daughter.”
His voice sounded distant now, as though it was coming from underwater. “We didn’t want her to feel
like an outsider in this house.”
Mama nodded, tears filling her eyes.
“And we thought…” Papa continued slowly, “that keeping the truth from you for a few years wouldn’t hurt. You’d already had a happy childhood. We thought you wouldn’t mind if we focused more on Lily for a
while.”
The ringing in my ears grew louder. Every word felt like a hammer striking my skull.
Lily wasn’t the real daughter. I was. I had always been.
My legs shook so badly I could barely stay standing. I curled my hands into fists, but the trembling
wouldn’t stop.
Then why? Why had they treated me like I was the mistake? The burden? The stray they couldn’t wait to throw away?
If I had been their daughter all along… Why had they destroyed my life?
