Ivy's world stopped spinning. The word "adopted" echoed in her mind like a death sentence.
"Adopted?" Her voice was barely a whisper, like a child who had just been told Santa wasn't real. "Did you... did you just call me adopted? I... I don't..."
"Yes, you little fool," Linda spat, her face twisted with years of hidden hatred. She looked at Maren's scratched face and her voice became venomous. "How dare you touch my daughter? The only real bloodline of the Dawson family."
Ivy felt like the ground beneath her feet had cracked open. Her beautiful hazel eyes filled with confusion and terror. "What do you mean adopted? Aunt Linda, what are you saying?"
Linda's smile was cruel as she stretched her hand toward her husband. "Richard, give me the papers."
Uncle Richard hesitated for a moment, his face showing a flicker of guilt, before handing over a manila envelope. Linda ripped it open and threw the documents at Ivy's feet like she was throwing scraps to a dog.
"See for yourself, princess."
Ivy's hands shook so violently she could barely pick up the papers. The words blurred through her tears, but one line stood out like a knife to her heart: DNA compatibility: 0%.
"This... this is fake," she stammered, her voice breaking like glass. "This can't be real. My parents... they would have told me. They loved me!"
"Your parents?" Maren laughed coldly. "You mean the people who felt sorry for a dirty little orphan?"
The papers fell from Ivy's numb fingers as she stared at the three people she had called family her entire life. She looked like a beautiful broken doll, her perfect features crumbling with devastation.
"This is not true," she whispered, then louder, "This is NOT TRUE!"
She collapsed to her knees on the cold stone, her dress pooling around her like black water. "You made this up. Please tell me you made this up."
Like a lost child, she crawled across the rough stones to her aunt's feet, not caring that the sharp edges cut her knees through her torn stockings.
"Please, Aunt Linda. You're like a mother to me. You held me when I had nightmares. You braided my hair. Please tell me this is all a terrible prank." Her voice was breaking with every word. "Please tell me this is a nightmare and when I wake up, my parents will be alive and everything will be okay."
Linda's face showed no mercy as she kicked Ivy away from her feet like she was kicking a stray dog.
"Don't you dare touch me with those filthy, lying hands!"
Ivy hit the ground hard, her hip crashing against the stone steps. Pain shot through her body, but it was nothing compared to the agony in her heart.
"I've already transferred power of attorney for all of your so-called parents' property to my name," Linda said with satisfaction. "Every single penny, every building, every car. Thank God we're finally getting rid of you. At least I'm letting you keep one suitcase ang your car. I could have thrown you out with nothing."
"No, please!" Ivy sobbed, crawling back across the stones. Her knees were bleeding now, leaving small red stains on the pathway. "Please, you can't throw me out like this! I have nowhere to go! My parents are dead! You're all I have left!"
She grabbed Linda's legs again, her tears mixing with the blood from her scraped hands. "Is this because I hit Maren? I'm sorry! I was just confused and scared! Please don't punish me like this!"
She turned to Maren, her beautiful face streaked with tears and dirt. She pressed her palms together like she was praying to a god who had abandoned her.
"Maren, please. We grew up together. We shared secrets, we shared dreams. Don't let them throw me out. Just let me stay in the servants' quarters. I'll do anything."
Her voice cracked completely. "I... I can't do this today. My parents were buried six hours ago. Six hours, Maren! My world ended today. Can't you have mercy? Can't you be the light in this darkness? Please, I'm begging you."
Maren looked down at her cousin with pure disgust and pushed her hands away like she was touching something dirty.
"At least you get to keep your precious car and phone. That's more than you deserve. So pick up your pathetic little suitcase and get the hell out of my sight."
She leaned down, her voice becoming a whisper filled with venom. "I packed some of your old rags. I was being generous. The rest of your designer clothes? They're mine now. And if I ever see you near this mansion again, I'll make sure you disappear permanently. Go back to whatever gutter they found you in, Ivy. The princess act is over."
The words hit Ivy like physical blows. She watched through blurred vision as her family - the only family she had ever known turned their backs on her and walked into the house that had been her home for twenty-one years.
The maids lingered for a moment, their faces showing pity and shame. But Linda's voice cut through the night air like a whip.
"I dare any of you to help her! Anyone who shows her kindness will be fired immediately!"
The maids quickly looked away and scurried into the house. The massive front door slammed shut, and Ivy heard the locks clicking into place.
She sat on the cold stone for what felt like hours, crying until her throat was raw and her eyes were swollen shut. Her beautiful black hair was tangled and dirty, her dress was torn at the knees, and her hands were still bleeding from when she fell earlier.
When she finally stood up, her legs were shaking so badly she could barely walk. She picked up her single suitcase, everything she owned in the world now fit in one small bag , and walked to her car.
The black luxury sedan was the only thing that was truly hers. She had bought it with money from her modeling jobs, never knowing that one day it would be her only possession.
She didn't care about the money or the properties. She would have given it all away gladly if she could just have her parents back. But being thrown out of the house where she had laughed and cried and dreamed, where every room held memories of the people who raised her, on the very day she buried them, that cruelty was beyond forgiveness.
She started the car with trembling hands and drove away from the iron gates that had always meant safety and home. Now they looked like prison bars, keeping her out of the only life she had ever known.
She drove through the empty streets with no destination, no plan, no hope. Just twenty-one years old and completely alone in the world.
Thirty minutes later, her car began to sputter and jerk. The engine made a horrible grinding noise before it died completely on a dark, deserted stretch of road.
"No, please, not now," she whispered, hitting the steering wheel with her fist. "Please, I can't handle anything else today."
She got out of the car and lifted the hood, though she had no idea what to look for. The engine was smoking and making strange clicking sounds.
That's when she heard the footsteps.
Slow, deliberate footsteps were coming from the shadows behind her.
She turned around, and her blood turned to ice.
Three tall figures emerged from the darkness, all wearing black masks that covered their faces completely. Only their eyes were visible, and they were staring at her like predators who had found their prey.
