Chapter 2

I was fifteen when I was adopted by the Wilson family.

My father had been sent to prison, leaving me to live alone. Then Regina noticed my loneliness and convinced her family to take me in.

At first, my foster parents were reluctant because I had inherited my father's solitary nature—I was quiet and withdrawn, and had some unusual habits that concerned them.

For instance, I liked collecting living creatures and preserving them as specimens when they reached their most perfect state.

When other children bullied me at school, I would ensure they received equivalent treatment in places where no one could observe.

I understood why my foster parents never developed affection for me and why they always looked at me with that hint of fear.

But Regina insisted she could transform me into a normal person like everyone else. After ten years together, she was convinced she'd succeeded.

She never realized my calm demeanor was just an act to comfort her.

Now that she was gone, I could move out and finally unleash my true nature.

Before I left, I told my foster parents, "Keep living your normal lives. I'll make sure those who hurt Regina pay for what they did."

I had no idea if they really got what I was saying, but I saw hope flicker in their eyes.

*****

After leaving home, I went back to the street where Regina died.

The police had told us it was a deserted street with no security cameras, which meant her final moments would remain a mystery.

Walking through the area, I had to admit they were right.

Then, a thought suddenly occurred to me. I put my hacking skills to use and broke into the city's traffic network.

I had wanted to major in biology back in college, but Regina thought working with animal specimens was too disturbing for a girl, so she convinced me to choose computer science instead.

The skills came naturally to me. By graduation, I'd already made a name for myself in the hacking community.

I never imagined that the very skills Regina urged me to learn would end up helping me track down her killer.

The traffic footage revealed a black sedan lingering in that alley that morning. It didn't drive off until some time after Regina's death.

Through vehicle registration records, I tracked down the owner, paid him off, and got the dashcam from his car.

My heart pounded as I plugged the dashcam's USB drive into my computer.

There it was—everything that had happened that day, recorded in perfect detail.

That night, Sarah had a heated fight with her boyfriend and was left sobbing by the side of the street.

Regina, ever the soft-hearted one, stopped to offer Sarah a pack of tissues along with some comforting words.

I noticed Regina was carrying a chocolate cake, the same kind she always used to bring me.

Just as Regina was about to walk away, Sarah's boyfriend muttered, "She's pretty. I wonder what she's like in bed."

His comment set Sarah off. She immediately stepped in front of Regina, accusing her of trying to steal her man.

Regina, hurt and angry, tried to explain herself. But Sarah cut her off by slapping her twice.

After the slaps, Sarah still wasn't satisfied. She called over three more guys, determined to make the warning even clearer.

Sarah's boyfriend just watched from the sidelines with a twisted smile on his face, making no attempt to stop what was happening.

"Still think she's pretty now?" Sarah sneered, her voice sharp with bitterness.

Her boyfriend just chuckled. "You're completely insane, Sarah."

"Maybe I am, but let's be clear—you're mine." With that, Sarah's hands snapped forward, closing around Regina's throat as she pleaded helplessly.

I finished watching the video without any expression. The whole thing felt like nothing but twisted irony.

I'd warned Regina again and again that being too nice would only make her an easy target. But she never listened.

Now she was proof that goodness didn't always get rewarded.

But it didn't matter. I'd make sure everyone who had hurt her got what they deserved.

*****

I spent my secret hacking earnings to have Sarah locked away in a mental hospital.

She was already unraveling when she saw me. "It's you... You psycho! When I get out, I'm gonna make you suffer just like your sister."

I pulled her hair hard, ignoring her pained cry. "Regina died in your hands because she was a normal person.

"But me? I'm just as crazy as you. If you think I'm going to end up like my sister, well, you'd better figure out how to break out first."

That wildness in my eyes finally shattered Sarah. All her defiance melted away, and she collapsed at my feet, begging for mercy.

"I was wrong. Please, let me out! Just name your price—I'll pay anything. I'm begging you... Just let me go," she pleaded.

I jerked her head up by her hair again. "You're begging me for mercy? I wonder if my sister begged you the same way. Not that it stopped you.

"Oh, and guess what? I've scheduled a procedure for you. Soon, they'll scramble your head and rewrite your memories, and you'll become the psychopath you always pretended to be."

"You're insane, completely insane!" Sarah shrieked, her voice cracking.

A chilling laugh escaped me. "You claimed to be mentally ill, that you couldn't help yourself. Now, I'll make that excuse a reality."

Not even bothering to listen to her screaming, I turned and left the room.

It was all an empty threat, of course. I'd never let her off that easily. She hadn't yet suffered half of what Regina endured.

But I'd made her endure it all—every needle, every restraint, and every jolt of electroshock therapy.

Watching Sarah suffer on the monitor day after day gave me a dark kind of thrill. I had to admit that I was just born wicked.

I didn't expect the Lewis family to track her down so soon. They showed up after she'd endured only a single week of that hell.