Chapter 16 1135 p.m.
Chapter sixteen
Maggie
“If you try to warn her—if you say anything—I swear to you, Diane, I’ll kill you before you finish the sentence.” Diane’s throat rolls while I stand and watch. A single tear tracks down her cheek. Good. I’m enjoying seeing her sad and defeated way too much.
The phone won’t stop vibrating as I study the screen one last time, unease coiling tight inside of me.
Rose.
My perfect cousin and supposed best friend.
God, I hate her.
All I ever heard growing up was how perfect she was. And the praise came from all directions. Her mom, school teachers, family members. Hell, my own parents applauded her at every turn. It was constant.
Rose is so beautiful.
Rose is so smart.
Rose got the lead in the school play. Again!
Rose.
Rose.
ROSE!!
My face and body were the only things I ever had working for me.
The boys always liked me better because I was easy.
Tall, blonde, and within reach for when they wanted someone to make them feel good.
And I always made sure I was available. Rose didn’t play their games, but miraculously, she won anyway.
They’d fall all over themselves to get closer to her.
She was blessed in life.
And her looks.
She was naturally beautiful, and things came easily to her.
Whether it was her laugh, her eyes, her stupid curls.
Didn’t matter. Thinking about it now makes the old rage claw back.
She had better grades, better hair, better everything.
And the worst part? She didn’t notice what it cost me to be the one left behind.
Because through it all … she had a mom.
Mine was dead.
Literally overnight, I had nothing. Just an orphan taken in out of pity by her rich aunt. At the time, I thought I’d hit the jackpot. My parents were gone, but Diane had money. A lot of it. And suddenly, so did I. Money, clothes, a huge house.
But then, Rose was always there.
Perfect, precious Rose. She had it all before I showed up. Diane’s love, her attention, every ounce of affection I was starving for. I told myself it didn’t bother me, that I could handle sharing. But I hated how easily she had everything I wanted handed to her without ever lifting a finger.
For a brief time before the fire, I had a small taste of that life.
Prior to my parents’ death, things were improving for us financially.
The days of being poor were behind us. As a kid, it didn’t matter.
My birthday party that year was epic! I was the talk of the school the following Monday. Not Rose.
Me.
So you can imagine my surprise when I found out about my parents’ crimes and what happened that night. And the fire.
The identity theft never bothered me. Why should it? Mom and Dad did what they had to do. They found a way to make life easier for us when the world refused to.
Good on them!
The people they stole from? They didn’t need the money. They were all too rich, or dead, to notice. I admired them for having the nerve to take what everyone else was too afraid to reach for.
What bothered me was Diane. Her self-righteous meddling and her desire to swoop in and try to help. Like she always did. We didn’t need her! But of course, she took my life from me and then expected me to be grateful when I went to live with her.
I don’t think so.
Eventually, I got smarter and decided things should balance out.
It was Rose’s turn to understand complete parental loss, and to know what it’s like when the person you love is ripped away.
When I learned about Diane’s conference, how it lined up with my trip, I knew it wasn’t a coincidence.
It was an opportunity. And like my parents, I seized the opportunity.
I know they would be so proud.
And now here I am. At first, everything was going perfectly. That was until I found out Cal was involved.
Of course, it had to be him.
I remember when she shadowed him last year. My God, she couldn’t shut up about how brilliant he was, how capable, how hot, how good. She ruined her chance, like she does with every man she dates. But now he’s back in the picture, and if he digs deep enough, he could tear everything apart.
On the phone, I tried everything I could to keep her away from him. I planted doubts about his honesty and loyalty. Anything to make her second-guess him. Of course, she didn’t listen. He convinced her he could save Diane and be the guy of her dreams. And maybe that’s what makes me hate him most.
The man’s beautiful, I’ll give him that, and that’s the problem.
Hell, I know I would have thrown myself at him.
It’s not the first time I would steal one of her boyfriends without her knowing.
Now he’s here, still glued to her side, still pretending to protect her.
In the same freaking hotel and breathing the same air.
Every time I think about it, my plan and the walls tighten around me. All of it daring me to lose control.
Shaking all doubt I have, I refocus on the call.
For a split second, I consider ignoring it.
I know she’s with him right now. But she’ll just keep calling, and I can’t afford her getting suspicious.
Diane watches me, her wrists red, bleeding, and chafed from the ties. She’s judging me, like she always did.
I swipe to answer and attempt to keep myself steady. “Hey.”
“Hey,” Rose’s greeting crackles through the speaker, light but strained. A small sob releases from Diane at the sound of her daughter’s voice. I glare at her as a warning.
