Chapter 2

My corpse lay perfectly still inside the crystal coffin.

The smile on Liam's face slowly faded. He leaned in until his nose was almost touching the glass. He stared intently at my face.

"Ethan," Liam said, his voice tense.

Ethan was looking down at his phone. "What's up?"

"Something's wrong with Cassie."

Liam reached into his pocket and pulled out the spare key to the coffin. "She's white as a sheet, and her lips are turning purple. What if she actually went into shock? I'm going to open it and check on her."

He was about to slide the key into the keyhole when Alexandra lunged forward, grabbing his wrist.

"Liam, what are you doing?"

Liam frowned. "Her complexion's off. It's way too pale."

"What do you mean her complexion's off?"

Alexandra pointed at my corpse inside the coffin, looking completely exasperated. "That's because she stole my foundation!"

Liam blinked. "Your foundation?"

Alexandra's eyes reddened, and she bit her lower lip, looking like she had been mistreated.

"I couldn't find my shade anywhere this afternoon. She must've swiped it to pull off this show! Her skin is naturally dark and sallow, so of course, she looks like a ghost wearing my lightest shade!"

The more she spun the story, the more aggrieved she appeared. Tears even welled up in her eyes.

Ethan snapped his head up, and his gaze instantly turned ice-cold. "Alexandra, are you saying she stole from you?"

Floating in mid-air, I screamed with everything I had left, though it was soundless.

"I didn't steal anything! I'm pale because I suffocated to death!"

Sure enough, they were utterly deaf to me.

Alexandra wiped her cheek and nodded softly. "Yeah… that limited-edition bottle you brought back for me from your Perdia trip last month."

Ethan's expression darkened. He marched right up to the crystal coffin.

Bam!

He delivered a vicious kick directly to the side of the coffin. The sheer violence of the impact sent a massive tremor through the coffin.

Inside, my corpse rolled with the momentum, and my head struck the unyielding glass with a heavy, sickening thud.

"Cassandra, it's bad enough you're a thief, but now you're playing dead just to mess with Alexandra? Do you seriously think we're going to buy this little pity party?"

Liam's hand dropped slowly to his side. The spare key dangled uselessly from his fingers.

The flicker of genuine worry that had just crossed his face was instantly replaced by pure, unadulterated disdain.

"And to think I actually fell for it. I can't believe you'd pull a stunt like this just for attention. You make me sick."

Alexandra lifted her phone, pouting into the camera.

"See that, everyone? My sister is so desperate to frame me that she stole my makeup and faked her death."

The chat went crazy, filled with endless hate comments directed toward me.

Julian let out a cold snort from the sidelines as he looked at my face. "Did you really think a thick layer of foundation would fool us?"

He reached out and flicked the glass right above my eyes. "The colored contacts are a nice touch, though. You really nailed that glazed, dead-eyed look. Honestly, with this much commitment, you're wasting your talent not acting for a living."

"That's enough. Just leave her be," Ethan said, smoothing down the hem of his suit jacket, which had ruffled when he kicked the coffin. "No one is allowed to open that coffin tonight. Let her stay in there and think about what she did."

He turned back to Alexandra, his harsh features softening instantly. "Come on, Alexandra. Let's head back to the living room. We put together some April Fools' gifts for you. Let's go unwrap them."

Alexandra's eyes lit up, and she immediately looped her arm through Ethan's.

"Seriously? Thanks, Ethan!"

Right before leaving, she cast one final look over her shoulder at my body. Her lips twisted into a smug, victorious smirk.

With a sharp click, the garage lights cut out, and the heavy roller door gradually descended.