[Lilly’s POV]

The fluorescent lights of the hospital waiting room buzz above my head like the sound of my own satisfaction, harsh and persistent. Perfection rarely comes easily, but today unfolded exactly according to my meticulous planning. My masterpiece.

Seth's body trembles against mine, his tears soaking through my shirt as I hold him close. I stroke his hair with practiced tenderness, each caress calculated to provide just the right amount of comfort while allowing his grief to fully blossom. He's exquisite for breaking like this, all that carefully maintained composure shattered into beautiful, jagged pieces.

"Shh, I'm here," I whisper, pressing my lips against his temple. "I'm not going anywhere."

His fingers clutch at my sleeve, desperate and needy. Just how I wanted him.

"I don't understand," he chokes out for perhaps the dozenth time in the last hour. "Why would Evelyn do that? She was like family... It all happened so fast."

I make the appropriate sympathetic noises, careful to keep my expression properly somber, while inside I'm practically dancing. If only he knew the elegant architecture of manipulation that brought us to this moment, using Aunty Lara as my unwitting accomplice to kidnap Evelyn rather than kill her outright, convincing my twin that Evelyn was already dead, and most deliciously, making Evelyn believe it was Rose who tortured her when it was me visiting that dingey basement all along.

I tuck a strand of hair behind Seth's ear, savoring the vulnerability in his eyes. "No one could have predicted this, Seth. Sometimes people just... snap."

Seth's tears are delicious against my skin. I've waited so long for this moment, for him to need me completely, with no distractions, no competition.

"I just don't know what I'm going to do," he whispers against my shoulder. "Everything's falling apart."

I bite back a smile. Yes, everything is falling apart, exactly as I planned it.

Rose doesn't stand a chance. The wounds were too deep. I made sure Evelyn would succeed in that much at least, giving her just enough strength and opportunity for my purposes. My sister is probably already gone, her life bleeding out on the ambulance floor before they even reached the hospital. As for Evelyn, that bitch was on death's door for a month.

Seth lifts his head suddenly, his red-rimmed eyes meeting mine. His face is beautifully broken, tear-streaked, and vulnerable in a way that makes heat pool in my cunt.

"I'm so sorry," he says, voice cracking. "Here I am falling apart, and I haven't even asked how you're doing. She was your sister. You must be in so much pain, too."

His arms wrap around me, reversing our positions as he tries to comfort me. It takes everything I have not to laugh, not to push him back against these uncomfortable waiting room chairs and take him right here. He's so precious, so thoughtful, even in his devastation, checking on my feelings when his world is collapsing.

"I'm managing," I tell him, letting my voice waver just enough. "Having you here helps."

He has no idea that I've orchestrated every catastrophe in his life. The careful removal of Evelyn, the strategic positioning of my parents to adopt his pitiful little brother, all of it designed to cut every tie, eliminate every responsibility, every distraction that might keep him from being completely mine.

I press my forehead against his. "We'll get through this together."

"I don't know what I'd do without you," he whispers.

My heart sings. Those words are sweeter than any symphony.

I did like Rose, in my own way. We shared a womb, shared everything growing up. But the moment I felt Seth's love, I knew I couldn't share him. Not with her, not with anyone. When he looked at me with those hazel eyes full of desire, something primal awakened. I wanted it all. His attention, his devotion, his very soul.

While this plan has been in motion for a long while, I gave him one chance last night to make the decision on his own. A single out. Rose could have lived. But here we are.

The double doors to the waiting room swing open, both my mothers walking in with Christopher between them.

Victoria's eyes widen as she takes in the scene before her, Seth broken and sobbing.

"What happened?" she asks, her doctor's instincts immediately assessing the situation.

Seth looks up, and when his eyes land on Chris, something shatters inside him all over again. He tries desperately to compose himself, wiping furiously at his tears with the back of his hand, but the sight of his little brother only makes him break down harder. His shoulders shake with renewed sobs that he can't control.

