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“Shut up, you sadistic bitch,” Melissa snaps, voice cold. “You were trying to make the perfect little daughters, so we wouldn’t tell anyone what you did.”
“Missy,” Mom warns, but Melissa can’t be stopped.
“Haven’t you ever wondered how Daddied, Hannah? What happened to me when I put onetoeout of line?”
I freeze, ice filling my veins.
“She’s trying to get into your head, Hannah,” Mom chimes, voice panicked beneath the cool, calm surface. “You know her, she’ll say whatever she has to, to get you to listen to her.”
“That’s rich coming from you, Mother,” Melissa chuckles darkly. “She poisoned him and watched the life bleed from his eyes. When Marcus found out, I confronted her and you can bet I was locked in a cage in one of her warehouses shortly after.”
Melissa drops to her knees in front of me.
“Michael saved my life, you know? He was sweet on me, so he’d come in, I’d suck his cock, and he’d let me out. I helpedwith a couple of his . . . special cases. The ones that were too headstrong for the black dahlia to take it’s hold.”
“You’re too easily manipulated, sweetheart,” Mom coos, her voice changing to that same, sickeningly sweet soft tone that she used to use when she was explaining away her guilt over punishing us. “You listen to her because you love too hard. Don’t let her lie to you now.”
I look back and forth between the two, my heart thumping heavily in my chest. The man holding my head tightens his grip when Melissa leans in, forcing me to look at her. The same brown eyes that had once brought me comfort now make me want to vomit.
“Hannah. You and I are twins. You know me better than anyone. Would I do those things they’re accusing me of?”
I swallow hard over the lump in my throat—a difficult task considering the man holding my head in a vice grip.
I stare into my sister’s eyes and finally, everything falls into place.
“You’re a monster,” I breathe and she stills. The only sound being the shuffling of the cartel watching on idly. “Did you cut off your own finger so everyone would think you were dead?”
Melissa chuckles, holding up a hand dressed in a black diamond-encrusted prosthetic in the place of what used to be her middle finger. The end is sharp, a pointy nail coming out like a knife.
“Oh, that . . . Dear Michael helped. Tell me, did Monica Parkerscreamwhen she found it?”
“Why maim yourself? So you could stay relevant?”
“Had to get you on the hunt, somehow, sister.Especiallyafter you ran off with that mongrel Carpenter.” And then she whimpers, just like she did on the phone that night, so long ago.“Hannah,please. . . someone’s going tokill me. Michael and I had fun with that one.”
“Mason’s more of a man than you will ever have the good fortune of meeting.”
She hunkers down, voice dripping in candy-coated venom. “You know, when we decided to go into business together, he would go down on me for hours.”
“Shame it took so long,” I reply sweetly. “Must be the drugs.”
“The black Dahlia . . .” she starts dramatically. “Is an elixir of the gods. Shame you could never handle such a thing.”
“Let me guess, you’re still drinking it. You know, you might ask if they can insert an IV. Since you can’t seem to live without it, and all.”
“Oh, I will haveplenty. There won’t be a need. You see, when Parker went to prison, he passed that portion of his business on to me. Haven’t you wondered where I’ve been all this time, Hannah Banana?”
“Actually, it was a nice break from the psychopath I used to call a sister.”
Melissa’s expression never changes, but even so, I can see the exact moment I no longer mean anything to her.
The moment she decides I’m not her sister, anymore.
“I’m bored . . .” she purrs. “Kill her.”
She says it so quick and pungently that for a brief second, no one moves.
Then, the grip on my neck tightens and the cold sensation of a steel barrel digs into my temple.
