The next day, everything was starting to come back. Amaris knew what would happen in the two days before they would leave. She wondered if Alexandra had a clue, but then again, she wasn't exactly sure what her sister would do.

"Why are you sitting alone?" Alexandra asked from behind her.

"Thinking," she whispered.

Soon, her sister would be gone from her life for ten years. That meant they'd move in with Jack, meet Alisha and Didi, and then be abused for years. Is there a way to change any of that?

She knew it was Hope in the hospital, but she wanted to know what she had. If she could understand where Hope's murderous actions came from besides the deaths of her parents, she could prevent the massacre that is coming.

"Do you remember things you shouldn't?" Amaris asked, looking back at Alexandra.

"Like what?"

Amaris wanted to speak her mind. There were pictures of funerals, people flying into walls, or Aubrey Prices wearing a psychotic grin with blood on her clothes.

"Things will be different, Mari."

The words kept repeating in her head. The nickname her sister used was replaced years later. The blank memory of her sister's existence and the girl who came along to snatch her away.

"That girl there," Alexandra started. "She didn't seem like a nice person."

"I feel bad for the girl who kept coughing up blood," Amaris murmured. "She shouldn't suffer through something like that."

"It's a good thing we won't get that. You know you can tell me anything, right?" Alexandra plopped down beside her with a smile.

Amaris felt a darkness loom over her. The images kept feeding her information about what happened or how the girl beside her would act. Is there a way to prevent all that from happening?

If Jack doesn't get involved with their mother, they won't have to leave. That would keep a happy family, along with Alexandra, in her life, although that wouldn't stop Hope from dying. How many days did she have left?

"The sister was really nice," Alexandra said, swinging her legs.

She was basically her teenage self stuck in her young body. Reliving trauma she didn't want to while trying to figure out a way to stop everything. Maybe the whole answer to being Rare is in the past.

"Do you think something bad could happen in our town?" Amaris inquired, looking at Alexandra.

"Like what?"

"Have you ever felt like you've seen the future?"

"Do you know something that's going to happen?" Alexandra had panic in her voice.

Amaris locked her eyes on the freshly cut grass. It was still raining when they sat under the roof that covered the deck. The pool was open, flowers were blooming different colours, and vegetables in the small garden were growing.

"There's going to be a massacre."

"Let's prevent it then. Do you know when they come?" Alexandra exclaimed, standing.

Amaris watched the rain fall harder, turning her head away from Alexandra. How does she even explain a way to prevent a serial killer from possessing her soul?

Maybe she could prevent Alexandra from leaving her life. They could go inside Walmart with their mother, which might prevent Hope from gaining control. Who was she kidding? She needed to see that dying girl.

"We have to go to the hospital," Amaris said, standing. "How can we get there?"

Alexandra glanced around before grabbing her wrist. One moment they were on their house porch, and the next they were at the hospital where their father worked.

Amaris went rushing down to the room she saw her father lead Hope's family into. She could tell from the wide window in the door that someone was staring out the window.

"Stay outside," Amaris murmured. "We just have to have someone watch."

Amaris slowly turned the handle on the door. Hope had a tube of oxygen through her nostrils and multiple machines by her bedside. There was a smirk that cracked her lips, wiping some blood from them.

"Isn't it interesting to remember the future? We get to see everything that happens before others do. Are you protecting your dear sister from being possessed? Sorry, Mari, I'm not changing my mind," Hope remarked, waving a hand at her.

"Can you prevent my..." Amaris started biting her lip. "Abuse..."

Hope cocked an eyebrow at her. "It's easy for you to prevent that, Mari."

"How?"

"Since I know your mother isn't directly responsible for the affair, I'll be there to stop it. I believe Jackson is at Walmart when he runs into your mother. So, if I stab Jackson now, that won't happen."

Would Hope's plan actually work? Stabbing someone because he's responsible for an affair, but it was still considered wrong.

"That doesn't mean I won't possess your sister," Hope said, coughing up blood into the garbage. "I can't stop Jackson from killing my parents."

Amaris looked out the door window, where she could see Alexandra looking at her feet. Should she tell her the plan, or did she know the information?

"Alexandra doesn't know anything." Amaris turned her head back to Hope. "The possession makes her lose all control. In short, she's unconscious or dead, basically."

"Don't trust Hope."

It was the voice of a male she didn't recognize. The only people she could remember other than Alexandra were Hope and Aubrey. Maybe because she met them and they weren't just nameless people.

"Will you kill Jack?" Amaris murmured.

Hope let out a long sigh. "Murdering people is like eating a meal; you save the best for last."

"Have you killed someone yet?"

"I stabbed someone with a pen because it was the best course of action," Hope said before coughing up blood. "He kept bothering Aubrey."

Amaris chewed on her lip. This would mean she'd have to trust Hope with getting information despite her murderous intentions. No, it was taking her sister away from her for years. She couldn't trick Hope, who'd soon be Aubrey Prices, Claymore's notorious serial killer.

"Don't look so surprised because this is the true otherworldly. History won't help us, but the place where everything happened, except now we know what we need," Hope said, waving a hand.

