The letter was from my sister. I hadn’t seen her in four years, and today was her birthday. I had planned everything—the gifts, the surprise visit, the celebration. I just had to survive one more day of school.
I’d been getting by, keeping my head down, avoiding Stella and her crew. But today, they found the letter. They tore it from my hands and read it out loud in the middle of the courtyard. “Dear Louie, from the first second I saw you, my heart skipped a beat…”
Their laughter cut through me.
Stella waved the paper like a trophy. “You think you have a shot with Louie? This ugly duckling? ”
“Give it back,” I said.
“It’s a gift from my sister. ”
That only made it worse. They mocked her, called her a freak, called me a loser. One of them shoved me.
I fell, and the letter fluttered to the ground. I stood up and faced them. “You don’t know anything about her. She’s in the Navy.
”
They laughed louder. “Sure she is. Probably scrubbing the decks. ”
I knew I couldn’t win.
I knew it. But they had crossed a line. I grabbed my phone, but one of them snatched it. They held me down and took pictures of me, forcing my face into the dirt while they laughed.
“Smile for the camera, loser. ”
They let me go, and I managed to escape. I ran to the one safe place I knew—the woods near the school. I sat against a tree, shaking, and tried to catch my breath.
My phone was gone. I had no way to call my sister. I knew what I had to do. I had to get home.
I stood up, wiped the tears from my face, and started walking. I didn’t see them until it was too late. Stella and her friends were waiting, backed by two guys I didn’t recognize. They had paintball guns.
“Where do you think you’re going? ” Stella said, smiling. “We set up a picnic for you. Don’t be ungrateful.
”
“It’s my birthday,” I said. “My sister is waiting for me. ”
“Even better,” Stella said. “We’ll make sure it’s extra memorable.
”
They surrounded me. I tried to run, but someone grabbed my arm. The paintballs hit me from every direction, stinging my skin, covering my clothes in bright red and blue. I screamed, but no one came.
They shouted, “Loser! She’s crying! Get her! ”
They held me down and shoved cake in my face.
They took more pictures. They laughed. “Please,” I begged. “Give me my phone.
My sister is probably worried. ”
“Aw, is baby upset? Maybe we should call her sister. Get her to join us.
”
I couldn’t let that happen. I couldn’t drag Victoria into this. I had to protect her. They eventually got bored and left, but before they went, Stella said, “As punishment for running, we’ll each shoot you one hundred times.
”
They lined up and took turns, their laughter echoing through the trees. When they finally walked away, I was left crumpled on the ground. Everything hurt. Every part of me.
I couldn’t make it home. I collapsed in the woods, my vision blurring. The last thing I saw was their silhouettes disappearing into the distance. Then the world went dark.
—
Victoria stood in her small apartment, a half-empty glass of champagne in her hand. The retirement ceremony had been beautiful, but all she could think about was her little sister. Four years apart. Too long.
She checked her phone for the hundredth time. Bella should have been home by now. A knock at the door made her look up. A police officer stood there, his face grim.
“Are you Victoria Watson? ”
“Yes. Is everything all right? ”
“It’s about your sister.
She was found unconscious in the woods. She fell and hit her head. ”
Victoria’s world stopped. “Show me.
Now. ”
At the hospital, she saw Bella hooked up to machines, her face pale and bruised. “This wasn’t an accident,” Victoria said. “She’s a good student.
She doesn’t wander into the woods for no reason. “I’m sorry, Admiral. The families involved have deep ties to the mafia nobility. Without evidence, our hands are tied.
”
Victoria stared at the officer. “I know exactly who did this to her. ”
That night, she sat by Bella’s bedside, holding her sister’s limp hand. “I’ll find out what happened to you,” she whispered.
“I promise. *Let the games begin. *
—
The next day, Victoria walked into the school. She wasn’t in uniform.
She wasn’t there to learn. She was there to destroy. Stella looked up as she entered the classroom. “Look who’s here.
What the hell are you waiting for? Put my shoe back on. ”
Victoria kicked the shoe across the floor. “Put it on yourself.
”
Stella’s eyes widened. “Has she lost her mind? ”
Nora stepped forward. “I’ll handle this.
” She swung, but Victoria caught her arm and twisted it, sending her to her knees. “What is wrong with you? ” Stella shouted. “I’m tired of being your punching bag.
”
Then, the teacher walked in. Mrs. Stewart looked at the chaos but said nothing, turning to the board. “The design competition submissions are due tonight.
For those of you going to Venice next month… except for Bella. ”
Victoria’s blood ran cold. “Except for Bella? She never signed up?
”
“Bella didn’t submit her entry,” Mrs. Stewart said. “You should have filled out the form yourself. The deadline is tonight.
“But she wouldn’t miss this for anything. ” Victoria slammed her hand on the desk. “I’m adding her name. ”
Mrs.
Stewart sighed. “The sign-up is already closed. “Then I’ll report your premature submission and your discrimination to the headmaster,” Victoria said, meeting her eyes. Mrs.
Stewart blinked. “Fine. I’ll include her. ”
But Stella wasn’t finished.
