Chapter 7
Her smile held no warmth at all, just pure coldness, biting mockery, and that rush of exhilaration you get when you've waited forever and finally see your moment arrive.
"You're right, Jacob," Zora said.
Her voice was so steady, it was almost like she was just commenting on the weather.
"I really am insane.
"The law says if someone with a mental illness hurts or even kills someone during an episode, they don't get held criminally responsible."
She stepped forward.
Jacob found himself backing away, almost without thinking.
She moved in closer.
He retreated another step.
Zora glanced down at the diagnosis certificate on the dresser, tapping her finger on the words.
"You want to send me back to Verdant Hill? Sure, go ahead," she said.
She looked up at Jacob, her smile slowly widening.
"But before I go, I might just snap Jane's neck first," she added.
She tilted her head, as if she were seriously considering it.
"After all, I'm insane. Killing her wouldn't even be a crime," she said.
Jane collapsed on the floor, clutching her neck and wailing. She scrambled desperately behind Jacob, clinging to his leg, her whole body shaking with sobs.
"Jacob! Jacob, please, get her out of here! She's going to kill me! She really will!" Jane cried out.
Jacob stood frozen, his face draining of all color, pale one moment, even paler the next.
He stared into Zora's eyes; there was no reason, no warmth, no fear, nothing at all. Just a cold, unnerving calm that made his skin crawl.
He opened his mouth to speak, but found his voice shaking.
He'd lived twenty-five years never knowing what fear felt like. But now, for the first time, he was truly afraid.
He was afraid of his own sister.
She didn't care about her own life anymore. What could possibly threaten her now?
"It's just a damn locket..." he started.
His voice sounded tough, but underneath, he couldn't hide how scared he really was.
"If you want one, I'll buy you as many as you want, gold, silver, whatever. Did you really have to do this? Was it really necessary..."
"Just a locket?" Zora interrupted, her voice cutting through his words.
Zora interrupted him.
She slowly lowered her head, staring at the keepsake locket she'd just snatched back. It still carried the lingering warmth from Jane's neck, the faint heat from where it had pressed against her skin moments ago.
She gripped it in her palm, pressing it to her chest, right over her heartbeat.
Then she looked up at Jacob and suddenly broke into laughter.
Her shoulders shook as she laughed, tears nearly spilling from her eyes. But her gaze was icy, frozen solid.
"My mother gave this to me," Zora said.
Her voice was barely above a whisper, as if she was afraid to break the silence. But every word pierced everyone present like a knife.
"The day I was taken when I was three, she put it on me herself. People tried to take it from me three times at the orphanage, and every single time, I fought tooth and nail to get it back. When I was adopted by that couple, I hid it in the gap under my bed for ten years. At Verdant Hill Mental Health Facility, when the staff searched me and I couldn't hide it in time, I swallowed it whole. I nearly died on the operating table."
She stared right at Jacob, making sure every word hit home.
"Jacob," she said.
It was the first time she'd ever called him by his name.
She went on, "This is the only thing my mom ever left me. To you, it's just some stupid locket, but to me, it's everything.
"She messes with what's mine, I take her life.
"Got a problem with that?"
Jacob opened his mouth, but he couldn't say a thing.
Footsteps echoed from the doorway. Winston walked in and took his place beside Zora, surveying the chaos, catching sight of the angry red mark on Jane's neck, and the keepsake locket clutched tightly in Zora's hand.
His expression was dark.
"That's enough," Winston said.
His voice was quiet, but carried a steely edge.
"Jane, you had no business rummaging through Zora's luggage. And you had absolutely no right to take what belonged to her," Winston said coldly.
Jane froze. She looked up, her face streaked with tears, her eyes wide with disbelief.
"Winston? You're defending her? Didn't you see? She was about to kill me. She really tried to kill me just now!" Jane cried out.
"If you hadn't messed with her, would she have attacked you?" Winston said.
He stared at her, his gaze icy, all the warmth gone.
"That locket means everything to her. You know that. And you still went and took it, on purpose. So really, you did this to yourself," Winston said coldly.
Jane was stunned speechless, choked up by Winston's words.
She just gaped, tears streaming down her face, unable to say a single word.
She looked at Winston, then at Jacob, only to see him standing there in silence, his face a mess of conflicting emotions.
He didn't say a word.
He didn't stand up for her.