Chapter 2

I slammed my foot on the gas, and the car shot forward. Behind me, a flock of black crows burst from the frozen castle.

I heard the demon's gleeful laughter echo behind me.

I never looked back.

The estate was already decked out for the wedding. Red roses lined the road from the bottom of the hill all the way up to the manor.

The whole place buzzed with excitement as everyone waited for the ceremony to begin.

A bridesmaid strode up and gave me a hard shove.

"What are you doing here? Who let you in?"

She glared at me with open disgust.

I blinked. Then it hit me.

She thought I was Lily.

Of course she did. We were twins.

Lily had been tortured day and night.

Five years of suppressing the demon had left me just as thin and worn as she was.

I said nothing.

Julie snatched a stun baton from the belt of the guard beside her.

I let out a cold laugh.

"You'd beat me in front of everyone? Aren't you afraid Victor will get angry?"

Julie laughed so hard she nearly cried.

"Your sister has been gone for five years. Do you still think you will receive the same treatment? You have nothing to do with this family now. If Mr. Smith gets angry, it'll be because you still haven't learned to behave!"

A guest nearby joined in, grinning. "Exactly! I heard Ms. Sophia tried to throw her out, but she refused to go. She kept saying she had to wait for her sister to come back.

"Maybe she's gotten used to living in a dog cage and eating scraps!

"The Smiths' dogs are worth more than she is. She only gets whatever Ms. Sophia tosses under the table!

"I came over for dinner last month and dropped a piece of cake. She dropped to the floor and licked it right up!"

As they laughed, I slowly began to understand the hell Lily had lived through while I'd been away.

Victor had brought Sophia into the estate less than six months after I'd left to suppress the demon.

Sophia had moved straight into my bedroom. When Lily protested, Victor had snapped at her, "Sophia pulled me out of a fire. Forget one room. I'd give her the whole estate if she wanted it. What right do you have to complain?"

But taking my husband wasn't enough for Sophia. She took Lily's room too and turned it into a room for her cats.

Six months later, she put honey in Lily's milk before bed, knowing full well that Lily was allergic.

Lily ended up unconscious in the ICU for three days. When she finally woke up, Victor and my son, Abel, showed her nothing but disgust.

"You did that to yourself because you were jealous of Sophia. Someone as vicious as you doesn't deserve to live here."

Another year passed, and even Lily's boyfriend, Andrew, fell for Sophia.

He ripped his family's heirloom necklace off Lily's neck and gave it to Sophia instead.

Julie swung the stun baton at my arm like she was beating a disobedient dog.

"Just because we show you a little respect, you think this place belongs to you? Get this straight. There's only one lady in this house, and that's my cousin Sophia!"

I raised my hand and fired.

Bang!

Julie's eyes went wide. Her mouth fell open, but no sound came out.

Then she dropped dead.

The guests around us screamed and scrambled away.

"Oh my God! She killed her!"

"Lily's gone crazy! She killed Julie!"

I smiled faintly, crouched beside her, and used my potion-soaked dagger to cut out her heart.

It was nothing but a foul-smelling lump of flesh.

I began to wonder what Sophia's heart would smell like.

With the fresh heart in my hand, I walked into the grand hall.

The wedding march was already playing.

Victor stood at the altar, watching his bride with a tender smile as Sophia walked toward him.

"Come to me, my love."

Beside him, Abel was dressed as a little ring bearer, his face glowing with excitement.

"Mommy, you look so beautiful today."

I tossed the bloody lump onto the stage. It hit the microphone with a thud.

Screams erupted through the hall.

Amid the chaos, I asked, "Who is your lover? Who is your mommy? Is that Sophia?"