第1章

Every inch of my body screamed with pain. It felt like every bone had shattered on impact.

The chill from blood loss seeped into my bones, numbing me until I couldn't even cry out.

My sister, Seraphina Hawthorne, spoke to Ezra in a sweet, coaxing voice that drifted down from upstairs.

"Ezra, did you hear something outside the window just now?"

Ezra's silhouette appeared at the window.

A tiny spark of hope flickered inside my chest. Maybe he would save me. Even just a single call to 911 would be enough.

But he only gave a casual glance downward and didn't spot me, hidden beneath the trees and shrubs.

"It's nothing. Elowen probably knocked something off the roof. She's always been clumsy."

"Ezra, don't you think we've gone too far? I mean, all she did was have a bit of a temper."

"We haven't gone too far. She humiliated you in front of everyone by saying your acting was terrible. She had this coming."

Six months ago, Seraphina had appeared on a competitive acting show where I was one of the judges.

Her acting had always been awful. She coasted entirely on her looks and the buzz that came with being my sister.

I was the first judge to critique her, and I gave an honest assessment of the flaws in her performance.

The other judges, knowing I had always been rigorous when it came to acting, didn't go easy on Seraphina either.

On the show, she smiled and thanked us for the feedback. Off camera, she ran crying to Ezra.

Ezra and I had a huge fight over it.

He blamed me for not looking out for Seraphina. I insisted on keeping the show fair.

I didn't think much of that argument.

But I never imagined he would retaliate like this, or that his scheme would end with me falling from the roof.

The pain and cold gradually faded. My body felt lighter and lighter.

So this is what dying feels like?

The instant all sensation disappeared, I felt myself floating in midair.

I looked down and, for the first time, saw my own body from the outside.

I had wasted away over these past months, so gaunt my bones jutted out. There was no trace of the radiant woman who had once lit up the screen.

Gazing at my own body lying in a pool of blood, I closed my eyes.

‘I'm sorry.’ I said to myself internally. I never got to chase my dreams. And now I'm going to die.

After my spirit left my body, I drifted aimlessly until I found myself beside Ezra.

He had his arm around Seraphina, and together with my parents, they were plotting their next move against me.

"Elowen has always been admired for her independent, self-made image. Once we destroy that persona, her standing in the industry will crumble on its own."

"I had cameras installed throughout the treatment center. We just need to edit the footage and release clips of her groveling to keep me happy. That'll do it."

Mom nodded eagerly beside them.

"That's a great idea. When the time comes, we'll back it up online too."

"But Ezra, this won't actually put Elowen in real danger, will it? I've been seeing a lot of news lately about celebrities taking their own lives because of the pressure."

Ezra let out a scornful laugh.

"Elowen would be the last person to do that. She still has to earn enough to keep that precious little theater company of hers alive."

"Don't worry. She's still my wife, after all. I won't let her end up out of work and starving. I'm only teaching her a lesson."

Mom let out a sigh of relief.

"Good. As long as she doesn't die. She made Seraphina feel bad, so she deserves a little suffering."

I floated beside them, a bitter smile on my face.

The slightest hurt to Seraphina was a catastrophe to them.

When it came to me, the bar was simply "as long as she doesn't die."

Still, Ezra really did know me. As long as there was the faintest hope, I would cling to life.

More than a dozen people in my theater company were still fighting beside me for our shared dream, and we had promised to reach the top together.

But fate doesn't ask for permission. Not from me, and not from him.