ed me, no reason given. The few odd jobs I found dried up. Whispers followed me, calling me a fraud, a gold-digger. It was cl

unted me, calling me "witch" and "liar." One of them grabbed my arm, hard. Something snapped. I wasn' t the naive girl from the mountains anymore. I twiste

p. Ethan got out, Chloe clinging to his

an I' d hit, who was now theatrically moaning. "T

the lout. He looked at me. "What the hell do you thin

aid, my voice tight. "

You're making a scene. You're em

my groun

as if to comfort me, but her perfectly manicured fingernails dug sharply into my arm, drawing blood. Then she gasped, stumbling back i

dragged me towards a nearby fountain, ignoring my struggles. "You want to be a mountain witch? You w

me, when you upset Chloe! Everyone, see this? This is a dangerous,

public spectacle

streaming down my face. "Let me g

e? After how you' ve tried to ruin my life, Chloe' s life? I' m doing you a favor. I' m teaching you a lesson

aring pain in my abdomen. He was aiming to hurt me, to break me, to ensure I could never... He wanted to destroy the very "gift" he once cr