They could be something entirely different.
An apparently harmless woman with a strong moral compass could suddenly become a monster herself. Or maybe she was a monster all along, but she excelled at camouflaging that part of her.
“I warned you about what I’d do to anyone who finds out, didn’t I? Does that mean you’re ready to see your boyfriend’s blood splashed all over your pretty little face?”
Panic explodes behind my rib cage and shatters all over the ground around me.
Don’t touch him. Not him.
I open my mouth, but none of the words come out. My hands remain limp at my sides as if they refuse to speak anymore.
“You were so good at keeping secrets for over a decade, so what’s changed, Mia? Why are you being stupidly stubborn now?”
I want to open my lips and beg her not to hurt anyone I love.
Please. Not Landon or my parents or…
“Mia!”
Maya runs down the street, her clothes disheveled and her hair flying all over the place. Her face is so white, it could be mistaken for a ghost’s.
I’ve never seen her like this, except for when I came back home after the kidnapping.
She was bawling her eyes out. I stood there in complete bewilderment.
If anything, I just wanted her to stop crying.
My sister grabs me by the shoulder and faces Mrs. Pratt, her chin trembling.
I push her away, horror bleeding into my bloodstream as I sign with shaky hands, “Go, Maya. Just go.”
“No.” She wraps her arms around me tighter and I can feel her shaking worse than a leaf in the aftermath of a storm.
“Maya, Dear. What are you doing here?” Mrs. Pratt asks in the soft voice she used to speak in when she was our nanny. It sounds creepy at best when she’s pointing a gun at us now.
“Go away,” Maya says—no, she orders. “You said you’d never come back or show yourself in front of Mia, so why are you here?”
“That would’ve only worked if you’d both kept your part of the deal, but you didn’t, now, did you?”
Wait…what?
I stare at Maya, whose lips are trembling and her eyes are filled with unshed tears. This can’t be what I think it is. It just…can’t.
“Oh, right,” Mrs. Pratt says. “Seems you’re not up to date with what Maya did, so here it is…”
“Shut up,” my sister whispers then yells. “You promised!”
“You also promised to keep her quiet, but you didn’t keep your promise, so why should I?” Mrs. Pratt directs her twisted attention toward me. “See, Maya was always jealous of you, Mia. You were the bright, smart twin who attracted everyone’s attention. Even your aunts and uncles preferred you over her. Before she transformed into this beautiful swan, she was the introverted twin who would spend time alone and only had you as company. Your teachers preferred you to her, despite you having the same level of intelligence. You were outgoing and kind. Always got flowers for your teachers and called them pretty. Always complimented their looks and smell and hugged them goodbye. Maya didn’t or more like she didn’t have the capacity to fake her emotions at the time. The more they treated you better than her, the deeper her grudge toward you grew. She didn’t show it, though, because she genuinely loves you.
“One day, she muttered under her breath, ‘I wish Mia would disappear even for a few days,’ so I made it happen, though a year later. See, I was more attuned to Maya’s emotions than your mom, who just focused on giving you equal attention and opportunities. I recognized that hidden jealousy in her and nurtured it well. After all, I was always treated as inferior to my more accomplished sister and could recognize it in others. So a year later, when I accidentally met Maya outside her school and asked her about the route, she willingly gave up the information. I couldn’t ask you, because you were much more suspicious and would’ve told your parents about it. Maya wouldn’t because, deep down, she always wanted you to disappear. For good.”
“That’s not true!” Maya screams, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I only told you because you said you were going to pay us a surprise visit. I didn’t know you were going to kidnap her. I didn’t!”
“Not at first, but you did after the attack, no? My husband told me you saw his face and recognized him, but you didn’t say anything to your parents, because you were scared they’d hate you forever if they found out what you’d done. You didn’t care if Mia was abused within an inch of her life or eventually died. It’s okay to admit it, Maya dear.”
“That’s not true…” Fat, ugly tears stream down Maya’s cheeks as she stares at me. “You can’t possibly believe her, right, Mia? I was about to tell Mom and Dad, I swear. But they’d already paid the money and gotten you back so…so…”
“So you decided to stay silent?” My movements are robotic at best.
“She threatened me.” Her voice shakes. “She showed up at my piano practice and said if I say a word about what I knew, she’d tell you and the whole world that I helped in your kidnapping. I couldn’t… I couldn’t risk losing you, Mia. You know how much I love you.”
“If you loved me, you wouldn’t have hidden something so important from me,” I sign. “Do you know how much I struggled to keep the truth to myself while Mom and Dad begged me to let them in and tell them anything about the perpetrator? I’m mute because of it, Maya!”
She flinches, her face appearing more ashen under the orange streetlights. “I’m so sorry, Mia. I really, really am. I’ve been living with guilt for eleven years.”
“Fuck your guilt.” I push her away.
Maya stumbles, but she glues herself back to me. “I know that you hate me and that’s okay, but I can’t leave you alone with this woman. Her husband was keeping an eye on you in the UK.”
Even though pain and anger mix inside me, I can’t help looking at Maya. Bemusement must be written all over my face.
“I only found out about him that day when I disguised myself as you and went to the chess club to test Landon. He’s the owner of that club, Mia.”
Mr. Whitby…
I stare at Mrs. Pratt, who’s been watching the whole exchange with a satisfied expression. “Of course we have to keep an eye on you, child. If you’d opened your mouth, everything we built would’ve broken to pieces. I can’t risk your parents' wrath, now, can I?”
“You risked it enough to kidnap Mia!” Maya screams and gets in Mrs. Pratt’s face.
She pushes her back using the gun. “Yes, but I got away with that twenty-five million richer. Money can buy you multiple identities and, most importantly, immunity. You wouldn’t know this because you were born with a silver spoon hanging from your mouths. You don’t know what it’s like to see your life’s work fall to pieces in front of your eyes because you don’t have enough means to keep it afloat. You don’t know what it’s like to lose a child because you didn’t have the money to save his life. You know nothing!”
“But that’s not our fault!” Maya screams. “Mom and Dad treated you so well. Is this how you repay them?”
“I don’t see anything wrong with taking some of the endless dirty money they own. Besides, both of you are in one piece, for now.” She points the gun between the both of us.
Maya stands in front of me, even though she’s shaking uncontrollably.
“Here’s how it’ll go, girls. You’ll both keep your mouths shut or I’ll personally kill the mom and dad you care for so much.”
“Here’s another deal for you. Drop your weapon or I blow your head off.” The click of a shotgun follows next and I nearly cry when I see Landon standing behind Mrs. Pratt.