Novels by Greg Davis

When Matthew saw our parents and Amy in the audience, he smiled smugly.I knew what that smile meant. With me gone, he was now the most cherished in the family.During the intermission, Matthew cutely clung to my dad's arm. "Mom, Dad, Amy, I'm so glad you came."On the awards podium, Matthew beamed as he raised her trophy high. Facing the reporters, she smiled gently and said, "I wouldn't be here today without my family's support. I hope to always be my parents' pride and my sister’s favorite brother!"Watching his bask in the limelight made me sick to my stomach.His happiness was built on my suffering.How was it fair that Matthew pushed me into the depths of hell, yet he got to enjoy applause and admiration?In the crowd, I could hear murmured conversations. "Didn't his brother die recently? Poor thing, but he’s still so impressive.""I heard his brother was a troublemaker, involved with a bunch of girls. Probably got killed over some love triangle."Matthew heard the whispers too,

Amy dropped everything when she heard the news of my death and rushed back, leaving her unfinished business trip behind.When she got home, our parents were sitting on the couch, their faces heavy with pain. Matthew was beside them. His eyes were red and swollen from crying, his nose tinged with pink."Amy, you're finally back. Ethan was murdered!""The killer hasn't been caught yet. Ethan had a habit of offending people. Could this be because of—"Suddenly, my dad's voice broke, hoarse and filled with anger, "Enough! The killer has already been identified, and the police are closing in on him! Ethan had nothing to do with him."As he spoke, he exchanged a pained look with my mom. When they learned that the killer had been seeking revenge for the arrest of his brother, both of them collapsed under the weight of the revelation.Their least favored son had lost his life because of them.Hearing this, a flash of nervousness crossed Matthew's face. He clenched the hem of his shirt tightly

Tears welled up in Chester's eyes as well. "David, Stella, why don't you both head back to the station? We'll contact you if there are any updates," he said softly.But my mom did not seem to hear him. Her gloved hand gently touched the bloodstains on the ground. "How much pain did Ethan have to endure?" she whispered.Even some of the more emotional officers in the unit were quietly sobbing.My parents, devastated, got into the car. Watching their dazed expressions made my heart ache.From the time I was brought back home to the moment of my death, I had never once heard my parents call me Ethan.Just then, Leo from the forensic lab appeared and handed the test report to my dad. He then cast a sympathetic glance at my dazed mom."David, I'm sorry for your loss," he said.My dad's pupils tightened as he carefully examined the report, repeatedly checking the name written on it.After a long silence, he forced out through clenched teeth, "How is this possible?"Leo sighed and gently pat

My mom seemed to sense something was wrong. She grabbed my dad's arm, her nails digging deeply into his skin."The victim is your son, Ethan."She collapsed to the ground, repeating in disbelief, "Ethan? How could it be him?"My dad held her up tightly, preventing her from falling completely.One of the officers whispered, "Mr. Lambert, we found the crime scene. It was located in a privately-built house near the abandoned building."My dad immediately responded, "Let's head to the scene. The forensic lab must have made a mistake."In the police car, my mom kept dialing my number over and over. My dad focused on driving, his eyes fixed on the road.He tried to reassure my mom. "Don't worry. Maybe Ethan went to the station and is in on this prank with the forensic team."But deep down, he must have known this was not the kind of thing anyone could fake.I could not describe how I felt. It was as if a venomous snake had wrapped itself around me, squeezing tighter and tighter until I coul

My mom handed the paper, corroded by stomach acid, to the CSI. She rubbed her sore lower back and said to my dad with a sigh, "I hope we get something from this paper. Did you remind Matthew to lock the doors?"My dad nodded grimly. He then hesitated before speaking. "Honey, you know Ethan hasn't answered his phone or responded to Amy. Do you think something might have actually happened to him? Should I have someone check on him?"My mom was irritated and cut him off. "Come on, don't you know him by now? He’s just hiding, waiting for us to come looking. It's not the first time he’s pulled something like this."He just doesn't want to go to Matthew's match. By tomorrow at the latest, He’ll call us crying and apologizing."The last time I went missing was during summer break, when Matthew locked me in the school bathroom. The school was empty during the break, and no one could hear my cries for help.I managed to climb out, covered in dirt, and limped home with a twisted ankle.But inst

As she gently told Matthew to rest, my mom received a call from Amy."Amy, when does your business trip end? Your brother is waiting for you to watch his match!" Before Amy could even respond, she rushed to ask.The day I was brought home, Mom and Dad stayed with a sobbing Matthew. Only Amy held my hand, brought me inside, and told me not to be afraid. The only warmth I ever felt in that house came from her.On the other end of the phone, Amy paused in surprise. "Is it Ethan's math competition? Isn't that next month?"Mom cut him off angrily. "Oh my, not Ethan again! Matthew is the brother you've known for years! How many times do I have to tell you? Ethan was raised outside and filled with bad habits. He doesn't deserve to be part of the Lambert family."I could hear Amy sigh, as if she could not understand Mom's hostility toward me. "Mom, sometimes you shouldn't believe everything Matthew says. Ethan is kind and hardworking. If you paid more attention to him, you'd see that."I just

