Chapter 2

My mother came to after someone pressed her acupressure point. The moment she saw me, her whole body started trembling.

My brother Cameron clung to the wall to keep from falling.

The adopted daughter, Violet, glided over gracefully, trying to take my hand.

I sidestepped to avoid her.

She awkwardly withdrew her hand, her face still maintaining that perfect, delicate expression. "I've already prepared your room, Raven. Come see if you like it."

I followed her and glanced at the room.

Pink girly décor, right next to Violet's room. The air was thick with a sickeningly sweet perfume smell.

I frowned. "I won't be staying here. I don't like this style."

Cameron was about to scold me for being ungrateful when he heard my thoughts.

[What is this mess? When blood splatters on the walls, pink shows every stain. It'll be impossible to clean.]

[I need to find somewhere more secluded. The storage room looks perfect---no windows, far from everyone else's rooms. It'll be easier to dissect bodies without being discovered.]

Cameron 's face went from flushed red to deathly pale in an instant.

My father Maxwell's voice carried a tremor. "Then... you can stay in the storage room for now. I'll have the servants help you clean it..."

I cut him off. "No need. I'll clean it myself. Just have someone install a shower for me."

[Just make sure the drainage system is good. It'll make it easier to dispose of body parts. Don't want the drains getting clogged.]

My father felt his vision go dark. His body swayed, but he forced himself to nod in agreement.

Violet didn't notice the strange reactions from everyone else. A flash of triumph crossed her eyes. She thought I'd angered Maxwell, which was why I was being deliberately assigned to that garbage-filled storage room.

I ignored them all. I walked straight toward the storage room tucked away in a corner of the first floor and pushed open the door.

A musty smell of years-old mildew hit me in the face.

I knocked on the wall with satisfaction. [The soundproofing seems decent too. The noise from processing bodies at night shouldn't disturb their sleep.]

Outside the door, my mother had just been helped up by Cameron and was barely recovering her senses. When she heard that thought, her eyes rolled back again, and she collapsed straight to the floor.