That afternoon, she and her friends cornered Victoria. “You think you’re so clever? Let’s see how well you do when we teach you a lesson. ”
Josh stepped forward, holding a bucket of something foul.
Before he could throw it, a net fell from above, trapping them. “SURPRISE! ” Victoria laughed. “Did you really think I wouldn’t see that coming?
”
The bullies struggled, cursing, while Victoria walked away. “That’s not the last you’ll hear from me. ”
—
I’d spent years hiding who I really was. The truth was, I was in the military.
I was a lieutenant. And I wasn’t about to let them get away with hurting my sister. I started to experience what Bella went through. I showed up to the diner where Stella worked part-time and stood across the booth, waiting for her orders.
“Gluten-free pasta, no bolognese, no marinara, no olive oil, no pesto,” Stella said with a smirk. “Make sure it tastes good, or we’ll keep sending it back until you get it right. ”
“Anything else? ” I said evenly.
“Yeah, no cheese, no basil. And make sure it’s not hot. ”
“More like until I’m fired, right? ” I said.
They laughed. But I didn’t care. I was playing a longer game. I walked out, quitting on the spot.
I wasn’t going to serve them. I wasn’t going to grovel. I was going to break them, piece by piece. —
A few days later, I was walking to class when someone shoved me from behind.
I fell hard, my leg burning from the old injury I’d received in the Navy. “Oh, are you in pain? ” Nora laughed, standing over me. “Hold her tight, boys.
”
But before they could touch me, I sprang to my feet. “You haven’t even seen the best I can do. ”
“You have no idea what I’m capable of,” I said, smiling. I walked away.
After that, I did something I’d never done before. I went to see the head of the Brooks family. “How quickly do you think I can bring your family down? ” I asked, sitting across from Stella’s father.
His eyes narrowed. “Who are you? ”
“I’m Bella Russell. And I’m going to avenge my sister, no matter what.
”
—
The luau dance was Stella’s idea of a final humiliation. She thought she would be crowned queen and use her position to make me strip and run across campus. “I will make her crawl around campus barking like a dog,” Stella announced to her gang. I heard everything.
When the dance came, I walked in wearing a mask and a dress that hugged every curve I had worked so hard for. “Who’s that? ” the crowd murmured. “She’s gorgeous.
”
Stella’s face contorted. “That’s her. That’s Bella,” she hissed. “She’s catfishing us.
”
When the mask came off, the whole room went quiet. “I had my birthmark removed,” I said, looking directly at Stella. “With or without it, didn’t you notice how pretty I always was? ”
Louis—Stella’s long-term target—stepped forward.
“Would you like to dance with me, Bella? ”
“Louis, you promised you’d dance with me,” Stella said. I smiled. “It’s never too late.
You’re the baseball captain. Are you sure Stella really deserves to be your captain? She can be so cruel. ”
Louis looked at me, then at Stella, then back at me.
“You’re right. ”
“Then,” I said, “I think I’ve chosen my prom queen. Bella. ”
I won.
I had won. “Now that I’ve won,” I said, turning to Stella, “isn’t it time someone kept their promise? ”
“What are you talking about? ” Stella said, panicking.
“You made a bet with me earlier. ” My voice carried across the room. “The queen orders a loser around. That’s what you told me, right?
”
The crowd turned on Stella. “Come on, Stella. It’s just a run. ”
“Fine,” Stella spat, dropping to all fours.
“But we never said who would do the run. ” She pointed at me. “I choose you. ”
But she didn’t know I had planned for that too.
“Fine,” I said. “As long as the bet’s settled. ”
I dropped to my knees and crawled across the floor. The crowd laughed.
Stella thought she had won. But I wasn’t done. —
The next day, I found Stella in the hallway. “I’ve been thinking,” I said.
“And I don’t think you’re the right person to lead the cheer team anymore. ”
“You can’t just take my spot,” Stella said. “I earned it. “Then let’s have a fair competition,” I said.
“Let the most popular girl lead. ”
“She has no charisma,” Stella snapped. We agreed to a competition. When the day came, I nailed my routine.
Stella stumbled in hers. One of her own drinks was spiked—a foul drug she had planned for me—but I had swapped the bottles. “You betrayed me! ” Stella screamed at her right-hand girl.
“I didn’t! I swear—I put the drug in, but I don’t know how she knew. ”
“You all need to leave the cheer squad,” I said, cutting through the chaos. “Keeping you is dangerous.
”
Stella’s face twisted. “You’ll regret this. ”
“I doubt it,” I said. —
Then came the baseball game.
I knew Stella was planning something. She had filled a baseball with acid, intending for me to hit it and burn my hands. I picked up the bat. The ball came toward me.
I swung, but not at the ball. I batted it directly at Stella. She screamed as the acid burned her face. “What did you do?!
”
“I just returned your little present,” I said calmly, walking toward her. “If I’d hit that ball unknowingly, I’d be the one burned now. But you knew that, didn’t you? ”
Her friends looked at her, horrified.
One of them pulled out a phone. “We’re calling the cops. ”
“Please! ” Stella begged.
