LOGINAMARA POVOne year later.The wind moved gently through the garden, carrying the scent of roses and fresh grass with it. The evening sun hung low in the sky, casting a warm golden glow over everything.I leaned back slightly in the chair, one hand resting on the stroller in front of me.Two tiny blankets shifted inside it.Two tiny humans.My children.A soft smile curved my lips as I watched them sleep peacefully, their little chests rising and falling slowly.Life had changed so much.Sometimes I still woke up thinking it was all a dream. That the chaos, the pain, the betrayals… all of it had been some terrible nightmare.But it wasn't.It was real.And somehow, after everything, life had still found a way to give me peace.A laugh echoed across the garden.My eyes lifted.Tracy stood near the small stage set up at the center of the event, microphone in hand, her usual dramatic energy filling the place as she spoke to the crowd.“Okay, okay! Everyone calm down! I know you all came h
AMARA POVThe sky was grey that morning.Not raining.Just… heavy.Like the world itself was mourning with us.I stood quietly beside Zed, my fingers clutched around the black rose in my hand as tears slipped endlessly down my cheeks.In front of us, Nora’s coffin was slowly being lowered into the ground.My chest tightened.Two weeks.It had already been two weeks since everything happened, but the pain still felt fresh.Raw.Like it had just happened yesterday.Around us, people dressed in black filled the cemetery. I honestly hadn’t expected so many people to show up.But they did.Citizens.Fans.Friends.Strangers.All of them came to pay their last respect.Flowers covered the entire place, forming colorful layers around the grave.Someone had even brought candles.And handwritten letters.Messages thanking Nora.Messages saying she inspired them.Tears slipped down my face again.She didn’t live long…But she was loved.So deeply loved.In the background, a soft melody began to
ZED POVSeeing Amara smile did something strange to my chest.It softened something in me.Something that had been hard and cold for years.She sat across the living room with Tracy, their heads close together as they whispered and laughed like school girls sharing secrets. Whatever Tracy had just said made Amara burst into laughter, her shoulders shaking lightly.I leaned against the doorway, watching them quietly.The house had been dark for days.Heavy.Filled with tension and grief.But right now, for the first time in a while, it felt… normal.Alive.I let out a quiet breath.They kept talking.Laughing.Clearly having a girls only moment.Definitely excluded.“Okay girls,” I finally said, grabbing my car keys from the table. “Got to run an errand.”Neither of them really looked at me.Typical.Amara only nodded absentmindedly, still focused on whatever Tracy was whispering into her ear.I shook my head with a small chuckle.Women.Fine.Time to go have my own fun.Leo was probab
LUCY (MRS BLAKE) POVMy fingers trembled as I pulled my phone from my bag.The screen blurred slightly through the tears clouding my vision, but I managed to unlock it. My thumb hovered over the emergency number.This was it.Everything would end today.But before I could press the call button, his hand suddenly grabbed my wrist.Hard.“What are you doing, ma’am?”His voice was low. Cold.Before I could react, the phone slipped from my hand and clattered across the floor.Then his other hand shot up to my throat.My eyes widened in shock.The driver is with them.His fingers tightened around my neck mercilessly, cutting off the air in my lungs.I gasped, clawing at his arm as panic exploded through my chest.“I’m sorry,” he muttered almost casually, tightening his grip. “But you shouldn’t have seen those files.”My vision blurred.I tried to scream, but only a strangled sound came out.My hands struck his shoulders, pushing uselessly against him as my lungs burned desperately for air.
LUCY (MRS BLAKE) POVThe ticking of the wall clock felt louder than it should.Each second scraped against my nerves like a blade.My palms were damp as they rested on my lap, my fingers twisting nervously against each other. The air inside the doctor’s office felt heavy, almostd suffocating, and no matter how deeply I breathed, it didn’t help.Across from me, the doctor was flipping through a file on his desk.My heart pounded harder.I had sent Nina home earlier.I told her she needed rest.That the hospital environment would only stress her.She believed me.Or at least she pretended to.But the truth was…I didn’t want her here.Not for this.My stomach twisted painfully.My thoughts drifted back to earlier that morning, when I had asked the doctor about the male nurse.The one the strange man at the police station mentioned.The one he claimed was his twin.The doctor hadn’t hesitated.“Yes, he worked here for years,” he said casually while checking records.For years.Then I as
AMARA’S POVThe room felt too small for the pain inside my chest.I sat on the edge of the bed, the diary clutched tightly against my chest like it was the only thing keeping me from falling apart. My fingers dug into the worn leather cover, refusing to let go.I couldn’t…I’ve been like this since being discharged from the hospital.It felt like the only proof that everything I had lived through wasn’t just some horrible nightmare.Zed’s arms wrapped around me from behind, strong and steady. His warmth pressed against my trembling body as he pulled me closer.But even that couldn’t stop the storm in my head.“Witch.”The word echoed so loudly in my mind that I squeezed my eyes shut.My mother’s voice.Cold.Sharp.Filled with disgust.“I regret the day I adopted you!”My chest tightened painfully.I remembered the look in her eyes when she said it.Not anger.Not disappointment.Hate.Pure hate.My breath hitched and a sob escaped my lips.Zed’s arms tightened around me instantly.“He







