Chapter 194
Nancy‘s POV
"Please," she whispered, tears starting to fall. "Please don't hurt her. She's just a child—"
"I know what she is," I said, crouching in front of her. "She's leverage. And as long as you cooperate, she'll be fine."
Elena's jaw clenched, and I could see her fighting to regain control. Her maternal instincts were at war with her terror. "What do you want from me?"
I stood, walked to the window. The view overlooked a dead garden, choked with weeds. Reminded me of myself. Something that used to be beautiful, left to rot.
"I want," I said slowly, "to understand why you're still breathing."
I turned back and crossed the room in three strides. Slapped her. Hard. The sound echoed off the walls.
Elena's head snapped to the side, and when she looked back at me, there was blood on her lip and pure hatred in her eyes.
"You bitch," I hissed, grabbing her chin. "You should be dead. You were supposed to be dead. So why the hell are you still here?"
Elena's eyes blazed even as blood welled at the corner of her mouth. "I don't know what you're talking about—"
I slapped her again. And again. Each blow felt like release, like finally getting to do what I'd wanted for years.
"Stop lying!" I shouted. "You know exactly what I'm talking about!"
Elena spat blood, her breathing ragged. "I don't—I don't even know you. We have no history—"
"No history?" I laughed, sharp and bitter. "Oh, Elena. We have so much history. You just don't remember it."
I stepped back, ran a hand through my hair. This wasn't the plan. I needed her to understand.
"Let me ask you something," I said, quieter now. "Does the name Victoria mean anything to you?"
I watched her face carefully. The way her eyes widened just a fraction, the way her breath hitched. Her pupils dilated slightly, and her hands clenched into fists behind the chair.
"You remember," I said, smiling. "Good."
"You—" Elena's voice was barely a whisper, hoarse from screaming. "You're Victoria."
"Bingo." I clapped. "Though I go by Nancy now. New face, new name, new life. But yes, Elena. I'm the woman who tried to destroy you seven years ago. And I'm the woman who's going to finish the job."
Elena was shaking now, her whole body trembling as the memories came flooding back. Her eyes kept darting to Lila's still form. "You—you drugged me. On that yacht—"
"I tried to make sure you and Julian would never happen," I interrupted. "Had it all planned. Drug you both, make sure you woke up in some other man's bed. But Julian walked into the wrong room. Instead of ruining you, I gave you exactly what you wanted."
I leaned close, close enough to see the flecks of gold in her amber eyes. "Do you want to know the real reason I became you?" I whispered, my voice shaking with years of buried rage. "It wasn't just about Julian. It was about finally being someone who mattered."
I touched my surgically altered face. "Growing up as Victoria Astor meant nothing. I was the spare daughter, the backup plan. My parents barely looked at me unless I screwed up. But you? You were Julian's obsession. His first thought when he woke up, his last before sleep."
Elena's voice stayed steady despite the fear. "You didn't have to do any of this—"
"Yes, I did!" I snapped. "The night before he had uncovered the truth about your attack in Brooklyn. Julian told me he never imagined I could be so vicious, so ruthless, and he looked at me with such... disgust. He said, 'Victoria, sometimes I wish you could just disappear.'"
I felt my hands shake at the memory. "He wished I would disappear. So I made his wish come true. I disappeared Victoria and gave him Elena instead."
I started pacing, the words pouring out like poison. "I realized something - I could never make Julian love Victoria. But maybe... maybe I could become the woman he already loved."
"My mother," Elena said suddenly, her voice sharp and broken. "You killed her, didn't you?"
I stopped pacing. "Yes."
Simple. Final.
Elena's face crumpled. "You monster," she whispered.
"I thought if I could take her from you, make you blame Julian, you'd finally break. You'd leave him, and he'd be so devastated that maybe—just maybe—he'd finally see me."
"And then," I said softly, "I hired a truck. Under my new name, of course. Had it run you off that bridge."
Elena's breath came in short gasps. "You—you tried to kill me—"
"I did. You were supposed to drown, Elena. Supposed to die in that river." I touched my face again. "After the accident, while you were supposedly drowning, I felt... free. For the first time in my life, I could be someone else. Someone better."
I laughed, the sound echoing off the walls. "The surgery wasn't just about looking like you. It was about erasing Victoria completely. Do you know what it's like to hate yourself so much that you'd rather die and become someone else? I spent months studying you - your mannerisms, your voice, even the way you held your coffee cup. I became a better Elena than you ever were."
I crouched down so we were eye level. "Those first few weeks after Julian 'rescued' me from the nightclub were the happiest of my life. He touched me gently, spoke to me softly, looked at me like I was precious. For a brief, beautiful moment, I was loved the way I'd always dreamed."
"But then he started to suspect. Started pulling away. And I realized that even wearing your face, even speaking with your voice, I still wasn't enough."
Elena met my gaze, and despite everything, her voice was steady. "Victoria. Don't you see how pathetic this is?"
I stood abruptly, hands clenching into fists. "Pathetic? You think I'm pathetic?"
"Yes," she said. "You've spent your entire life chasing a man who doesn't love you. You've killed, and lied, and destroyed, and for what? He still doesn't want you. He never will."
I stared at her, felt something crack inside me. Then I smiled.
"You're right," I said softly. "He doesn't want me. So yes, Elena. I became you because being Victoria Astor was a living hell. But being a fake Elena? That was worse. At least now, when I kill you, I can finally stop pretending to be someone I'm not."
I leaned close, voice dropping to a whisper. "Because you're going to die."