I take a long look in the mirror. I can't even recognize myself, masked behind the makeup and drenched in blood from my newest victim. I don't think about Aylena's past; only Viktoriya. I'm not Aylena anymore. I can't be. I've gotten too far and if I turn back now, it'll be hurting me. I can't afford that.

I recall the helpless look in Kaylen's eyes when I stabbed her in the abdomen the first time. She whimpered, but barely, "Why, Viktoriya?" I could barely hear her say it, and my heart just about split in two. I was supposed to be her lighthouse…her safe place. But in the end, she betrayed me. And I know she didn't mean it. But she betrayed my trust and got in my way, and I couldn't afford such a burden like that. There was no other choice besides leaving her with the memories of me strangling her mother.

Earlier that night

I shove Carly to the floor with an unexpected force that even I'm surprised by. I've never had this type of strength before, but I know it's fueled by nothing but the strong fury coursing through every fiber of my being. She has been such a bitch to me since I became apart of this family, and even though she claimed to be a loving mother, she wasn't. She wasn't loyal to her husband and tried to deny it when I told Harrison.

Eventually, when I started "acting out," she restricted me from playing or having fun. The bitch pushed me to the edge, and it's her fault.

"Viktoriya, what—"

"Shut up, you worthless piece of shit!" I hiss. She looks taken aback by the little girl staring back at her. She's too frozen to even try to wiggle out of my strong grip. "Let me speak for one second."

She looks at my fist, balling up the collar of her pajama shirt, and looks up at me again, into my soul-piercing blue-gray eyes. "Viktoriya, please, don't do this to me. Mommy loves you a lot," she begs. I can feel her try to shift under my weight, but she's pinned down by my bony knees, and any sudden movement would cause her great pain. I grab her long brown hair and turn her head to one side forcefully, and slam her head into the floor of my "parents'" bedroom. "Daddy" is watching a movie downstairs, oblivious to everything happening upstairs.

"I don't give a shit what my 'mommy' feels. You made me seem like the bad guy when I did nothing to you! And I had sweet Daddy wrapped around my finger. You wanted so badly for him to believe you when you said I was insane. But he didn't. And he completely stopped trusting you after I exposed you for being a little too close with Mr. Jackson, my own teacher. All the naked pictures, all the sex talks. I saw it all, Mommy," I taunt in an innocent voice.

"So you did—"

"Did what? You have nothing to prove that I actually framed my sweet, young sister for all the things I did. You have nothing to prove that I sent the messages between you and my teacher to Daddy and accidentally tattled to the principal and got your side salad fired from his job," I laugh wickedly. Carly looks at me, guffawed. She has nothing to say. "Goodbye. It was fun, Carly. But Harrison is mine."

Carly's eyes widen, and I wrap both hands around her neck. I watch the struggle in her face and smirk. Her pain brings me joy. Carly falls limp within a minute. Making sure she's dead, I stand to my feet and look over her triumphantly. I turn around and see Kaylen…my sweet baby.

"Y—you killed…"

"Kaylen!" I say in a hushed voice. My heart races rapidly. "Just come here, sweetheart."

She shakes her head at first, so I have to go and get her. She squirms, but I finally lock her in the bedroom. "Mommy made me do this. She was mean to me, Kaylen," I explain.

"But—"

"If you just come with me and Daddy, we can get far, far away and forget this happened, baby girl," I plead. She shakes her head, tears in her bright, baby blue eyes. I feel awful. I can't believe I let her see this. Keeping her wrist tight in my control, I push her into the bathroom connected to the master bathroom. "Fucking stay here!" I demand. Kaylen sobs as I shove a chair under the doorknob to lock the door and despite her efforts, she isn't strong enough to get out. She's taken care of for now. And Carly is taken care of forever.