The door opened, causing Amaris to jump. Alexandra pushed the door shut before staring directly at Hope. Maybe she did know that Hope would possess her in the future.

"Why, hello, Alexandra O'Rally," Hope's voice was smug. "I know you sealed my powers away."

Alexandra sucked in a breath, staring at Amaris with wide eyes. She couldn't control her sister's actions, but Hope didn't have the ability to mind-wash them into trances yet.

"Sealed?" Alexandra asked.

"Perfect," Hope snickered. "Your sister just wanted to know about my condition. Unfortunately, I die in two days."

"I'm sorry."

Alexandra's apology didn't sound genuine. It sounded like the many Jack had given that repeated in her head on a loop.

"We should go, Mari," Alexandra said, pulling on her arm.

Amaris widened her eyes, seeing the devious grin crack on Hope's lips. Maybe that was one of the many ways Hope used to annoy Alexandra. Why did she have to trust the girl who would partly ruin her family?

"It might be sooner," Hope chimed. "Alexandra, do you think you could come here for a second?"

Alexandra stared at Hope but didn't move. Was she going to possess her earlier than expected? If that's true, that changes a lot of things.

Alexandra slowly walked over, but Hope yanked her wrist, twisting it. Suddenly they weren't in the hospital room anymore, but in the middle of Walmart.

"Perfect," Hope said, coughing. "Now, let's see."

Amaris stood and watched Hope look through the kitchen utensils. Alexandra was unconscious on the ground, while Hope seemed unconcerned about the people staring at her with pity.

"Here we go." Hope grabbed a large steak knife, pointing it towards her. "Hold my oxygen tank."

Hope shoved the portable oxygen tank into her arms, starting to walk off. The place was busy, but nobody pointed out how strange it was that two young girls were wandering the store alone.

Suddenly, Hope stopped, causing Amaris to stumble slightly. Near the electronics, she spotted Jack talking to her mother, who had a hand on her shoulder. This is how the affair started before her mother admitted the truth to her father.

"Put my machine down," Hope said with a grin. "This is going to be a new era."

Amaris watched Hope casually walk towards the two with a smile. Her mother looked concerned while Jack took his arm away, looking down at Hope.

"You were the girl in the hospital. Hope wasn't it?" Jack inquired.

"Yeah," Hope said with a smug smirk. "I got to go on a little walk."

People were starting to look at the scene. There were a few who were asking Hope where her mother was or if she needed help with anything.

"No, I have all that," Hope remarked, bringing the knife back and stabbing Jack right in the gut. "Your peace is over."

Amaris stared with wide eyes, watching Hope direct the knife at her chest. She stabbed herself and yanked the knife out, blood pooling in her shirt.

Many stared with wide eyes before people rushed to help Jack, who fell onto his knees. One man pressed a hand to his gut while another dialled the hospital.

"Wow, I should have done this sooner." Amaris tensed, feeling goosebumps ride up her arms. "I could have just unplugged my oxygen machine, but that ruins the event."

Amaris spun around, seeing her sister with icy eyes and a devious grin. She felt tears well up in her eyes, streaming down her cheeks. There wasn't a single goodbye to the girl she was or even an I love you.

One moment, it was her sister's appearance before she snapped her fingers, revealing Aubrey Prices. The facade of the murderer was staring face-to-face with one of the people who would change her life.

Hope pointed a finger at her own body, which disappeared except for the puddle of blood. She flicked a finger, watching one of the people who were crowded around go crashing in a television on display.

"Jackson's sister is dead," she said casually. "You will refer to me as Aubrey because I'm not me."

Amaris peeked over to see some paramedics pushing the people away from crowding around Jack. Unlike in the past, where they'd patch them up at the hospital, they started to stitch up the stab wound.

"Come with me," Aubrey said, starting to drag her away. "We have an announcement to make."

"We do?" Amaris asked, her voice cracking.

Aubrey dragged her to one of the cashiers. The lady held a black phone in her hand before widening her eyes. Aubrey snatched it from her hands, gripped the lady's neck, and pressed the orange button.

"Oh dear, Jackson Kenny was stabbed by a girl." Aubrey's voice echoed throughout the store. "What a sad day that the leader of Claymore has to get stitches."

People in the store stopped, looked around, or had faces filled with panic. Some people had actually abandoned their cart in the middle of the store to find Jack and see how he was doing.

Amaris watched as Aubrey directed the knife at the woman's temple. She just witnessed three events all happen at once, and now she might experience cold-blooded murder.

Aubrey yanked the woman's hair, hitting it on the cash register before letting go. The lady lay unconscious while the people around her stared in horror.

"Oh, look, paramedics are taking him to the hospital," Aubrey said, glancing back at her.

Now that she's thought everything over, how does she tell her parents that Alexandra isn't coming home? Does she say she died despite not being able to die? There was no direct answer until Aubrey slapped her in the face.

"Wake up!" she spat. "Want an excuse? Say she ran away."

"How did you know..."

Aubrey pressed a finger to her forehead with a smirk. "I know everything. Now, we're going to make a grand announcement to the world."

