Behind The Mask
This was my chance to peel back the curtain, to finally see who had betrayed me.
Though the thought made my stomach twist, dread pressing against my ribs, because sometimes the truth is not a gift. Sometimes it is a curse.
On the birthday, the Villa was alive like never before. Preparations had begun before sunrise, and by morning the estate brimmed with a quiet frenzy of staff moving like clockwork.
The banquet was set in the grand hall, a magnificent chamber with ceilings painted like the night sky, stars twinkling as if plucked from the heavens. Long velvet drapes the color of midnight spilled down the walls, and chandeliers shaped like enchanted forests bathed the room in warm light.