Rain sluiced from the heavens when a sharp pain lanced through the sole of her foot.
Bending down, Stella pulled a shard of glass from where it was embedded deep in her flesh. Blood swirled away with the rainwater, the pain sending a shiver through her.
Yet that pain was nothing compared to the ache in her heart.
She finally shuffled home, step by agonizing step, only to be greeted the moment she crossed the threshold by Reese’s shrill cry. "I want fish! Sister-in-law buy fish!"
Bradley frowned at Stella’s bloodied foot, his eyes flickering with a concern he instantly suppressed. Kathleen, sharp as ever, caught that fleeting change. Feigning gentleness, she coaxed, "Be good, Reese. Your sister-in-law seems to have hurt herself. We’ll have fish another day, alright?"
"No! No fish, no dinner! Wahhh—!"
Playing the part of someone overwhelmed, Kathleen turned to Bradley with a soft suggestion. "Mr. Bradley, perhaps we could take one from the ornamental pond out back? Freshly caught would be more delicious. Reese would love that."
Bradley gave a nod. "All right then."
Stella’s face drained of all color. "No!" Her voice trembled. "Those are ornamental fish—they’re not for eating! I’ll go to the market. I’ll go right now!"
She turned to dash back into the downpour. Those fish were her family.
Years ago, they had been caught in a fisherman’s net, only to be saved by the Bradley family matriarch, Mrs. Eva, a pious woman known for her mercy and vegetarian ways. The kind-hearted old lady had paid a fortune to buy and release them.
Stella had taken human form to repay that debt. Her friends, unable to let her go alone, had insisted on coming with her. In all the years Bradley had hated and tormented her, they had been her only source of warmth.
How could she let anyone harm them?
But Stella’s violent reaction only ignited Bradley’s anger. "It’s just a fish. Are you really that stingy?" Genuine bafflement hardened his eyes. "So what if you fed it? It’s livestock. Is my Reese not worthy of eating it?"
"No! Bradley, please! I’ll buy one, the most expensive one..." Stella begged, terror washing over her.
"Enough!" Bradley lost his patience and barked at a maid. "Go catch one. Now!"
"Don’t touch them!"
Stella lunged toward the backyard like a madwoman, only to be yanked back violently by Bradley. "Tie her up!" he ordered coldly. "Let her watch."
A bodyguard stepped forward and bound her hands. She struggled desperately, but could only watch helplessly as a maid walked toward the backyard with a net, listening soon after to the faint, frantic splashing from the direction of the pond.
Tears blurred her vision.
A brilliant silver koi was lifted from the net, twisting frantically. "Aaron... don’t eat my Aaron!" Stella sobbed, struggling until her wrists were raw and bloody.
Right before her eyes, the maid slammed the fish hard against the ground. Crimson splattered.
When it reappeared, Aaron had been gutted, his flesh sliced thin, his skeleton and head arranged on a bed of ice. As the maid placed the platter on the dining table, the fish’s mouth still opened and closed helplessly.
A wave of nausea hit Stella, her insides knotting in agony.
Kathleen picked up her fork, speared a slice of pink-white flesh, dipped it in sauce, and put it in her mouth. She chewed a few times, frowned, then took a napkin and spat it out. "There’s something off about this fish," she murmured, dabbing her lips. "Rather unpleasant."
Reese mimicked her, popping a piece into her mouth before immediately spitting it out. "Yucky fish! Bad fish!"
A metallic, fishy sweetness surged up Stella’s throat. "Guh—"
A mouthful of blood erupted from her lips. Her vision went black as she lost consciousness completely.
Bradley was so startled his cutlery clattered to the floor. His heart clenched as if pricked by something sharp. Instinctively, he moved to untie her, to take her to the hospital.
But Kathleen suddenly clutched her stomach, her face pale. "My stomach hurts so much... Was that fish not fresh?"
Bradley froze, his gaze darting between Kathleen and the unconscious Stella.
Kathleen curled up in pain. "Mr. Bradley, take me to the hospital..."
He didn’t hesitate further. Scooping Kathleen up, he rushed out the door. "Get the car! To the hospital!"
The roar of the engine faded into the distance, leaving the house in dead silence.
Stella lay on the floor, forgotten.
On the ice platter, the fish’s mouth continued to open and close, ever so slowly.
No one saw the single tear that slid from its clear, glassy eye.
