|Carmella|
“What?” my mother snapped, her voice sharper and colder than I had ever heard before. “What do you mean you won’t be pursuing it, Camilla?”
Her eyes, hard as steel, widened just enough to betray her shock. My father, who had been standing silently by the window, turned his head toward me, his expression a mixture of disbelief and caution. I straightened my back, refusing to waver under their scrutiny. I didn’t fully understand the scope of this so-called mission, but one thing was certain—I wasn’t going through with it. I wasn’t going to let my sister get caught in the web of manipulation my parents had woven.
“I’ve changed my mind,” I said, my voice steady but firm. “Things are different now.”
My mother’s face twisted with fury, and she stepped closer, her gaze burning into
