The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Flynn’s pupils contracted slightly at her words, and then he let out a scornful chuckle. “F-Poison? And who’s Samantha? You’re speaking gibberish to me.”

Vivienne regarded him coolly. “You insinuated yourself into Flynn’s life, became his confidant, and waited till he let his guard down. The day before the shooting, you two switched identities.

In that massacre, the real Flynn died a hero, saving lives. And you—you lived on, wearing his face.

Francis, you’ve schemed for eternity at the cost of everything, even delivering yourself into our hands. Did you ever calculate that this life would be your last within these walls?”

Flynn—no, Francis now—his expression cracked at her words, but he quickly masked it with laughter.

His face, or rather the lifelike mask he wore, began to split, revealing a much younger visage underneath.

Vivienne couldn’t help but feel a pang of surprise. Willa was well into her forties, yet the man before her, supposedly her father, looked to be in his early twenties.

“Vivienne, you’re even sharper than your mother,” F-Poison admitted defeat. There was no point in hiding anymore. He had lost, utterly and without a chance to turn the tables.

Yet, losing to her didn’t feel like a disgrace. Vivienne was the most formidable adversary he had ever encountered.

Her mother, Karen, was formidable too, but he sensed in Vivienne that rare quality of the student surpassing the master. Given time, she would certainly eclipse her mother.

“But I’m curious, how did you unravel my secrets?” Now that his true identity was exposed, he abandoned all pretense, his youthful face twisted with a grotesque smile that was wholly unsettling.

“I’ve explained once to Samantha, and I don’t fancy repeating myself,” Vivienne replied, her gaze piercing.

She leaned in slightly, a smirk playing on her lips. “But there is one thing I will tell you.”

Francis raised an eyebrow. “What’s that?”

“While you and Samantha devoted your lives to the quest for immortality, I haven’t concocted an elixir of eternal life, but I have created a life-extension pill that adds five years to a person’s life. It’s based on your ST-1, and it’s given me a direction for my own studies into immortality.”

The life-extension pill was indeed real.

accidental invention Vivienne had stumbled upon during her

a life-saving pill, she discovered that her first attempt could prolong life—though

never brought the pills to

with the natural order of life and death was a sacrilege, even if it was

pill might be a mere extension of life, but to her, it was defying

released, with people killing for just one dose.

made just ten pills and kept them

intrigued her—not to sell, but as a scientific challenge, one she was

shock. “What

invented

elaborate schemes of RST would have been unnecessary. Capturing

“I don’t waste

deliver a parting shot. “Francis, remember to please your masters in your next life as

stepped out. From her backpack, she pulled

Boom!

explosion echoed through the valley as Vivienne

the road, Percival was silent,

held his hand, and said, “Mr.

been Percival’s uncle, the one person in the Ellington family he

years, it had been another man wearing his uncle’s face. Before uncovering Francis’ identity, he had despised Flynn for

his uncle who betrayed him, but Francis—filled him with remorse for not trusting his

and knew how unsettled he must feel. Now that Francis was

wanted Francis to suffer a torment that gnawed to the

to let them continue the search for immortality. If Francis lived, they would find a way

the luxury

just that Francis, Samantha, and the shadowy figure behind her

killing Francis on the spot was the best

A wave of warmth coursed

him best was, undoubtedly,