The city was not large, and by the next day, explosive rumors of the scandal had already spread everywhere.Mrs. Zimmer did not dare report it to the police, let alone pursue any legal action. She quietly checked into her own hospital for treatment, claiming she had fallen and injured himself.The nurses, however, could not contain their giggles as they gossiped among themselves. "Fallen? With handprints all over her face?"Blake was too ashamed to return to work and clung to Emma like a lifeline. "It was all Mrs. Zimmer’s fault. She coerced me. She’s my boss, what was I supposed to do?"I stood outside, listening to their conversation, deep in thought. It wasn’t enough. That scumbag Emma still needed one final blow. Luckily, I had already prepared for it.An hour later, I waited by Emma’s car. Her anger seemed to have cooled somewhat, with Blake clinging closely behind her. When they saw me, Blake’s face flushed with both shame and anger."You got what you wanted. What more do you wa

"There’s definitely seduction involved, but it’s not me," I said with a smirk as we reached the door to room 701.I nodded at the staff member, and she swiped the key card. With a soft beep, the door unlocked."Ah! Who’s there?" The room fell silent for a moment before Blake’s voice broke the quiet.Emma froze with her eyes widening in shock. "Blake? What are you doing here?"She stepped toward him, but Blake, wrapped only in a towel, quickly blocked her way.Flustered, he stammered, "What are you doing? I’m in the middle of a shower."Emma glanced inside the room. "Why are you even in a hotel room?"I leaned casually against the doorframe. "Emma, does this scene really need any more explanation?"Blake shot me a furious look and tried to shut the door. "There was a conference at the hotel today. I just came up here after it ended. Let me get my pants."But I quickly stopped her and pulled out my phone. "Forget it, words don’t prove anything. You should see for yourself."I played the video on m

The girl named Sophia, was about the same age as Lila. She was sitting in the backseat of Emma’s car, holding a nearly melted ice cream cone.Blake, sitting in the passenger seat, playfully hit Emma on the waist, pretending to be annoyed. This made Sophia burst into laughter as the melting ice cream dripped all over the seat.Emma was not upset at all. The three of them just laughed even harder.Emma had always been meticulous about cleanliness and never allowed me or Lila to eat anything in her car.One time, we were stuck in traffic and Lila was starving. I could not bear to let her go hungry, so I gave her a chocolate bar.A few crumbs melted and fell onto the seat. Emma immediately lost her temper, throwing both me and Lila out of the car.I stood in the middle of the heavy traffic, holding Lila.Watching as Emma drove away without hesitation, Lila burst into tears, begging."Mommy! Don’t leave daddy and me! It’s all my fault! I’ll be good, I promise I won’t dirty mommy’s car agai

I shouted with full confidence. "Emma, since you’re pushing me to the edge, I’ll give you exactly what you want!"The moment my words fell, the once-quiet screen outside the room suddenly lit up with a recording of Blake’s voice in a flirtatious tone."Really? You’re so heartless, it’s almost scary!"All eyes turned to the screen, which began playing footage from Blake’s private office. There Emma was, wrapped around Blake’s neck. She was sitting on his lap, twisting seductively as she spoke."Alright, alright, stop moving. Are you going to take responsibility if things get too heated?" Emma stared at Blake with lust in her eyes."If I don’t act heartless toward Lila, how can I save our daughter, Sophia?"The ICU costs hundreds of thousands a day. Who knows if she can even be saved? Instead of going bankrupt for her and that mad man, I’d rather leave everything for Sophia."It’s settled then. Sophia’s body can’t hold on any longer. We can’t wait anymore! This is our only chance. Hurry

Blake bit his lip upon hearing this."I don’t understand. This was something the family had already agreed to. Our team has been working all day, and the reporters we invited are anxiously waiting."And now, just because one family member refuses to accept the truth, we’re being pushed to this extreme?"The surrounding doctors and nurses could not help but voice their support."Yeah, we’ve all seen how hard Dr. Thompson has worked!""All that hard work for nothing because of some unreasonable troublemaker!""This man already agreed to sign the form. Think of all the families waiting for those organs. How happy they must have been when they heard the news! And now, giving them hope only to take it away. That's just cruel."Emma stood behind Blake, firmly supporting him."As the family, I don’t doubt Dr. Thompson’s diagnosis for a second."Leo, you’ve made enough of a scene! And now you’ve brought all these people here to apply pressure? You’ve gone too far!"Bitterness filled my mouth

Emma quickly chimed in, "As his family, I agree!"Seeing the nurse approach with the syringe, I struggled in desperation. I was yelling, but no one around stepped in to help."Stop! Let he go immediately!" Suddenly, a loud, commanding voice silenced the entire room.My brother, Evan Jasper, had arrived with the medical team just in time.Taking advantage of the stunned security and nurses, I shoved them aside and rushed to Evan’s side in a few quick steps."Evan, save Lila!"He comforted me with a reassuring pat on the shoulder, then turned to Emma with fiery anger."Are you really helping outsiders harm your own husband and child?"Where’s the diagnosis declaring Lila brain-dead? Show it!"My entire body drenched in cold sweat. If Evan had not arrived in time, I would have been sedated and forced to sign the form, losing Lila forever.Blake regained his composure and looked at Evan with arrogance."And who are you?"This is an intensive care ward! Security! The patient's immediate fa