Chapter 42
Camila POV
Greg raised an eyebrow, his hands casually sliding into his pockets. “Care to elaborate, kid?”
That condescending tone made me want to scream.
“I don’t trust you,” I hissed, taking a step forward. My mom grabbed my arm, trying to pull me back, but I dug my heels in. “I don’t trust any of you!”
“Camila, enough!” My mom’s voice cracked like a whip, and I flinched, my grip on my panic loosening just enough for doubt to creep in.
“Sweetheart,” she continued, her tone softening, “you’re not making any sense. What’s going on? Did something
happen?”
I opened my mouth, but the words wouldn’t come out. How could I explain what I had just seen upstairs? How could I make her understand that Ethan wasn’t Ethan anymore, that something inside him had shifted into something monstrous?
“Maybe she’s had a long day,” Greg suggested, his voice dripping with mock concern. “You know how kids are.
Overactive imaginations.”
I whipped around to face him, my fists clenching at my sides. “Shut up!”
His let’s out a sigh, and that was all it took to send me spiraling again.
“You think this is funny?” I shouted, stepping closer to him despite the warning look my mom shot me. “You think I’m
making this up? I saw it, okay? I saw what he- what they are!”
Greg’s expression didn’t falter, but there was a flicker of something in his eyes- something sharp and calculating. “Who are you talking about, Camila?”
My jaw tightened. “You know exactly who I’m talking about.”
“Enough!” My mom stepped between us, her eyes blazing. “Camila, you’re being ridiculous. Greg has done nothing wrong. He’s been nothing but supportive-”
“Supportive?” I cut her off, my voice rising. “You don’t even know him! He’s hiding something- I can feel it!”
“Camila,” She called again, her concerned gaze felt like a slap in itself, but I couldn’t hold it in. I grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to look at me, to understand.
“Mum,” I said, my voice shaking. “You need to believe me. They are not human. Ethan… he transformed into a beast. He’s upstairs right now! You have to call the cops.”
The words came out in a rush, my breath hitching as I watched her expression shift- from shock to disbelief and finally to something much worse.
Her hand came up so fast I barely had time to react. She slapped my hands off her shoulders, the force making me stumble back a step.
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Chapter 42
“Camila!” she snapped, her voice sharp enough to slice through my desperation.
I stared at her in stunned silence, my tingling fingers hovering uselessly at my sides. The sound of her slap echoed in my ears, but it was nothing compared to the sting of her expression. Anger. Hurt. Betrayal. And then, to my utter shock, tears welled up in her eyes, spilling down her cheeks in hot, silent trails.
“Mum,” I whispered, my voice cracking, but she didn’t let me speak.
“I get it,” she said, her voice trembling with raw emotion. “I get that you don’t like me getting married!” She took a step closer, her finger pointed accusingly at me. “I know how much you dislike Greg, and Ethan too, and I know it’s been hard for you to adjust. But this?” She threw her hands up in exasperation. “This is too much, Camila! I won’t stand here and let you accuse them of something so- so stupid!”
Her words hit like a freight train, each one slamming into my chest and knocking the air out of me.
Greg, who had been hovering near the door, took a cautious step forward. “Hey, let’s just take a breath, okay?” he said, his voice soft, too soft, like he was the peacemaker in all this. He placed a hand on my mother’s arm, attempting to calm
her.
But I noticed something.
He wouldn’t look at me.
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