Chapter 2: Renata’s Perfect Smile
Renata breezed into the hallway before I could knock.
Her perfume filled the air first, sharp and floral, followed by the soft click of her heels against the floor. She kissed my cheek with practiced affection, the kind that looked tender from a distance but felt hollow up close.
“Dinner is almost ready,” she said.
She did not glance at Sofia.
Behind the half-open door, the little girl remained curled beneath the duvet, small and shivering, clutching her stuffed fox as if it were the only safe thing left in the world.
Renata’s smile stayed in place until she thought I had looked away.
Then her face changed.
The warmth vanished. Her expression sharpened into something cold and precise, like a mask being removed in the dark.
That tiny shift made my skin crawl.
I was an ER nurse. I knew fear when I saw it. And Sofia’s fear was not childish drama.
It was instinct… Continue Reading ⬇️