Before leaving, Beatrice sat in the passenger seat, rolled down the window and gave me a provocative smile from the villa entrance.
She said to my brother in a playful voice, “Brother, this car is beautiful! Too bad Mom and Dad didn’t give it to our sister. With her temper, she’d probably crash it.”
My brother didn’t argue and just said, “Sit tight.”
I stopped in front of the car and looked at my brother. “Brother, one last time. This car was given to me by Grandpa, right?” I searched his eyes for any sign of the old warmth.
My brother avoided my eyes and honked irritably. “Why bring up the past? Move! Behave and I’ll buy you anything from now on!”
He thought money could fix everything, not knowing some things were priceless. I nodded with a strange smile. “Okay, I won’t bring it up.”
I stepped back, pretending to move and pointed at the car. “It’s dusty. Let me clean it. It’s your new car.”
My brother was startled, likely thinking I had finally given in.
His tense face relaxed and he sighed. “Okay, that’s enough. Let’s go back.”
He said this, but didn’t stop me or turn off the engine. I pretended to wipe the hood with my sleeve, then lifted it while they weren’t paying attention.
“Elena, what are you doing?!” My brother’s eyes widened as I pulled a can of rust remover from behind me.
I had just found the rust remover in the dark, damp basement. I opened it and sprayed the hot, roaring engine.
“Elena! Are you crazy?!” My brother tried to stop me, but it was too late. I sprayed the whole can.
A white smoke rose and a fire instantly broke out in the engine. Beatrice and my brother, scared, quickly unbuckled and got out of the car.
The fire spread fast, destroying the red car. Soon, the entire expensive sports car became a giant fireball. I stood there, watching the two shivering figures hugging through the hot air.
The flames reflected in my eyes like flickering lights. “I’d rather destroy what I made than leave it to a dog. This fire isn’t burning the car; it’s burning my last attachment to this family.”
