Chapter 1

Nine years ago our house burned down. My little sister Lily got out alive. Her mind didn't. She's been seven ever since.

The doctors told my parents to go along with it. Let her live in her own world. Fine. So that's what we did. Every day.

Mom got to be the Fairy Godmother. Ryan got to be the Prince.

Me? I got the Wicked Stepmother. Thirty pounds of ankle weights. A rubber witch nose. A black costume full of holes.

I was the bad guy in my own house. Every day of my life.

Then I met Ethan.

He saw the bruises on my ankles and his hands shook. He unbuckled the weights himself. He said he'd never let anyone hurt me again.

And I believed him. Stupid me.

The first time I brought him home, Lily grabbed his arm and wouldn't let go. She wanted him to be her prince.

"Ethan's my prince now!" she screamed. "Ethan's gonna marry me!"

I squeezed his arm. "Just play along. Please."

He sighed. Picked up the toy sword. Played it with her.

Once. Twice. A hundred times.

The night of the rehearsal, Lily threw herself on my gown and sobbed. She wanted to be the princess.

Dad shoved a rubber witch nose into my hand. "You've been the witch for years. One more night won't kill you."

Mom held the ankle weights out to me. "Be honest with yourself. You want Lily breaking down in front of two hundred people tomorrow?"

Ryan pulled Lily close and stared me down. "One princess in this house. That's it. Suck it up."

I looked at Ethan. My last hope.

He dropped the witch costume over my shoulders. Like it was nothing.

"Amber, come on. Don't make Lily cry."

I looked into his eyes. The same eyes that had been so gentle the night he took the weights off my ankles.

Something inside me went cold.

I walked over to Lily. Pulled the diamond ring off my finger.

"A princess needs a real diamond, right?"

"Here. You want this one too?"

Dad's face went stiff. "What the hell are you doing?"

Mom sighed. "She's grown and she still acts worse than Lily."

Ethan stroked Lily's hair. "Lily, sweetie. Can I have the ring back?"

Lily shook her head hard.

Ethan smiled. That patient, loving smile. Then he picked up one of the plastic rings from the pretend games and slid it onto my finger.

"Amber, just wear this one for now."

"It's one ceremony. You'll always be my bride."

Then the wedding planner walked in with the menu.

Every dish on it was Lily's pick. Plain, boring, nothing I liked.

I stared at the list. "This is my wedding."

Ryan didn't even blink. "Lily gets anxious around food she doesn't know. Stop making everything about you."

Mom grabbed my wrist. "Be reasonable. Don't make a scene."

The planner looked at me, then at Lily, then back at me. "So… whose turn is it to walk down the aisle?"

Lily looked up at Ethan with those big hopeful eyes.

He dropped my hand. Just like that.

"Amber, be a good sport. She just wants to see what it feels like."

So I sat in the audience. Holding that ugly witch costume in my lap.

And I watched my sister walk down the aisle. In the gown I spent six months designing. Holding the white peony bouquet I picked out myself. Hanging on my fiancé's arm like she belonged there.

Mom filmed it all, crying. Posted it straight to Instagram. "My baby girl is all grown up."

Dad took Lily's hand and put it in Ethan's. "She's yours now. Take care of her."

When it was over, Lily threw her arms around Ethan and kissed his cheek.

Everyone froze. The staff looked at me.

Ethan didn't pull away. He just pinched her nose and laughed. "Come on, Lily. That part's not in the rehearsal. Amber's gonna get mad."

Every eye in the room turned to me.

I smiled.

"Don't worry about me. Hope you two are happy. Turns out Ethan likes them a little slow. Not my problem."

Lily burst into tears.

Dad stepped in front of her, shaking with rage. "How dare you talk about your sister like that!"

Mom rubbed Lily's back. Shushing her. Cooing at her.

Then Lily grabbed the bouquet and threw it at my face. The stems cracked against my temple. Everything went red.

Lily buried her head in Ethan's chest, sobbing. "You can't marry anybody else. Only me."

Everyone rushed to comfort her.

Ethan took one step toward me. Just one. Lily grabbed his jacket.

And the man who swore he'd never let anybody hurt me again stopped where he stood.

He looked down at Lily. His voice went soft.

"Hey. It's okay. I'm right here."

That was the night something in me finally died.