Amara's POV
The champagne glass broke when I let go of it and it hit the marble floor.
"Amara!" Sheila ran over with a worried look on her face. "Are you okay?"
My heart was beating fast as I looked at the broken pieces. Something felt wrong, but I couldn't figure out what. The party went really well. It was fun to hear the loud music. It was funny and everyone was dancing. Why did I think something bad was going to happen?
"I'm fine," I said with a fake smile. "Just clumsy."
But I wasn't great. All day, I'd been having this weird feeling in my stomach. Like when you're on a roller coaster and it's about to drop, except the feeling wouldn't go away.
Today was going to be the best day of my life. My 18th birthday party was everything I had dreamed of. The hall was full of my friends from school. The cake was big and beautiful. My parents had spent so much money to make everything perfect.
"Happy birthday, beautiful!" Jayden emerged beside me, wrapping his arms around my waist. His smile was so bright it could light up the whole room.
When I looked at him, the scary feeling went away for a moment. Jayden Miles was perfect. He was tall, with messy brown hair and green eyes that made me feel like I was melting. Everyone at school said we were the perfect match. The beautiful boy and the princess.
"Thank you," I whispered, standing on my tiptoes to kiss his cheek.
"I have something special for you later," he said, his eyes twinkling with joy. "But you have to wait until everyone goes home."
My heart jumped. Was he going to give me a promise ring? We'd been dating for two years, and I loved him so much it hurt sometimes. Everyone said we would get married after college and have beautiful kids.
"Amara Kingston!" My best friend Sheila grabbed my arm and spun me around. "Stop being romantic and come dance with me!"
Sheila Banks had been my best friend since we were five years old. She was beautiful, with long blonde hair and blue eyes. Sometimes people said she looked like a movie star. She was always there when I needed her, and I trusted her more than anyone in the world.
"Okay, okay!" I laughed, letting her pull me onto the dance floor.
As we danced, I looked around the room at all the people celebrating with me. My parents stood by the big windows, talking to other adults and smiling happily. My mom looked so pretty in her blue dress, and my dad looked handsome in his black suit. They worked so hard to give me everything I wanted.
"You're so lucky," Sheila said, turning around. "You have everything."
"We both do," I said back. "We're best friends forever, remember?"
But when I looked at her face, something flashed in her eyes. It was gone so fast I almost missed it. For just a second, she didn't look happy. She looked... angry?
"Of course," she said, smiling again. "Best friends forever."
The music got louder, and more people started dancing. I felt happy again, forgetting about the weird feeling from earlier. This was my night. Everything was great.
"Attention everyone!" My dad's voice boomed over the music. Everyone stopped dancing and turned to look at him. He was standing by the big stairs with a microphone.
"I want to say something about my beautiful daughter," he added. "Amara, you are the light of our lives. Your mother and I are so proud of the amazing young woman you've become."
Everyone clapped and cheered. I felt my face turn red, but I was so happy. My parents loved me so much.
"And now," my dad said, "I have a very special announcement."
He looked at my mom, and she nodded, smiling huge.
"Next week, Amara will finally become part of the family business. She'll start learning how to run Kingston Industries!"
The room burst with claps and cheers. I couldn't believe it. My parents' company was one of the biggest in the city. They were giving me a chance to be part of it!
But then I heard something that made my blood turn cold.
Behind me, very quietly, Sheila whispered something to someone. I couldn't hear most of it because of all the noise, but I caught three words that made my heart stop.
"Not if I can help it."
I turned around fast, but she was smiling and cheering like everyone else. Had I dreamed it? Maybe the music was too loud, and I heard wrong.
"Isn't this amazing?" Jayden said, hugging me tight. "You're going to be the boss of everything!"
"Yeah," I said, but my voice sounded weird. "Amazing."
The party continued, but I couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. Every time I looked at Sheila, she was watching me with a strange look in her eyes. And Jayden seemed nervous, like he was hiding something.
When the last person finally left, it was almost midnight. My parents went to bed, tired but happy. The workers started cleaning up the mess.
"Finally," Jayden said, taking my hand. "Now I can give you your real present."
"What is it?" I asked, excited again.
"Meet me in the garden in five minutes," he said. "I have to get something from my car first."
He kissed my face and ran outside. I felt butterflies in my stomach. This was it. This was when he would give me the promise ring.
But as I walked toward the yard, I heard voices coming from the pool house. One of them was Jayden's voice. The other was...
Sheila?
"Are you sure about this?" Jayden was saying.
"Yes," Sheila's voice was hard and mean. "It has to be tonight. After what her father just announced, we can't wait any longer."
"But she trusts us," Jayden said. He sounded sad. "She loves us."
"That's exactly why this will work," Sheila said. "She'll never see it coming."
I couldn't move. What were they talking about? What would I never see coming? "The accident has to look real," Sheila added. "And when her parents are gone, everything will be ours."
My legs almost gave out. Accident? My parents?
"I don't know if I can do this," Jayden said.
"You don't have a choice," Sheila's voice was like ice. "Not if you want your family to stay safe."
I pressed my hand over my mouth to keep from yelling. This couldn't be real. This had to be a nightmare.
Then I heard footsteps coming toward the door.
They were finished talking. They were coming out.
And I was standing right where they would see me.