The town gossip.

Growing up, Isabella had always had people whispering about her. Her father was a nut job who took pleasure in beating his wife and daughters and loved the sick satisfaction he got from the public watching him do so.

Walking down the hallways in middle school had been a chore. People would glance at her and whisper, whisper, and whisper away.

It didn't matter that she was innocent. That she was just a child, a victim of an unstable home. All she got in the place of sympathy were whispers. And to survive, Isabella and her elder sister, Irene Victoria, had to develop thick skin. A skin immune to the whispering and mocking of middle school students determined to make a sport of them.

She hadn't enjoyed it, however. She had counted the days until they absconded from the bastard's hold and she loved every minute of freedom that came after. But she had to admit, it came in handy.

The whispering around her increased as she poured vodka into the shot glasses before her and grinned up at t