“It was an accident. Call 911! ”
But it was too late. The truth had come out.
—
But Stella wasn’t finished. She had one last act of desperation. She tracked down my sister. “Remember the design competition that you held?
” Stella said, barging into the hospital room where Victoria sat by a sleeping Bella’s side. “I have all the business rights for Finders Avenue. I could help you way more than she can. ”
Victoria looked at her with cold eyes.
“Get out. ”
Stella grabbed for a photo on the table. “I remember this. This is the reason you dropped out of the competition, isn’t it?
Must be really important to you. ”
“Give that back,” Victoria said. “I want you to be humiliated. Strip,” Stella demanded.
Victoria looked at her for a long moment. Then, slowly, she began to undress. Stella laughed. “That’s so good.
Is this enough? ”
But Victoria wasn’t done. She lunged at Stella, grabbing her by the throat. “You think you can waltz in here and take everything from me?
You’re going to pay for what you did to my sister. ”
Stella gasped, clawing at Victoria’s hands. “Stop! I’ll do anything!
”
But Victoria’s eyes were cold. “You’re next. It’s over for you. ”
—
Stella fled, defeated, broken, screaming curses.
Her father’s influence crumbled. She was shunned by everyone. But she didn’t stop there. She sent videos—old footage of me being bullied—to the school, hoping to ruin my reputation.
It didn’t work. Instead, it gave me a new plan. I found Josh, the one who had thrown the paintball that day. I brought him to my sister’s hospital room.
“Josh Davis from California,” I said. “Nearly $300,000 in debt to the casino. Dodging debt collectors. I’ll double it if you tell me who else has copies of the videos.
”
Josh’s eyes darted around. “It’s not enough. You got some more on you, maybe? ”
“You really think I’d trust you?
” I said. “You’re messing with Victoria Russell. You do have a death wish, son. ”
The door opened, and my sister walked in.
Victoria stood behind me, tall and imposing. “Josh, you can make it up to me if you retrieve all the videos from Stella,” she said. “Maybe then I’ll consider letting your debts slide. ”
Josh broke.
“Fine. ”
He retrieved the videos and uploaded them online. And when he did, the truth came out. Everyone saw the bullying.
Everyone saw what Stella and her gang had done. —
Weeks passed. Bella finally woke up. Victoria was by her side, holding her hand.
“You’re alive,” she whispered. “I thought I lost you. ”
“I’m here,” Bella said, her voice weak. “I’m here.
”
But the damage was done. Bella’s spine was damaged. She would never walk again. “How do I tell her?
” Victoria asked herself. “How do I tell her that the one thing she fought for is gone? ”
But Bella was stronger. As Victoria sat by her bedside, Bella squeezed her hand.
“I know what happened to me. And I know what you did for me. “I can’t walk anymore,” Bella said. “But I can still fight.
And I will. ”
—
The design competition came. Victoria had planned it before her retirement. It was meant for Bella.
“I’ll make sure this brings you the glory you deserve,” Victoria whispered as the competition began. But Stella, in a last ditch effort, infiltrated the event. She stole Bella’s designs and submitted them as her own. “Sir,” Victoria said calmly, addressing the judge, “I believe someone disrespected this competition by stealing another’s work.
”
The judge looked at the designs. “Security, remove them. We don’t tolerate plagiarism. ”
Stella was dragged out, screaming, “This is mine!
She copied me! She—”
But Victoria had already produced the original files, complete with time stamps. “These are Bella’s,” she said. “And Bella is the true winner.
”
The room erupted in applause. But Victoria didn’t smile. She looked at the portrait of Bella that sat on the stage—her sister, who couldn’t be there to accept the prize. “This is for you, Bella,” she whispered.
—
Later, Victoria found Stella begging outside the venue. “Please,” Stella said, sobbing. “I have nothing left. My father cut me off.
Everyone hates me. ”
Victoria looked at her with cold, dead eyes. “You still don’t get it, do you? ” She turned to walk away.
“You should worry about your own family first. ”
Stella’s face paled. “What do you mean? ”
But Victoria was already gone.
That night, the Brooks family mansion was raided. Stella’s father was arrested for ties to the mafia. The family fortune was frozen. Stella ended up on the street, alone, penniless, hated by everyone who had once feared her.
—
Months later, Victoria stood on the edge of a cliff, looking out at the ocean. The wind whipped her hair. Slowly, she reached up and removed her uniform jacket, folding it gently. She left it on a rock.
She walked to the edge and looked down at the white-capped waves below. She had kept her promise. She had avenged her sister. But some things could never be fixed.
She pulled out her phone and dialed a number she knew by heart. It rang twice. “Bella,” she said, her voice soft. “I’m coming home.
”
On the other end, Bella smiled, tears streaming down her face. “I’ll be waiting. ”
Victoria turned away from the edge, pocketed her phone, and walked back toward the city, leaving the jacket behind. The wind carried her silhouette forward.
She wasn’t the admiral anymore. She was just Victoria. And she was going to take care of her sister for the rest of their lives. No one would hurt Bella again.
Not ever.