I tighten my arms around him, pressing my lips to his ear. "It's okay," I whisper, my voice a soothing balm. "Let it out. You don't have to be strong right now."

Chris stands frozen between my mothers, his small face crumpling in confusion and fear. Margaret's protective arm wraps around his shoulders, keeping him close.

"It's bad, Mom," I say, my voice carefully calibrated to convey the appropriate amount of distress while maintaining control. "Evelyn showed up at the house while Rose and I were there. She... she attacked Rose with a knife."

Victoria moves forward immediately, her doctor's training overriding everything else. "Where is Rose now? What's her condition?"

"They took her into surgery," I explain, my fingers still stroking Seth's hair. "We haven't heard anything yet."

Margaret guides Chris to a chair across from us, whispering something in his ear before approaching. Her face is pale with shock, her hands trembling slightly as she reaches for me.

"And you? Are you hurt?" she asks, her eyes scanning me for injuries.

"I'm fine," I assure her, allowing a slight tremor in my voice. "I managed to stop Evelyn before she could hurt anyone else."

Victoria's sharp intake of breath tells me she understands exactly what I'm implying. Her eyes meet mine, a thousand unspoken questions swimming in their depths.

"The police already took my statement," I continue, looking down at Seth's huddled form against me. "They said it was clearly self-defense."

Chris's small voice cuts through the heavy atmosphere. "Is Rose going to die?"

The question hangs in the air like a guillotine blade. I watch both my mothers look at Chris, their faces contorting with emotions they can't possibly hide from a child's searching eyes. Victoria's gaze flickers with nervous energy, her doctor's mask slipping for just a moment.

"I don't know, sweetheart," Victoria finally says, her voice lacking its usual confidence.

She turns abruptly and walks to the nurse's station, her back rigid as she speaks in hushed tones with the staff. I recognize her retreat for what it is. Victoria Harris doesn't know how to handle uncertainty. She probably wants to do the surgery herself.

Margaret sinks into the chair beside us, her body trembling visibly. I've never seen Mom this shaken before, not even during the worst of Rose's teenage outbursts. She reaches for my hand, and I let her take it, watching as her fingers quiver against mine.

"It's going to be okay," I tell her, though I have no intention of it being okay for Rose. "The doctors are doing everything they can."

Seth lifts his head from my shoulder, his eyes red-rimmed and swollen. "Mrs. Harris," he chokes out, "I'm so sorry. This is all my fault."

I fight to keep my expression sympathetic rather than triumphant. Oh, Seth, so quick to shoulder blame that doesn't belong to him.

"No," Mom says firmly, though her voice wavers. "This isn't anyone's fault except Evelyn's."

Chris slides off his chair and approaches us cautiously, his small face a mask of confusion and fear. "I don't understand," he whispers. "Why would Evelyn hurt Rose? She was always so nice."

Seth crouches down to Chris's level, his hands shaking as he tries to find words a child might understand. I watch him struggle, savoring the beautiful brokenness of his expression.

"I don't know either, buddy," Seth manages, his voice cracking. He shakes his head slowly, pain etching deeper lines around his eyes. "She's been missing for so long, and now this... I just can't make sense of any of it."

"I'm sure the police will get to the bottom of it," I interject smoothly, placing a comforting hand on Chris's shoulder. The contact allows me to subtly pull him away from Seth. "Sometimes adults have problems we don't understand. What matters now is that we're all together."

Chris looks up at me, his small face scrunched in confusion. "But Evelyn loved us. She made pancakes shaped like dinosaurs."

Something dangerous flickers in my chest at his words. Even now, that woman's influence lingers. I force a gentle smile, squeezing his shoulder.

"Some people aren't who we think they are," I tell him, keeping my voice gentle despite the irritation building inside me. Before I can say more, Seth makes his move.

He pulls Chris into a crushing embrace, burying his face in the child's shoulder. His body trembles with suppressed sobs as he holds his brother tight against him.

"I don't know," Seth whispers, his voice muffled and broken. "I just don't know anymore, buddy."