Chapter 1

Violet Rose thought that life, as she knew it, was over as she stood there completely numb in the freezing cold mist. The young blonde beauty watched as tears slowly ran down her rosy red cheeks while her mother’s pearl-white coffin was slowly lowered into the ground.

Darren, her stepfather, stood next to her trying to act as if he were sad, but all he could think about was the money he would soon collect from Eva’s life insurance policy. He already had his new life planned out, and it didn’t include his irritating little burden of a stepdaughter. A creepy smirk appeared on his face as they began to cover her coffin with dirt. No one else was around. Everyone else in Violet’s life was gone. Now, she had absolutely nobody.

“Come on, kid. I’ll buy you some ice cream,” Darren said as they walked to the car.

He drove while Violet sat next to him in the passenger seat, feeling completely numb inside. She knew this day was coming; she had seen her mother struggle with cancer over the last few years. She knew one day her mother would die, leaving fourteen-year-old Violet all alone in the world. Sure, she had her stepfather, but he wasn’t as nice as he liked others to believe.

They pulled into the parking lot of the ice cream shop, and Darren’s cell phone rang. “Yes? Yes. She is. After nine? Sounds good,” he said, hanging up.

Violet had no idea what the call was about, and in that moment, she didn’t care. She was in a state of shock, as if she were in a daze. Darren turned to look at her. She didn’t look too good. This was going to be easier than he thought.

“Strawberry, right?” he asked with a sinister grin.

She just sat there, staring down, her eyes glassed over.

“Violet.”

Nothing. She was totally zoned out.

“Violet!”

She finally snapped out of it and slowly turned her head to look at him.

“You like strawberry, right?”

She shook her head. No, she was actually allergic to strawberries. They made her break out in tiny red bumps for an entire day whenever she ate them.

“No, thank you.”

“Then what the hell do you want?” he asked, annoyed.

“I don’t want anything, thank you,” she replied quietly, looking down.

“FINE!” he yelled, slamming the car door as he stormed into the ice cream shop. She watched him get his ice cream, then talk on the phone again. She could roughly read his lips.

“That stupid bitch is getting on my nerves.”

She thought that’s what he said. Was he talking about her? What had she done now? He was always angry at her for no reason. Whatever! She didn’t care right now. All she wanted was to go home, get into bed, and cry into her pillow for the next few days. Darren came back to the car after a while, and they drove home in silence.

Violet spent the rest of the day in bed, crying and sleeping. She missed her mom so much. She knew her life would never be the same, and she was right—but she had no idea just how crazy it was about to get.