Saira’s mouth twisted into a cruel smile. “Well done.” Hatred burned in her eyes, pure and unfiltered.
I remembered the first time I met Holly. A work event, nothing remarkable, until she appeared with two flutes of Prosecco, her smile practiced, disarming.
“Have you read the latest edition of theLester Harbor Daily?” she had asked, pointing toward a folded paper on the coffee table. “Alistair Scott. Hottest bachelor in the country.”
“Do you know him?” I had asked, curious but unsuspecting.
“I know enough through friends,” Holly replied, eyes gleaming.
Now, the memory turned rancid in my gut. That meeting hadn’t been chance. It had been calculated, part of Saira’s bloodlust to dismantle my brother and me. The realization left me nauseous under the glare of the bright prison lights. I glanced at the correctional officer by the door, searching for a flicker of human sympathy. Her expression remained stone, as if carved for a museum.
“Why, Saira?” My voice cracked against the weight of betrayal. “Why did you do this to me?”
“Simple. I gave Julian one rule: don’t fall in love. He broke it. Fell for your friend.” Her lips curved in a cold echo of a smile. “So I planted eyes on his family. Every weakness exposed. Imagine my delight when I learned you, his sister, were sleeping with my ex-husband. Vengeance was inevitable. I destroy my enemies.”
My stomach clenched, bile rising. “You belong in hell,” I whispered, clutching myself as though I could hold the pieces of me together.
The bitch let out a shrill laugh. “Join me in hell.”
“Been there. Now, I’m back,” I replied. “You used Holly to butcher me.”
“What about what you did to me?” Saira’s voice dropped, eyes burning. “I loved Alistair before Julian. But did he ever love me back? No. Instead, he loved a whore like you. I asked myself why. When I couldn’t stomach the answer, I sent Holly to clear the trash from the gene pool.”
“You thought using her would destroy me? Guess you’ll have to try harder,” I shot back.
“Holly needed money to get her sister out of a stinking jail. I offered her a solution in exchange for a favor. You, your filthy brother, and that slut of his deserve the very worst.” Saira snarled.
“You claim to love my brother and Alistair, but that’s not love, honey. It’s a narcissistic obsession,” I bit back. “Burn in hell.”
Saira’s smile was razor-thin. “How does it feel to be barren? To have your ovaries ripped out?”
My jaw tightened. “I didn’t have my ovaries removed.”
“What?” Saira shot to her feet, fury twisting her face. “Holly was supposed to get rid of them.”
The officer barked at her to sit down, one hand resting on the baton at her belt.
Watching the viper slither back to her seat, I smiled. “Holly blocked my fallopian tubes, but I’ve had surgery to reverse the procedure and fix most of the damage. I might still have children. There ishope.”
Saira’s hands began to clench. “She was meant to remove your ovaries, not block them.”
“You hired a desperate woman with a conscience,sweetheart,” I remarked. “You play God, but you’re the devil. You promise the world, but you carve people into becoming your puppets. Jessie, Raphael, and Holly, just to name a few. You failed with Julian.”
“Do you remember the story ofSnow White?” I asked.
Saira only arched a brow, her silence heavier than words.
“Holly was the huntsman who failed to finish the queen’s filthy work. And the queen?” I laughed softly. “She’s no queen at all. Just a wicked witch. Just like you.”
“Snow White isn’t a whore,” she spat.
“Neither am I. Here’s another thing: I’m adopting Damian.”
“Oh, hell, no.” She stood up again as she raised her voice, attracting the officer’s attention.
“Back off and calm down,” the officer ordered.
Saira narrowed her eyes, cheeks hollow and taut as she sank back into her chair.
