Chapter 1
I was just a C-list actress, barely scraping by in the industry. Because I looked about 70% like the superstar Louisa Olson, her team picked me to be her stand-in for three whole years.
All the risky scenes, awkward parties, and pain were mine to handle.
Meanwhile, Louisa just had to stand in front of the camera, bask in the spotlight, and soak up the love from her fans.
Then, at the Golden Globe Awards, Louisa won Best Actress for the role I played behind the scenes.
At the celebration party, she linked arms with the director, smiling brightly. "Thanks to my own efforts, I truly deserve this award."
However, as the so-called 'hero behind the scenes,' all I got was a lonely glass of champagne in the corner.
Just then, Louisa's agent walked up to me and handed over a plane ticket along with a contract for plastic surgery.
"Matilda, Louisa's moving on to Hollywood. You can't keep your face anymore," the agent said, her voice icy.
She warned, "You've got two choices: go overseas, change your face, and start fresh, or we'll make sure you vanish from this business for good."
I looked at them and let out a cold laugh.
I walked straight to the center of the stage and grabbed the mic right out of the host's hand.
With the livestream rolling, I snatched the makeup remover from the table and wiped my face hard.
"Hey everyone, I'm Matilda Reily, the real face behind Louisa," I said, my voice steady.
I smiled. "Watch me switch faces in just one second."
*****
The whole place went dead silent.
The live chat exploded and froze, totally crashing the stream.
Under the spotlight, Louisa's perfect face contorted with disbelief and panic at my stunt.
Her top agent, Jimmy Wolf, went livid and was wildly gesturing at the security guards below.
Two guards rushed up, trying to drag me off the stage.
"Don't touch me!" I yelled, voice sharp and desperate.
I smashed the glass bottle hard against the floor.
The crisp shatter rang out like thunder, freezing everyone in place.
I snatched up a jagged shard of glass and pressed it against my throat.
"Today, nobody gets in my way," I spat, eyes blazing.
Blood trickled down my neck.
It didn't even hurt.
Nothing compared to what I'd been through these past three years, plunging off cliffs, soaking in icy water for over ten hours, getting slapped across the face again and again.
Jimmy's furious voice crackled through the live director's earpiece. "Cut it! Cut the stream, now!"
"Don't you dare cut it!" I yelled straight at the camera. "Jimmy, if you cut the stream, I'll die right here! Golden Globe Award winner pushes her stand-in to the edge. How's that for tomorrow's front page? Juicy enough for you?"
The camera stayed locked on me, not moving an inch.
I knew I'd won this bet.
The media would rather have a bloody truth than just some crazy woman's drama.
I tossed the glass aside, grabbed the makeup remover, soaked a cotton pad, and scrubbed my face hard.
Layer after layer of foundation, contour, and eyeliner melted away.
The face, which was a near match for Louisa's, slowly emerged, showing its real features.
My brow bone was higher, my eyes deeper set, my nose straighter, and my lips more sharply defined.
It was a fierce, vibrant kind of beauty, striking and full of life.
It was a world apart from Louisa's deliberately soft and innocent kind of beauty.
"Can everyone see now?" I asked, my voice steady and clear.
I leaned in close to the camera.
"Everyone knows Louisa's got that beauty mark at the end of her right eye," I said, my tone calm but firm.
I pointed to the end of my left eye.
"Funny thing is, I've got one exactly like it at the end of my left eye," I said, voice steady.
I gave the camera a radiant, ruthless smile.
"That's right. We're twins," I declared.
I added calmly, "I'm the real older sister, Matilda, the one born with the talent for acting."
"And her," I said, reaching out and pointing straight at Louisa, who was ghostly pale down in the audience, "she's the younger sister, Melissa, who's only good at being jealous and stealing."
"Matilda, what are you even talking about?" Louisa finally blurted out, her voice shaky.
Louisa, no, Melissa finally managed to speak, her words trembling with panic.
She gathered up her skirt and stumbled onto the stage, desperately trying to snatch the mic from my hand.
Her eyes were brimming with tears, making her look all fragile and lost.
"Look, I get it. You're upset I got the award, but we're sisters. Why are you doing this to me?" she cried, her voice breaking.
Cameras in the audience started flashing like mad.
Fans started whispering, gossip spreading like wildfire.
On said, "No way! Louisa actually has a twin sister?"
Another girl chimed in, "The older sister looks kinda crazy."
The third fan added, "Bet she's just jealous. Sibling drama, classic."
What a perfect little angel she pretended to be.
Too bad that I was already sick of this routine.
I sidestepped her and held up a photo for the camera.
The photo was old and faded, showing two little girls with pigtails in matching dresses, mirror images of each other, except for the beauty mark at the corner of their eyes.
"This is a photo of us when we were five," I said, my voice steady.
"Melissa, why don't you tell everyone why, in this photo, you're wearing brand-new leather shoes, while mine are already scuffed and worn at the toes?" I asked, my voice steady.
Melissa's face went ghostly pale for a split second.
"Because ever since we were kids, anything I liked, you always took it for yourself," I said, my voice cold.
"You told Mom and Dad I was bullying you, that I ruined your new shoes, and made them force me to trade with you," I continued, my tone sharp.
"They didn't even bother to ask what really happened, just shut me in the dark room and beat me until I was black and blue," I said, my voice trembling with anger.
"Just because you always knew how to turn on the waterworks," I spat, my voice trembling with anger.