One moment she was standing in Walmart, and then the next she was in town hall. There were people rushing around, with security guards at each door. The walls were painted light blue, with thick double doors at the end of the long hall.

Aubrey slowly raised her hand as all the security guards fell to the ground, dead. All of them had snapped necks, with a pool of blood forming all throughout the hall.

Amaris followed Aubrey down the hall, stepping on the clean parts of the floor. When they reached the end of the hall, Aubrey pushed open the double doors to an empty office.

"They do daily news at this hour," Aubrey said, shutting the door and locking it. "Turn on that camera."

There was a large video camera pointed directly at the large desk. She remembered seeing a few of these news reports that streamed all over the town, informing each town of what was occurring.

Aubrey plopped down in the black office chair, putting her hands behind her head. Behind the wall, Amaris could see the other video calls of the mayors of Whiterose, Clay, and Stonewall.

"I didn't know we had someone joining us today," the male mayor from Clay said, laughing slightly. "Is Jack in a meeting?"

"This streams the entire world, right?" Hope questioned him, keeping a straight face.

"Correct," the mayor of Whiterose said.

Aubrey leaned forward on the desk, her frown replaced by a devious grin. "Jackson was stabbed at Walmart, unfortunately."

"Stabbed?" Astro, Clay's mayor, asked.

"Don't fret, Claymore; I didn't kill him."

Those simple words would change Claymore forever. No more utopia of the only concern being whatever Rare truly is and other things they research in Clay. Now, there was a wandering girl whose only objective was to harm the people around Jack.

"Claymore's got a new surprise," Aubrey started, looking the camera dead in the eye. "My name is Aubrey Prices, and it's time to play my game."

Loud sirens started blasting throughout the building. Amaris covered her ears and gritted her teeth, watching the mayor still stare at Aubrey on the video call.

Suddenly, all of the loud beeping stopped. She watched Aubrey's hand glow with fire that started to surround her body. It wasn't burning anything, but from the wall behind Aubrey, Amaris saw the horror in the eyes of the mayors.

All the screens then went dark, with the lights flickering off. Aubrey started laughing manically, spinning in the chair, and flashing an evil smile.

Amaris knew she screwed up. This plan wasn't about helping her own family, but Aubrey's early achievements. All that she wanted was fame, glory, and attention.

"This is too perfect," Aubrey laughed. "The mayors fear me, and now the town is going into crisis. Nobody knows my game but you, Mari."

The fire around Aubrey's body died. She placed her elbow on the desk with her lips curving into a smirk. This was the girl who would change history with her vengeance.

"So, I was planning on visiting Jackson in the hospital. All you have to do is talk to your daddy while I pay a visit."

"But—"

Before she could object, she was standing in the middle of the hospital. She stared blankly at the white wall with her mouth slightly agape. What the hell was she supposed to do?

"Talk to your daddy just like I said."

Amaris knew she wanted to ignore the words, but her mind wouldn't allow it. Is this what she gets for agreeing to the whole plan? Then again, she'll have to face her parents about the situation.

"Amaris?" She turned and saw Eris, one of the female nurses who helps with her father. "This is a surprise. Your father is just finishing surgery on Jackson Kenny. Apparently he was stabbed by a young girl."

Yes, she knew. She saw the spark of joy that lit in Aubrey's eyes when she jabbed the knife in his gut. Everyone else was scattered into panic while the start of the murder spread in her mind.

"I need to see my dad," Amaris said unconsciously.

"He should be done with the surgery soon," Eris implied. "I'm sure the girl accidentally stabbed him with the knife."

There aren't accidents in this world. If someone collides with another car, it's the driver's fault. There is always someone to blame in a situation, but stabbing someone isn't one of them.

"Eris!" Another female nurse with dark purple hair with wide eyes came rushing over, holding small plastic bottles in her hands. "Remember that patient, Hope Prices?"

"Yeah, she was sleeping last we checked."

"Well, she's gone! Me and Carter have been looking all over the hospital, but she's nowhere. Did she already die and they failed to inform us?"

The two were now panicking. They were trying to come up with an answer to how she escaped or even if she was still alive.

Amaris turned on her heels, walked to a chair, and sat. She blinked multiple times, looking around at her surroundings to see one of the mayors from the meeting walking towards the two nurses.

"What the hell is going on?" He freaked out, his eyebrows narrowing. "Is it true that he's in the hospital?"

"Who are you referring to, sir?" Eris asked.

"Jackson Kenny."

"Yes, he was stabbed when he was speaking to Molly O'Rally," Eris implied. "Nobody has a motive or the name of the girl."

"Aubrey Prices," Amaris said.

The three looked over towards her. She knew she shouldn't have told them, but Aubrey would rather be known than kept a secret.

"The sister of Hope Prices?" Astro asked, marching towards her.

No, it wasn't truly her. It was all a facade for the world to see. She wasn't the girl with the rare blood disorder or her own twin sister, who is now gone from her life.

"Yes," Amaris whispered, her mind feeling dizzy. "I think—"

The voices and people around her disappeared as she fell unconscious onto the ground.