of the door behind me before the sharp stin

n front of me, her eyes blazing with fury, and behind her, my cousin smiled, her lips curled with cruel satisfa

g up in my eyes. I didn't dare look at her, knowing th

I took you in. You're lucky to even have a roof over your head, and this is how you re

ed blood, fighting the urge to scream, to shout, to defend myself. But what was the point? Nothing I said

faction radiating. She always watched with that same expression whenever my aunt lashed out

because it was the only thing I could say to make her

ateful I don't throw you out into th

tered. I stood there for a moment, my cheek still stinging, before I moved up the stairs to m

let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. The tears were there, hovering just on the edge, but I swallowed them

back to the mansion, to the man who had appeared before me. His eyes, his voice-everything about him was unsettling, and yet, there was something familiar, s

ts surface cool and smooth despite the intricate carvings along the edges. I turned it over, trying to find a l

ll stone, but as I tilted it in the dim light of my room, it caught the light in a way that made it seem alive-almost l

Too

ng. What was this? Why was it in a box

expecting to see the tall man from the mansion standing in the corner, watching me with those dark

this was, but I knew it wasn't normal. It wasn't safe. And yet, despite my fear, there w

ng that had happened today was catching up to me. The mansion, the strange man, the slap from my a

faint glow from the object barely visible through the cracks of the box's lid. I closed my eyes, trying to push it

g settling into my bones. Relief wash over me but little do I know

ng?Selena op

th a rhythmic beat, like it was alive. The garden itself, though beautiful, seemed... wrong. The flowers were too vibrant, the grass too green. It was like