The connection is weak and distorted which makes me wonder where she is. “You’re not going to believe this,” her words strain slightly, “we’re stuck in the elevator.”
I blink, thrown for a second. “What?”
“With Cal,” she adds quickly. “There was an outage or maybe a power surge, and now we’re trapped.”
“Oh.” That name. Cal. I can almost see him—the man with a hero complex, her safety net, and savior. Funny how everything always falls into line for her.
It makes me sick. Sweet, prudish Rose now has two men pining for her. First Niko and now this Cal.
I force a smile, reminding myself who I’m pretending to be. The fake Maggie. The lights went out here but only briefly, but I can’t mention that. I’m not at this hotel.
I’m in Italy
I’m in Italy.
I’m in Italy.
“You woke me up. What’s up?” I ask through the crackle.
She laughs, a small nervous sound coming through the phone. “What? Maggie, the up-all-night party girl is sleeping.” Annoyance ropes around my gut because of her laughter at my expense. “Are you having fun?”
Honestly, I should answer this in the adjoining room like I have with all the others.
Instead, I pace the length of the bed, back and forth, each step heavier than the last. Diane tracks me, and I know she’s reading too much into every move.
“How many times are you going to call me today and ask me that?” I curse under my breath at how sharp and defensive that sounded.
Not knowing what to do with myself, I survey the room and sit on the edge of the bed, gripping the comforter until the fabric bunches in my fist. “Sorry, Rosie Posie,” I mutter, trying to smooth the crack in my tone. “I’m tired. That’s all.”
I should probably also apologize for hanging up on her earlier. Fake Maggie wouldn't do that. “And I’m sorry I hung up on you. Blame it on the jet lag.”
There’s silence for a beat or two. “It’s okay. And you’re right; that’s not why I called.”
I shift, my pulse picking up as my knee bobs uncontrollably. “Then why?”
“Denny called us, you know, the lead detective on Mom’s case,” she affirms and pauses, expecting me to agree. I don’t. “Anyway, he found out some things about my mom’s visit to your parents’ house the night of the fire.”
A shiver runs through me as my hand clasps the phone. As I turn, Diane’s focus becomes intense, anticipating Rose’s next revelation. She’s close enough to me that I’m pretty sure she can faintly hear Rose through the call.
Rose keeps talking. “He said they were involved in some kind of identity theft scheme. That they were making a lot of money from it. Did you know anything about that?”
I swallow. “No,” I say quickly, too quickly. “Of course not.”
“Hmmm … are you sure? I mean, I’ve been thinking about it. Like how they suddenly had so much money, the new cars, the house, the trips—”
“Rose, stop,” I snap way too quickly, betraying more than I want her to hear. “Don’t talk about them like that.”
She hesitates. “I … I’m not trying to upset you, I just—”
“Well, you are upsetting me.” I push off the bed and pace again, the phone digging into my ear. The vice grip in my gut cinches tighter with each pass of the room.
She knows. God, this Cal guy is ruining everything! The anger inside me churns and bubbles. I’m a volcano, rumbling with the pressure and ready to explode.
“Maybe we should talk about this later. After you’ve rested,” Rose says gently. “You sound … off.”
Her concern makes me want to scream. Why does she always sound so perfectly composed and careful? She doesn’t mean to sound better than I do, but she does.
She is.
Always has been.
Always will be.
My grip tightens around the phone until my hand shakes. “I’m fine. I just—I have to go.” The words tumble out too fast.
“Maggie—”I can’t hear the rest. Jabbing the screen and ending the call in a frantic panic, I hurl the phone onto the bed. It bounces, landing face-down. The silence in the room is suddenly too loud. My pulse is everywhere—my ears, my head, my fingertips. I can’t make it stop.
Rubbing my temples, I can sense Diane’s gaze again. She’s quiet.
Until she’s not.
“She’ll notice,” she says softly. “Rose knows you too well. She’ll hear it and figure out something is wrong.”
That does it. I snap.
“Who cares!” I scream as I spin toward her, yanking a zip tie from the bag and rebinding her hands. “I hate her! You both act as if she’s perfect. Sweet, innocent, unbreakable Rose. But she’s not. She’s nothing without me.”
Diane flinches as my thoughts spill over and my mind is in overdrive.
I see her.
In my thoughts.
And my dreams.
I see Rose smiling.
Her perfect smile. The one that makes people love her instantly.
Then I hear her laugh. God, I hate her laugh.
And I see the way Niko and now Cal gawk at her.
The way he never looked at me.
The way no one does.
She takes everything.
Every bit of attention, every ounce of love that should’ve been mine.
And now, for once, she’s going to lose.
And know what it’s like to be me.