“Secrets never stay buried.” I rub my chest. “You should know that…Budget Kelly.”
Flames erupt in her eyes, and she flings her hand, slapping me across the cheek. My entire body twists from the force of it, and I slam to the ground.
The throbbing in my face pales in comparison to the tightening of my chest. I try to push off the ground, but my strength fails me, and I slip, crashing to the floor. Everywhere aches, but I know I can’t stay down.
Painfully, I turn and face Gina again.
Her face is red, and her chest heaves violently.
I smile, emboldened by her rage. If I’m going to die, I might as well take one more secret down with me.
“You had similar faces, but Kelly was more popular than you. More accomplished than you. More wealthy than you.” I take a breath, ignoring the roaring of my heartbeat in my ears. “You stood in her shadows, longing to be like her while wishing she would blip out of existence. You loved her and you hated her at the same time. Is that why you killed her?”
Gina grabs me, and I scramble to my feet as she shakes me like a rag doll. “Who the hell are you to say that?Kellywasthe pathetic one. She had parents who were willing to give her everything. Everything. Fancy clothes, parties, a new car.”
“And Jonathan.” One corner of my lips arches up in a trembling smile. “Kelly had Jonathan.”
Her eyes take on a dazed look, and I know, in an instant, that Gina still carries her first love in her heart. “I loved him so much, but Kelly was all he could see.”
“You were hurt, so you wanted to hurt him back,” I croak, finding it hard to breathe. “People kept telling you that you were worthless, so you wanted to make everybody feel worthless. You started with Kelly. That’s why you lured her out.”
Gina shakes her head, and her hair flies wildly around her. “Kellywas the one who wanted to meet that night. She was upset about Jonathan. She pushed me first.”
Elise steps forward, hissing. “Stop.”
“She’s going to die anyway,” Gina snaps at her sister. She looks down with confidence, as if she’s spent years telling herself a lie that she now believes. “Kelly was mad at her parents, mad at Jonathan, mad at theworld. It was an accident, but honestly, I don’t regret it. I put her out of her misery. Just like I’m going to put you out of your misery.”
With the last bit of my strength left, I step forward. “You’re the miserable one, Gina. You killed Kelly, and then you convinced her grieving parents to take you in as their adopted daughter. But they didn’t love you. They dumped you in the psych ward.”
Gina’s eyes widen and she grabs my neck. “Shut up.”
“Now, you’ve taken on Kelly’s identity, and you married Shawn. But he doesn’t love you either. Deep down, you know why everyone keeps rejecting you. Jonathan. Kelly’s parents. Shawn. You left your small town, but you never stopped being… Budget Kelly.”
Eyes enraged, Gina pushes me backward. My entire body jolts as we hit the edge of the roof. I grab her hand as the rails dig into my back. Cars zoom below, horns beeping as bumper-to-bumper traffic creeps across the tarmac. The city is alive and roaring, ready to feed.
I whimper and look over my shoulder. The ground is so far below and covered in shadows that I can’t even see what’s beneath us. The parking lot? A garbage can? Hell’s gates?
“What are you doing?” Elise grabs her sister’s arm.
“She’s not dead yet,” Gina snaps. “Why not?”
“The drugs will stop her pacemaker soon enough. Stick to the plan.”
Gina brushes Elise off, her eyes gleaming as if she has a fever.
Or she’s possessed.
“Change of plans.” Gina’s knuckles dig into my upper jaw, and I struggle to breathe. She’s crushing my windpipe. “What if you took a nice, long dive off this roof?”
“Y-you’ll never get away with it.” I cough between each word. “Someone will find out.”
“Who? Dr. Kenji? He’s the only one who cares about you.”
Her cruel words hit their target, and I flinch.
“Sad little Jinx. You were so depressed about your heart condition that you wanted to end it all. So, you came up to the roof. I tried to stop you, but I just couldn’t get through to you…”
I make a gargling sound as Gina shoves me farther over the railing.
