I forced my hands back to the lock, fingers moving faster, desperate.
The stings kept coming.
My skin burned.
My lungs felt tight.
Finally—
The latch shifted.
The door gave.
I shoved it open and stumbled out, gasping, half-blind, screaming as I ran.
I bolted into the courtyard, air cold against my skin.
The twins were waiting.
They stood under the courtyard lights like two small demons, eyes hard, faces blank with hate.
“You really don’t learn,” Vale snarled, his hands curled into fists.
Ian stepped forward. “You should never come back.”
Then they shoved me.
Hard.
I stumbled backward and fell into the pool.
The water swallowed me instantly, icy and deep.
Panic slammed into my chest.
“I can’t swim!” I choked, thrashing. “Stop! Please!”
But they didn’t stop.
They stood at the edge, watching.
Then I saw Ian reach into a bag.
My heart froze.
A pistol.
Vale pulled one out too.
My blood turned to ice all over again.
“Where did you get—” I started, voice shaking.
Ian’s face twisted with disgust. “You’re pathetic. You think running away will make us want you? You’re vile.”
Vale’s eyes were wild. “You should die here. It’s the only way to apologize to our real mother.”
Together, perfectly in sync, they raised their guns.
Aimed straight at my chest.
And fired.
The shots ripped through the night—bullets slicing the air, racing toward my heart.
