The Wedding Dress That Became My War Paint

A raw scream tore from Sofia's throat, but I just gripped the broken bottle tighter, twisting it wildly in her flesh.

"You bitch! How dare you!"

She clawed at the glass shard and kicked me away with her stiletto, roaring with fury.

I hit the floor hard, the sweet, metallic taste of blood filling my throat.

But Sofia, completely unhinged, screamed, "Kill her! Hurry up and kill her for me!"

At her command, the thugs turned and swarmed me.

The next moment, a wooden chair swung down toward my head.

"Don't you dare touch my sister!" a roar echoed.

To my horror, Enzo staggered to his feet and threw himself in front of me. The chair crashed over his head with a sickening crack.

"Enzo!"

His body slumped onto me, twitched twice, and then went still.

I scrambled frantically to lift him, but several thugs grabbed me and slammed me to the ground.

My limbs were pinned, my face scraped against the cold floor. I struggled and screamed, my voice choked with blood and tears.

But Sofia just smiled, grinding her sharp heel viciously into my fingertips.

"Giving up already?"

Pain seized me. My body convulsed, curling in on itself as a cold sweat drenched my skin.

My vision began to blur. The last thing I heard was Sofia’s crazed laughter.

"Don't be in such a hurry. I have a special gift for you two!"

A club came down, and the world went black.

When I opened my eyes, Enzo and I were locked in the cold storage of a meatpacking plant.

The skin touching the frozen metal floor stung with a sharp, piercing pain. I was shivering uncontrollably. Enzo's face was a deathly blue-purple, his eyelashes frosted with ice.

I rubbed my hands together, trying to generate some warmth, and pressed them to his face. Blood and tears mingled on my cheeks.

"Enzo, hold on! Don't fall asleep! Papa will be here soon, right? Please, just hold on…"

Feeling Enzo's breath grow weaker in my arms, my heart splintered into a thousand pieces.

I looked out at Sofia, my eyes so red they felt like they were bleeding.

"Sofia! If my brother dies, I will kill you with my own two hands!"

Sofia just laughed, strolling into the freezer wrapped in a cashmere coat.

"Still running your mouth?"

She roughly shoved a filthy rag into my mouth and kicked me hard in the chest.

"You've got some fire in you. Let's cool you down."

With that, Sofia kicked over a nearby bucket.

A caustic, industrial cleaning solution spread rapidly across the floor, mixing with the blood and gluing my battered body to the freezing metal.

The biting cold pierced my bones, sending waves of agony through me.

"So, how do you like the gift I prepared for you?"