The garden lights glowed faintly against the dark sky, casting long shadows across the pond. Kylie leaned closer, her perfume cloying as her words dripped with venom.
“I’ll get everything from you, Diana,” she whispered, her lips brushing my ear like a lover’s secret. “Arthur, my family, the wealth… all of it will be mine. And you? You’ll be left with nothing.”
Her smile widened when she saw the horror in my eyes.
Then, as if on cue, she gasped dramatically and stumbled backward. The sharp crack of her heel on the stone pathway echoed before she pitched toward the water.
“Kylie!” Instinctively, I reached out to steady her. But the moment my fingers brushed her arm, she twisted and shoved me forward instead.
Cold water closed around me as I plunged into the pond, the shock stealing my breath. My limbs flailed as I fought to surface, gasping, hair plastered to my face.
“Diana!” A voice cut through the night—but it wasn’t a concern for me.
Arthur was rushing forward, his arms wrapped protectively around Kylie, who now sobbed pitifully against his chest.
“Arthur… I—I didn’t mean to upset her. Maybe I said too much…” Kylie’s voice quivered, her tears glistening in the garden lights.
“What the hell were you thinking, Diana?!” Arthur’s furious roar stabbed through me as I trembled in the water. His glare burned with anger, not at Kylie, but at me.
“I didn’t push her!” I choked, shivering violently. “She—she shoved me!”
Kylie shook her head quickly, her sobs growing louder. “No, no… Diana must be upset. Don’t blame her, Arthur. She’s my sister. I don’t want her to feel humiliated.”
Her false kindness only painted me crueler in everyone’s eyes.
“I was the one who was pushed into the water,” I cried, my voice cracking. “Yet you still blame me. Why, Arthur?”
His jaw tightened. “Because I know Kylie. She’s always been kind—she would never harm anyone. It’s you who twists the truth, Diana. You’re framing your innocent sister.”
My body went cold. “Innocent?” I whispered, my heart sinking.
Arthur’s expression didn’t waver. “Apologize to her, Diana. Right now. Or stay in that water until you freeze for all I care.”
“I won’t,” I whispered, my teeth chattering.
“What did you say?” His tone sharpened, dangerous.
Arthur’s jaw tightened, his voice like ice. “Apologize to Kylie. Right now. Or stay in that water until you freeze for all I care.”
“I won’t,” I whispered, my teeth chattering.
“What did you say?” His tone sharpened, dangerous.
“I said I won’t apologize.” My throat burned with the weight of my defiance, tears streaming down my cold cheeks.
Arthur’s face darkened. Without another glance at me, he scooped Kylie into his arms. “Fine. Since you’re so stubborn, you can freeze there.”
And with that, he carried Kylie back toward the mansion, her sobs echoing sweetly into the night, leaving me abandoned in the water.
...
With shaking limbs, I dragged myself out of the pond. My dress clung to me, heavy and dripping, each step painful as I stumbled to the roadside. Trembling, I hailed a cab.
On the way home, my phone rang. It was Aunt Melanie’s daughter, her voice broken with grief.
“Diana… the burial is tomorrow. If you want to see her one last time, you should come early.”
“I will,” I whispered, my voice hoarse, before ending the call.
Tears blurred the city lights as I leaned against the cab window. Shivering, I asked the driver to stop by a boutique. My clothes were soaked through, and I couldn’t go to Aunt Melanie’s funeral like this.
But when I stepped inside, the saleslady’s eyes swept over my dripping form with disdain. “We don’t welcome people like you. Leave before you dirty the place.”
Her sharp words cut deeper than the cold. Faces turned to stare, their judgment burning into me. My throat tightened, but I forced myself to turn around and leave.
I finally found a small thrift shop on a side street. The owner didn’t ask questions, only handed me a secondhand dress at a cheap price. It wasn’t much, but at least it covered me.
Clutching the thin fabric against me, I headed home, tears welling up once again. Aunt Melanie, the only person who had ever loved me, was gone. My husband despised me. My family wished I didn’t exist. And the one who replaced me wanted to strip me of everything.
At that moment, I wondered if there was anything left of me at all.
