The impact of Maya's body hitting the hard marble echoed loudly across the wide ballroom, followed by a sharp gasp of pain from the young girl. Guests pulled back in shock, some covering their mouths while others pulled out their phones to record the scene. Maya lay on her side, tears immediately spilling down her freckled cheeks as her knee throbbed from hitting the hard floor. Beside her small hand, a tarnished silver locket clinked softly against the marble, springing open from the violent force of the sudden fall. Evelyn stood over her with her chin held high, pointing down at the weeping teenager with fierce anger. Her photorealistic skin was flushed red with temper, her visible pores and sharp features showing zero mercy toward the child at her feet. She did not care if the fall hurt Maya; she only cared about maintaining her dominance and authority in the crowded room. She believed she was protecting her status from an unwanted intruder who dared to cross the line.
Evelyn: Get away from me!
Maya: I was just trying to show you...
Evelyn: I don't care what you have to say!
Maya sobbed softly, wiping her bruised elbow while attempting to reach for the open locket resting a few inches away. The bright daylight from the tall ballroom windows caught the inside of the small silver trinket, illuminating a tiny faded photograph. Inscribed along the inner rim of the locket were the faint words, To my little sister. Maya had carried this piece of metal through three different foster homes over the last five years. It was her only connection to a past she barely remembered before her world fell completely apart. She did not want Evelyn's money, nor did she care about the grand mansion or the trust fund people talked about online. All Maya ever wanted was a family, someone who belonged to her in a cold world that constantly rejected her. The small music box chime in her head played the memory of a bedtime song her mother used to sing before the fatal car crash that separated the two sisters forever.
Evelyn took a step back, her sharp breath catching in her throat as her eyes accidentally fell upon the open locket lying on the floor. The image inside was small, but the bright daylight revealed the faces of two young girls sitting together on a green lawn. Evelyn gasped loudly, her hand instantly reaching up to touch her own chest beneath her heavy diamond necklace. Tucked underneath her expensive designer dress was an exact duplicate of that same silver locket, worn every single day of her life. Her mind raced wildly as she recalled the dark night thirteen years ago when her baby sister was taken away by a system that declared Evelyn too young to gain legal custody. Evelyn had searched for years using private investigators, but every lead had turned into a dead end, leaving her heart broken and cynical. She looked back down at the weeping child on the marble floor, her body trembling with a sudden wave of terrifying realization.