Chapter 5
Grayson yanked me forward, nearly making me stumble.
“What kind of sick game are you playing? You burned Aubrey. Apologize–now!”
I raised my head slowly, my voice raspy from disuse, like sandpaper on wood. “She burned me
first.”
I lifted my hand, revealing a patchwork of blisters, raw and shocking.
Grayson’s pupils contracted, his face freezing. “How… how did this happen?”
He spun around, heading for the first–aid kit—but Aubrey clutched his sleeve in a death grip, her knuckles white, her whole body trembling.
“Don’t…” she gasped. “Don’t go…”
Her voice cracked, barely audible. Her face was ghost–white, like she’d seen something not of this
world.
Grayson patted her gently. “Relax, I’ll be right back.”
His footsteps faded up the stairs.
And the villa fell deathly silent, save for the gurgling “fountain statues” in the yard.
I leaned closer to Aubrey, tilting my head with a smile. “Just us now, huh?”
Her pupils shrank, her body shaking uncontrollably.
“Ah!” She shoved me away, slamming her back against the wall with a thud.
“You’re not Lily! She’d never smile like that!”
I tilted my head further, savoring her terror. “Then who am I?”
The TV blared behind us: “The escaped patient’s description is as follows…”
My photo flashed on the screen.
Aubrey’s eyes hardened. She snatched a baseball bat from behind the sofa and swung it at my head. “I don’t care who you are!”
Stars exploded in my vision. Pain erupted as warm blood trickled down my forehead.
She flicked the bat, her fear replaced by a twisted sneer. “You’re just like Lily–disgusting, useless
Chapter 5
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trash!”
Blood blurred my sight, but Aubrey’s face stood out, vivid in the crimson haze.
Grayson rushed downstairs at the noise. Aubrey kicked the bat to my feet, smeared my blood on her
face, and collapsed dramatically.
“Grayson…” she whispered, “she… she hit me…” She then “fainted” perfectly.
Grayson scooped her up, glaring at me like I was filth. “Lily, you’re beyond saving!”
He barked, “Go kneel outside. Now! We’ll deal with you when Aubrey wakes!”
He charged for the door, Aubrey in his arms.
Thud! The door didn’t budge.
I stood there, wiping the blood from my eyes. My vision was a smear of red. Then a laugh slipped out–quiet, cold, and sharp. Like a rusted blade dragging across glass.
“What’s wrong with you?!” Grayson spun, roaring. “Open the door–now!”
I tilted my head, relishing his growing panic.
While crafting those “sculptures,” I’d dismantled the security system. The door was locked for good.
to the
Blood dripped from my chin, blooming into tiny flowers on the floor.
“This door…” I licked the blood from my lips, “no one’s opening it today.”
Grayson’s face drained of color.
Chapter 5
