Mystery Bride's Revenge (Selina) novel Chapter 1

Whack! A slap thundered in the room, and Selina Harvey crashed to the ground. Her dad, Quinton Harvey, towered over her, fuming. "Selina, you snake! How could you drug Ashley and leave her in some guy's bed? She'd be toast if we hadn't found her in time!"

Selina, weak and frail, protested, "No... Dad, it wasn't me. I swear!"

"Shut up!" Quinton kicked her hard in the belly, and she threw up, making the whole room stink.

He loomed over her, his eyes filled with rage. "If anything happens to Ashley, you're done!"

But then Quinton's wife, Sara Harvey, called out panicked, "Honey, forget her. We need to get to the hospital. Ashley needs us!"

"Coming!" responded Quinton.

They left, slamming the door shut. Selina lay curled up on the cold floor, shaking and foaming at the mouth, whispering, "I didn't do it. I didn't hurt Ashley..."

Shivering, pain stabbing through her, she passed out.

Time dragged on. In her sleep, Selina was suddenly jerked awake by a yank on her hair. She opened her eyes to see Quinton glaring at her. She struggled, pain in her voice. "Dad! Stop it! It hurts..."

"Hurts? You think this is pain? Your sister's fighting for her life in intensive care because of you! You're a terrible daughter. Why did I even bother bringing you back?" Quinton yelled. He wouldn't listen to Selina; instead, he dragged her like she was a rag doll, past the servants' cold whispers, from the basement up to the roof.

Along the way, Selina got many bruises and started to bleed, but Quinton didn't care. With a loud bang, he hit her head against the glass door to the roof. The impact made Selina's head spin. Her forehead was cut open, and blood poured out, looking very scary.

He stepped on her hand, crushing it, and demanded, "I'm asking you one last time, Selina. Are you going to confess now?"

"I... I didn't... Dad, I really didn't..." she sobbed.

"Denying it? Then kneel here until you own up!" Quinton left her there, locking the door behind him.

In the December cold, Selina wore an old pair of pajamas that Ashley used to wear, now ripped from when Quinton grabbed her and showing new, raw scrapes. She shook hard and stuttered, "I didn't... I didn't..." Each word hurt her deeply.

'Why doesn't my family trust me? I wanted their love so desperately, and they had worked hard to bring me back. Why is everything going so wrong?' she wondered, and her eyes slowly lost their sparkle.

After who knew how long, the door burst open. At the sight of her brother, hope flickered in Selina's eyes. "Hey, I..."

She was back, just a month into her life with the Harvey family. It was June 21, 2030. Selina, along with Sara and Ashley, were in a ritzy shop to buy the new Chanel collection.

The memory of her gruesome end was fresh. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and forced herself to accept that she'd been given another chance at life. When she opened her eyes again, they were full of determination.

This was her do-over, and she was going to make it count.

Then Ashley Harvey swept the curtain aside. "Selina, you've been in here forever! Here, Mom sent the latest Chanel blouse for you to try," she smiled.

Faced with Ashley's faux sweetness, Selina recalled what was going to happen later. She just said coolly, "Got it."

She took the blouse and quickly pulled the curtain shut, leaving Ashley's smile frozen in place.

Ashley couldn't help but think, 'What's up with Selina? She's changed somehow. When she first came back, she was all over me, trying to win me over like a puppy that couldn't find its way. And now, she's talking back to me? Huh!'

But she just smirked to herself, thinking of Selina's upcoming downfall.