Chapter 4

LEILA’s POV

My heartbeat stumbled. “What are you talking about?”

She took a step closer. The smell of wet asphalt and perfume filled the space between us. “I never believed you were a bitch,” she whispered. “You went ahead to fuck my father and repeatedly lied to me.”

I opened my mouth, but no words came. The accusation hung there like thunder waiting to strike.

“You know how much I hate my step siblings. Why do you have to be the one to betray me in this way?” She said, her voice soft as tears prickled down her eyes.

“It’s not like that—”

“Then what is it like?” She laughed, sharp and bitter. “You think you’re different? You’re a toy, Leila. Didn’t he tossed you away that night? Didn’t he toss you away just now?”

Her eyes glistened—not just anger, but something wounded underneath. I took a step forward. “Sienna, please, listen—”

“You don’t know my father.” She said.

That was when I saw the men behind her. Three of them. They were classes in black suits. They wore boots. And their faces were half-hidden beneath the rain.

“Sienna?” My voice fell to a whisper.

She turned away. “You shouldn’t have done what you did.”

The first man moved; his hand caught my arm, rough enough to make me stumble. Panic surged through me. “What are you doing? Let me go!”

“Don’t fight them,” Sienna said without looking back.

My breath caught.

The street seemed to shrink around me. The noise of the rain grew louder, drowning everything except the sound of my pulse.

“Sienna, please,” I choked out. “We’re friends.”

She finally looked over her shoulder. For a split second I saw the old Sienna—the girl I had shared secrets and laughter with—but it flickered and vanished.

“No,” she said quietly. “We were friends, not anymore.”

The blow came fast. I didn’t see who swung first; only the rush of motion, the flash of pain, and the taste of iron. Rain hit my face, cold and relentless. Boots moved around me as their voices blurred.

“She’ll learn,” one of the men muttered.

Through the ringing in my ears, I caught Sienna’s voice one last time, opening wounds of the past.

“Greet your parents in hell.”

The car’s engine roared to life and sped towards us.

The men were still holding me tight while I struggled to free myself. They dragged me to my feet and as the car nearly reached us, they pushed me forward while they jumped away.

I managed to close my eyes as the car ran me over, my body rolling over the car and getting dumped on the other side.

My breathing seized as I crawled to reach my mother’s last item I had with me. Her ring. It had fallen when they were beaten me up.

“Mom…” I cried, still crawling.

Then a sharp sting bit my stomach. My eyes rolled backward as my hand quickly found my stomach.

A cry filled with pain tore through my lips as I strained my neck, the pain getting worse.

I turned upside down amd spread my legs apart. Blood had mixed with the droplets of rain on the floor.

“No… my baby,” I writhed, my heart tearing apart.

My child.

Another car zoomed in from the other side of the road and came to a stop in front of me. The backseat window backseat rolled down. “Farewell, Leila.”

“D-Dante?” I gasped.

But the car zoomed off immediately, along with Sienna’s car. The men who kicked me had also followed them away.

I reached in between my legs and rubbed my thighs. The blood stained my hand before I managed to crawl to grab my mother’s ring, the blood staining it.

This was the end. I can’t fight anymore. Because I could feel my life ebbing away.

“Even in death, I’ll hunt you both.” I gasped, my head lowering to the floor. “Sienna. Dante. You both will perish.”

~~~~~

Pain shot through my head, sharp and burning. My chest pulled tight. A breath ripped out of me before I could stop it.

I felt sheets under my hands. It was soft and smooth. Definitely not mine. My fingers twitched. They felt smaller and colder.

Light flooded my eyes and I blinked fast, trying to see. The ceiling above me was white and high. Not the street. Not the rain. Not death.

My body jerked forward as my head spun.

Perfume filled the room but it wasn’t enough to dust away the antiseptic smell. Machines hummed from one angle and through the wall, voices whispered somewhere close. A sound came from the TV ahead.

I looked across the room in the other direction and froze. A mirror. A face stared back that was not mine but I was the only one sitting on the bed.

My fingers trembled as I reached out to touch my face.

This face has a sharper cheekbone, pale skin, dark hair, fuller lips, and a strange killer blue eyes.

My throat tightened. My lips shook.

“Leila…” I whispered.

Then my hands flew to my mouth, covering it. This isn’t my voice. This is softer than mine.

A scream tore out of my mouth out of shock.

The door burst open and two ladies walked in. They froze, staring at me before they screamed, “The lady is awake.”