" Uh, why do we need to go look for her again?" Isabella asked.
" Because she's family," Julieta answered.
" No, she's not, the family has gifts, she does not," Abuela said.
" Yeah, so? I didn't no having powers or not make you part of the family. Last I checked, it takes love, not gifts. And I can't believe you don't love her just because she doesn't have a gift!" Julieta snapped.
The family was silent for a second. Antonio paced around. He felt really bad. He promised he wouldn't see Mirabel as a nobody. She was the one who walked him down the aisle even though she didn't want to go up there. She helped him through the darkest moments. And what did he do? He yelled out that he wished she was never born.
" I say we look for her," Antonio remarked.
Isabella looked away and crossed her arms. Julieta looked back and forth at each family member. Doloris nodded her head as if to say she agreed with Antonio.
" I agree," Camillio agreed.
" Me too, we can't just leave her out there, she might get eaten by wolves or something," Luisa added.
" She's my daughter," Augustin stated.
" She ruins everything," Isabella rebuked.
" Well, I'm going, whether anyone goes with me or not," Julieta declared.
" Suit yourself," Abuela sneered.
" Who ever's going with me, let's go," Julieta commanded.
Everybody but Abuela, Isabella, Felix, and Pepa went with Julieta. Meanwhile, Mirabel was doing her usual daily sulking. She found herself plotting ways to torture her family. They would never see it coming. She sighed thinking back on Antonio. How he betrayed her. Ugh, come on. Casita cared more about her than anybody else.
" Don't worry, Casita, we'll get our revenge," Mirabel mumbled to herself.
She had collected a knife. She stole it from a family who were nearby. Two people thought it would be funny to come and bully here. She showed them. She skinned them alive. She then left them alive for about an hour before putting them out of their misery.
She fidgeted with her knife. She chuckled insanely. She would murmur something every few minutes. She heard a squeaking noise. She held up her knife until she realized it was just a rat.
" Well, hello, there," she greeted.
The rat walked over to her. Mirabel held out her arm. The rat crawled up until she reached her shoulder.
" Sorry, little guy, but I don't have any food," Mirabel apologized.
The rat just squeaked in response. Mirabel petted him. After a few minutes, the rat left Mirabel alone.
" Bye, little guy," Mirabel whispered.
She waved softly and slowly. The rat looked back and squeaked. He then squirmed away. Mirabel chuckled softly.
" Mirabel!"
" Huh," Mirabel gasped.
" Mirabel. Mirabel. Mirabel!"
Mirabel heard a bunch of people calling her name. It didn't take her long to realize it was her family. She scowled. She couldn't believe it. Her family yelled at her and wished she was never born. They had some nerve to come back. However, it was just what she needed. It made her plan much easier. She smiled evilly. It was her turn. She crawled out of the abandoned house.
" I'm over here!" she hollered.
" We're coming!" she heard her mom shout.
It didn't take long for them to show up. Mirabel pretended to smile a painful smile. Julieta hugged her and touched her cheeks.
" We've been looking for you for about an hour," she told her.
" I thought you didn't want me," Mirabel replied.
" No, no, no. I didn't mean that. I'm so, so sorry," Julieta expressed.
" We all are."
The rest of her family came closer. Mirabel smiled sweetly. She almost decided to forgive them. … Almost. She peaked around them. She frowned.
" Abuela didn't come?" she asked.
" No, she's too focused on a gift making someone a Madrigal," Julieta answered.
" I'm glad we found you, sis," Luisa remarked.
She squeezed her sister tightly. Mirabel just kept smiling. Antonio nervously came up to her.
" Hi, Prima," he greeted.
" Hey."
" I'm sorry," Antonio apologized. " Can you forgive me?" he inquired.
" Of course," Mirabel lied.
They both embraced each other.
" Ha, ha, fool," Mirabel thought.
She had to admit, she almost gave in. But something was stopping her from feeling any sympathy. Any forgiveness. All she could feel was rage and hate. No matter how hard she tried, only two emotions came to surface. What was happening to her? What was becoming of her?
" Will you come home with us?" Camillio inquired.
The rest of the family looked at Mirabel with hopeful eyes. Mirabel pretended to think about it. She smiled insanely and happily.
" Of course," she finally answered.
They all shared a family hug. Mirabel tried to feel love for her family. It was gone, though. She panicked as she realized she had no control of her emotions. She couldn't decide what she would, wouldn't, could, or couldn't feel. It was like something had taken over her. She tried as hard as she could, but she ended up just focusing on her goal. She would make her family pay… even if it's the last thing she ever does.
She and her family walked home. They laughed and talked the whole way. When they made it back home, Mirabel felt her love coming back. Not for her family but for Casita. She smiled and waved at her house. It waved back. Mirabel took a deep breath and sighed. She felt the tension the moment she came into the room. Abuela, Isabella, Pepa, and Felix scowled at her. Mirabel pretended to be sad.
" Well, Fu*** them," Mirabel thought. " They'll get theirs," she added.
Antonio held out his hand. Mirabel smiled at him. She took his hand, despite not really wanting to. She could tell Isabella wanted to beat her into a pulp. Mirabel made sure no one was looking before sticking her tongue out at her. Isabella gasped then crossed her arms. Mirabel just smirked at her. Serves her right. Abuela stepped forward. She sighed. Mirabel frowned.
" Welcome home, Mirabel," Abuela said through clenched teeth.
" You don't have to pretend you're happy to see me. I'm not dumb. I know you hate me," Mirabel rejoindered.
She stormed off. Abuela looked pissed. The rest of the family looked shocked. Mirabel had never been so cold before. Mirabel went up to her room and slammed the door. Casita waved at her.
" Don't worry, Casita, we'll get them. They'll know exactly what it feels like to be picked on," Mirabel muttered.
Casita clapped her hands… Well, window- hands together. Mirabel smiled evilly. She was one step closer to her plan. They may not ever feel the same amount of pain she had, but they would be begging on their knees. She couldn't wait for that day to come.
To be continued.