[Music: Familiar By Agnes Obel]

I backed away, my eyes wide in disbelief.

"Don’t move," Lisa warned.

I stilled instantly.

"I don’t wanna pull the trigger so soon," she said, amused. "I have pictured this moment countless times. It’d be a shame to let it end so soon because you got stupid."

"L-Lisa..." I began slowly lifting my hand. "You don’t wanna do this."

She laughed. "Trust me, I have always wanted to do this for a very long time. Take off the bag, and set it on the ground."

I did as she said, slipping the bag off my shoulder, but I kept a firm grip on the strap.

"Lisa." I pulled her attention back to my face. "I get that you hate me, and—"

"Oh, I do. Every single day. Watching you walk around in your pretty dresses as if the world was built just for you." Her lips curled in disdain. "You have no idea how much I fucking hate you."

I inhaled sharply. "So what now, kill me and hide the body?"

I knew I shouldn’t provoke her, but I needed her to get close.

"One of the many options," she said.

"I hate you too, but you don’t see me holding a gun to your fucking face!" I took a step forward.

"Don’t fucking move!"

I froze, keeping still as best I could. I thought I could get close enough to take the gun off her hands with my bag, but she wasn’t taking any chances.

I needed to do something. Anything. Because simply standing at gunpoint was like asking fate to take its course, but I’m not letting that happen. I won’t be killed by this bitch.

"I’m not a spoiled brat like you are. I don’t whine or cry like a princess in her pretty room. I prefer action. I’m willing to take one right now because when you’ve lived long enough in our world, you learn that if you want something, you take it."

Take. It was always about taking and taking!

"And how many lives have been ruined because of that!"

"Don’t patronize me!" She spat. "You’re no better. You are a fucking property, and you should have acted like one. I could have had my chance with him if you had just stayed like a wallflower!"

I caught a glimpse of hurt plastered across her face.

"He doesn’t even see me as a person. Just a fucking pawn in his chessboard."

"Join the ranks," I replied coldly.

Lisa scoffed, staring at me in disbelief. "You foolish, foolish girl. You don’t get it, do you? You’re probably the only thing that matters to him."

"I-I think you’re mistaken." There was a quiver in my voice. Her words affected me in a way I didn’t like.

"Am I? The way he treats you, watches you every second of the time for the last two years. It’s like breathing air for him. He has never done any of those for anyone."

My pulse raced. I thought back to when Mrs. Valmont mentioned that Zade attended all my stage performances.

Lisa’s words solidified that he had been watching me the whole time, way before my father got buried in debt.

"Because I’m his property. I see no other reason for his actions."

"Oh, grow some fucking braincell!" She hissed before taking a deep breath as if to calm herself. "Let me tell you a secret. The least I can do before you meet your maker."

Secret?

"Your father’s gambling habit. You are probably wondering how it got so enormous in a span of months to the point he almost lost his Quarter. I was under orders to make sure he had so many debts overflowing and that he had nowhere else to turn to but Zade."

Wha-What?

Lisa laughed. "Your father was like a dog after a bone and didn’t even realize he was playing right into Zade’s hands."

A high-pitched ringing suddenly plugged my ears, and everything swayed.

Zade was behind my father’s debt?

Then the contract. What was the contract all about then?

And then it hit me. Just how convenient it was when Zade mentioned he needed a wife, and my father just happened to come to him at the right time.

"I’m sure you are already thinking through everything, and it suddenly makes sense. Yes, Ana. Way before the debts. When your father never thought he would end up on Zade’s doorsteps. You have always been an investment just waiting to be claimed."

I let out a shaky breath, the pitch getting louder until I could barely hear her. The rest of her words came off in echoes.

"It has always been you."

A sharp headache drilled into my skull. The strap of my bag slipped from my grip as the pain got worse. I held my head, my vision blurring.

Why does Lisa’s voice suddenly sound different?

"Why does it have to be you?"

Cold sweat broke through my body, an antsy sensation creeping through my skin. When I set my gaze back at Lisa, I don’t see her, but Annabeth.

Tears streamed down her cheeks, her face twisted in raw pain and fury.

"A-Annabeth?" I muttered.

No, there’s no way that’s her. It’s Lisa. My mind was playing tricks—!

I groaned, clutching my head. It felt like it was splitting in two. My footing wavered, and my breathing grew ragged by the second.

Images slammed into my head... of Annabeth pointing a gun at me.

The same scene played over and over again. Her lips are moving, but I couldn’t hear a thing.

I winced as a heavy pressure built behind my eyes.

Something warm slid down my upper lip. My hand trembled as I wiped the blood away.

"What’s wrong, Ana?"

I shuddered as reality came rushing back in. Annabeth was no longer standing before me.

"So shocked you can’t even speak?" Lisa continued, oblivious to my condition. "I suppose that’s one way to go. At least you’ll have a nice little story to carry on. Adios."

My heart stopped when Lisa’s finger curled around the trigger.

The shot echoed through the air.