The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Vivienne took a deep breath, realizing there was no way she could neutralize the poison coursing through her veins. She turned to look at Zelda, relieved to see her aunt unharmed and conscious.

Zelda's eyes, large and watery, were fixed on Vivienne, filled with concern.

“Vivienne, are you okay? Does your head hurt? Feeling dizzy?” Zelda asked quickly, her voice tinged with guilt.

Vivienne shook her head, only to feel the room spin even more. “I'm fine, Auntie. Are you hurt?” “I'm not,” Zelda replied, her voice heavy with worry, then her gaze shifted to Diana. “Diana, you double-crossing snake, how could you collaborate with GTO? You know full well that's Dad's Achilles heel!” “So what?" Diana stepped forward, her face twisted with resentment as she slapped Zelda hard across the cheek.

“Who do you think you are to tell me what to do, Zelda?" Diana then grabbed Zelda by the throat. “Do you have any idea how much I've loathed you since you married into the Perez family? The only ones who ever dared to cross me were you and that smug Maddox. I've wanted you out of the Perez family for ages!” Zelda could not speak, but her defiant gaze never wavered.

That defiance only fueled Diana's spite. “Oh, so you like playing the doting auntie to Vivienne, huh? Well, watch closely as | show you just how she’s going to die!” Vivienne turned to Diana. “Die? You really think you've got the chops for that?” Diana's hatred for Vivienne boiled over. She clenched her fist and punched Vivienne in the stomach with the force that could take down a mastiff.

Vivienne coughed up blood, but her eyes remained icy as she stared at Diana.

“You're destined to live in my mother’s shadow, Diana. You were the one who got her taken away, and you'll spend your life atoning for it!” Diana's next punch landed even harder, nearly knocking Vivienne out cold.

It had been a long time since Vivienne had felt such physical pain, and she was unaccustomed to it.

Diana dug her nails into Vivienne's chin, seething. “Listen up, Vivienne. | got rid of Sasha Perez without a shred of guilt. In fact, | relished it!” On the sidelines, Zelda's mind raced as she absorbed Diana's words. “What are you saying? Did Sasha's disappearance have something to do with you?” Diana laughed chillingly, her contempt clear as she faced Zelda. “Are you always this slow on the uptake? | thought you'd have figured it out the moment | knocked Vivienne out.” “Diana, what the hell happened?” Zelda shouted, her voice thick with anger.

Zelda had grown up alongside Yuri, and she had a soft spot for Sasha, the little sister she adored.

Diana lounged back, swirling a glass of red wine as if she were on a picnic. “I bet you're dying to know how your mother was taken from the Perez family, aren't you, Vivienne? Listen well.

It was me. While F-Poison faced off with Sasha, | knocked her out, just like | did with you. | watched F-Poison take her away.

Before they left, | hit her wound viciously, blood staining my favorite dress. A pity no one wondered why my dress was bloodied.” Vivienne stared at Diana, her body growing weaker.

Zelda, on the other hand, found the strength to lash out at Diana with every curse she knew.

“Diana, do you have any idea how good Sasha was to you? She adored you, and this is how you repay her? Have you no soul? You were so young, yet so malicious!” Diana absorbed the insults with indifference. “So what if she was good to me? No matter how good, | was always overshadowed, never able to shine! Zelda, you were pampered as the Lynette family’s darling, Yuri's childhood sweetheart. What could you possibly understand? You and your caged canary life, how could you know my pain?” Zelda was in disbelief. Diana had been treated like a princess by Jasper, yet she spoke as if she had been dealt the harshest hand.

Diana smirked. “First, it was Sasha. Then Willa. Now you and Vivienne. Next will be your precious daughters. I'll drive each one out of the Perez family. Remember that.” At the mention of her daughters, Zelda could not hold back. “Diana, Natalia and Yasmine are just kids; what are you planning? You heartless creature, why don’t you just drop dead! Even without Sasha, you'll never take her place in Dad's heart. You're nothing but a counterfeit!” Diana responded by smashing her wine glass against Zelda's head, wishing she could mar her face forever.

F-Poison finally spoke. “Ms. Perez, why such fury? She’s still of use to me. Not yet time for her to die.” Zelda was the heiress to the Lynette dynasty — if F-Poison could infiltrate her ranks through her and forge connections with the Perez family, it would be like fitting the last piece into a jigsaw puzzle.

By then, Vivienne would have taken her last breath, and no one would notice she had replaced Zelda.

The thought alone was exquisitely tantalizing.Books Chapters Are Daily Updated Join & Stay Updated for All Books Updates...

F-Poison rose to her feet, sliding a gun into Diana's eager grasp. “Isn't it your burning desire to personally put an end to Vivienne's life? The pleasure’s all yours.” Diana clasped the firearm, lifting it to aim at Vivienne. “Any last words, Vivienne, before we wrap this up?” Vivienne's gaze dropped solemnly, sweeping past Diana to fix on F-Poison. “Tell me, are you truly the new F-Poison, or are you merely masquerading under his infamous moniker?” F-Poison was momentarily taken aback, not expecting Vivienne's final flicker of curiosity to center on her.

She let out a dry chuckle. “How to put it? We are one and the same!” A frown creased Vivienne's brow. One and the same? Diana's patience was wearing thin, and she offered Vivienne a derisive smile. “Your mother’s already six feet under, Vivienne.

Why don’t you join her for a cozy reunion? As for honoring her memory, I'll take care of that.” At her words, Vivienne let out a scoff, the corners of her mouth curling into a faint, mocking sneer.

Diana was momentarily caught off guard, her eyes soon flaring with intensified loathing.

Just as her finger tensed around the trigger, ready to deliver the final blow, Vivienne's voice thundered with a desperate plea — “Mom! Save me!”