The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

An hour had passed before Mara finally stirred, a ghostly pallor on her face. Her voice was a weak whisper, barely there.

She had never felt so terrible in her life—it was like being on death’s doorstep!

That Gillian had actually given her a bottle of sleeping pills, and here she had thought they were vitamins.

If only she had known, she would not have taken a single one!

“Mara, you’re awake.” Cecilia’s voice carried a mixture of relief and worry, as if a great weight had been lifted from her heart upon seeing Mara’s eyes open.

To underscore her feebleness, Mara coughed deliberately, a decision she instantly regretted as her stomach convulsed painfully.

“Auntie, what happened to me?” Mara’s eyes brimmed with tears, but her pain was genuine.

Cecilia sat by the hospital bed, wiping away the tears streaking Mara’s face. “Oh, you silly girl. Do you have any idea how close you came to never seeing me again?”

Mara feigned shock, glancing down at her wrist as if seeing it anew, a look of realization crossing her face. “I… I’m sorry, Auntie. I just wasn’t thinking straight.”

“You really…” Cecilia held Mara’s hand, her heart full of unsaid words.

Across the room, Percival sat brooding on the couch, his eyes stormy as the horizon’s edge.

Vivienne, on the other hand, watched the scene with a certain amusement.

Such a promising talent, indeed.

Mara seemed to be cut from the same cloth as Gillian had been.

If she were to be signed and groomed properly, she might even outshine Kala!

Kala: Impossible, utterly impossible!

chin in her palm,

enough before she turned to Percival. “Percival, why don’t you take Isolde back home? Everything’s under control here. I’ll stay with

looked at Percival

her smile beaming at Mara. “It’s been

she would have been surprised at

she was driven—Vivienne was all about making

her true love, Mr. Wolf

appealing than a strawberry cheesecake but

actually reach out to her. Since that was the case, she was not about to miss this opportunity to overplay

stumbled to her feet, only to

was wrong about everything before. Please forgive me. Gillian and Grandma misled me, and I never meant for things to go so far. I was awful, please don’t

nothing and Isolde was too young to understand, at least

one came to

out loud but managed

fell into an awkward silence until Mara lifted her head, her eyes filled with fear and pleading, “Vivienne, will you

tone. “What are you doing? I never

suppressed mirth. He smiled,

the biggest heart. She doesn’t hold grudges easily. Mara, don’t pull this act again. Admitting

snorted from the

scolded by a kid fresh out of elementary school was too

Isolde is right. Get up, what’s

onto her feet, and whether by design or not, she winced at

the bed, she clutched her

did Cecilia move to her side, helping

eyes

anything that can’t be fixed. Just take it easy, and we’ll work