Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 136048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
The twins smile and begin clambering off the couch, cheering about the Barbie movie they should have already been halfway through. Mom laughs, and her stance shifts as she reaches behind her back. My gaze lifts from the girls, and as if in slow motion, I watch Mom pull a gun from behind her, lift it, and aim directly between the twins.
“Oh fuck no,” I yell, lunging forward at the same time Izzy does, each of us grabbing a twin and yanking them behind us, my heart booming out of my chest as I gape at my mother in horror. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing? You could hurt them,” I seethe, clenching my jaw. “Jonah will never forgive you for this.”
Mom just stares, her gaze void of emotion, before she starts laughing. “Everything is always about you, isn’t it, Harper? All I wanted was a man who could take care of me and offer me the life I deserve, and it turns out, he doesn’t even care that I’ve been screwing around behind his back. All he actually wanted was you. My whore of a daughter.”
My mom scoffs, shaking her head as unease settles heavily in the pit of my stomach. “No, he beat you because you were cheating. That doesn’t make sense,” I say, demanding answers.
Mom just grins. “Oh, how naive,” she chides. “We had to make it believable. After all, didn’t you wonder how I got to your place? Do you really think I could have made it there myself?”
I step in closer to Izzy, both of us gripping the girls as tight as we possibly can, terrified they might make a break for it and get themselves shot by the psychopath in the room. “What the fuck are you talking about?” Izzy demands. “You had him beat you on purpose?”
“Of course I did,” she says, as though it should have been obvious. “I have made it more than clear that my only goal was to maintain my marriage with Elias at all costs, and unfortunately, that cost is you, my dear. Elias and I struck a deal. I hand you over on a silver platter, and in return, I get to keep the life I have here. Nothing has to change. Oh, except for you, sweetheart,” she adds, her gaze settling on my face. “Things are about to change drastically for you. But you’re strong. I’m sure you will endure his . . . games for a year or two before you eventually take your own life. Though I’m sure I will come to visit every now and then. I could bring you new clothes. Maybe some pictures to decorate your cell. It doesn’t have to be all bad.”
I suck in a breath, horror blasting through my chest. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” I demand as I try to piece the puzzle together. Putting the whole clothes-and-pictures-in-the-cell shit aside, there’s still so much to figure out. The weird pregnancy announcement, the odd admission of infidelity, then suddenly getting beaten and losing the baby, knowing how it would tear me to shreds. “The baby. Was it even real, or are you that messed up that you would fake a pregnancy just to fake a miscarriage?”
“Five points for Harper-Rayn. It seems you’re not as slow as I assumed,” she encourages. “However, you really must give me a little credit, honey. I’m not a monster, just . . . opportunistic. The pregnancy was very real. The morning sickness was brutal. But it’s all over now. Though I am sad. It would have been nice to start fresh with a new daughter who’s not so full of hate. I think it was your childhood, and that’s on me. I should have been better. I should have provided a more stable home like this, and perhaps you would have been more grounded and grateful for the life I was able to give you.”
She’s seriously fucked in the head. But if she thinks that I’m about to willingly hand myself over for her sick deal with her husband, she’s about to be very disappointed.
“You’re sick, Mother. Knight has been called. He’ll be here soon, and you will be arrested for child endangerment and kidnapping. You’re going away, Mom, so this cushy lifestyle you’ve given everything away to maintain with a man who beat you without question, it was all for nothing. There is a bright side, though. Perhaps you might get the help you need while behind bars. As for me, I’m leaving with the girls. We have a movie to watch.”
Grabbing the girls’ arms, I turn and make my way out of the room, keeping my body in front of the girls and my eye trained on my mother.
“NO!” she screams, her eyes widening in alarm as though seeing everything she’s shamefully worked for slipping right out of her grasp. “YOU’RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE! I’ve sacrificed everything for you, and now it’s time you pay your dues.”