Page 12 of The Heart of a Villain

My twin is always so soundless whenever he moves that even I don’t hear him or expect to see him until he absolutely wants me to.

He nudges me a little bit, so I scoot to the side as we both place our elbows on the windowsill and clasp our hands together, drilling our stares into the sky.

We both love storms. Mom said we were born during one, and maybe that’s why. We always wake up to watch and drink in the nature around us. A few years back, we came up with a tradition known only to the two of us.

Whenever the clouds cover the sky… we wait until only one star is left and then make a wish that needs to come true.

In all the fairy tales, they say you have to wish upon a star, and that wish may come true.

So far, they have.

Or at least Rafael claims his do.

Mine have been falling on deaf ears, but I do my best to repeat them every single time, because maybe my wish is so complicated it needs several tries.

“Now!” Rafael says, and we close our eyes, both of us freezing while I bite my lip and repeat my wish once again in my mind.

For my father to stop hurting my mom and keeping us prisoners on this island.

My heart pangs painfully just remembering the new bruises on her body that pop up every other day while sadness is permanently etched on her features. She no longer has the desire to smile or do anything else but stare into the distance. Sometimes, she takes a break to drink scotch and then falls asleep in her chair before Dad takes her upstairs and does God knows what.

She sobs afterward, loudly, the sound echoing through the space at night and not letting me sleep while anger consumes me more and more.

I’m powerless to help her, and it kills me that everyone ignores it, even Rafael. Or rather, he sees all of it and tells me to be quiet and just work on our school. According to him, if Dad keeps his promise and sends us to boarding school, we will be able to help Mom.

Patience. He repeats that word a lot.

But how can I be patient when she suffers? When he makes our life unbearable by always screaming at us or ordering us to go to our room as if he can’t even stand the sight of us?

Why did my father change so much? How could a loving man turn into a monster?

However, that’s not what sends fury through my veins.

It’s everyone’s indifference.

The only person who—thank God—doesn’t reap the effects of his character is Lavender. He dotes on our little sister, always rocking her in his arms, and if she so much as cries, he fires whoever tended to her that day.

She always giggles, spending her time playing in the garden or discovering the world. Precious little thing, a true princess who should rule this kingdom one day.

And since our father vocalized several times how he plans to leave everything to her one day, she probably will.

We love our baby sister. She is the cutest thing, and we try to spend time with her, yet he still manages to thwart us and allows it only when Mom insists.

For all the pain he causes her, somehow, her wishes are still his priority.

Sometimes, I feel like Dad doesn’t consider us his sons and wants to eliminate us altogether from their lives. Maybe that’s why he never eats dinner with us and urges Mom to pay us no attention, and whenever she refuses in our company, showing defiance in front of other people… there is this look on his face that sends chills down my spine.

Usually followed by more screams that night.

But along the way, she stopped showing us affection too, a kiss and hug here and there, but mostly she stays silent.

At this point, I see more of William and George, who spend every single minute with us, keeping us busy with all our tutors and studies. I think they are intentionally leaving us no room to wander around the castle and cause more wrath from our father.

All these memories make me more determined, and I wish once again for divine intervention to come and save us all from the monster who feasts on our souls and bit by bit destroys this family.

Another round of thunder echoes through the space, rocking the dark sky while the wind whooshes over us, prickling our skin, and Rafael sighs. “The stars are gone!” He throws his arm over me and rests his head against mine. “Did you make a wish?”

“Yeah,” I whisper, wondering if this time around it will come true.

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