NovelStartChapter 14
Camille's point of view
Victoria watched with unreadable eyes as Dr. Torres ledto the large bathroom. A white cloth covered the full-
length mirror. The doctor positionedcarefully, standing slightly behind my right shoulder.
"Remember," she said gently, "what you see today is still healing. There's swelling, bruising. The final results.
won't be visible for weeks. But you'll get a first impression of your new appearance."
With that, she pulled away the cloth.
| gasped.
The woman in the mirror was me, but not me. My face but enhanced in ways that transformed my entire
appearance. My cheekbones cast elegant shadows beneath them, giving my face a sculpted quality it ha Even
through residual swelling and
faint bruising, | could see the changes Dr. Torres had created. Subtle Individually, powerful collectively. My lips
had a new definition, not obviously augmented but somehow more present. My nose, always slight a perfect
straight bridge.
| raised a hand to my face, watching my reflection do the same. The stranger in the mirror touched her cheek
with trembling fingers.
"What do you think?" Dr. Torres asked quietly.
Words failed me. This new face looked.. strong. Confident. The kind of face that belonged on magazine covers or
in boardrooms. The kind of face people remembered.
"It's..." | swallowed hard. "I hardly recognize myself."
"That's partly the swelling," Dr. Torres assured me. "And partly the shock of change. Your brain needs tto
adjust to the new image. In a few
weeks, this will feel like you. The real you."
But whichwas real? The woman I'd been before, or this new creation designed for power?
Victoria stepped forward, studying my reflection with critical eyes. Then, something rare happened, she smiled.
A genuine expression of approval that transformed her usually stern face. "Perfect," she said simply. "Exactly
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtwhat we needed."
Something warm bloomed in my chest at her approval, a feeling | immediately tried to suppress. | shouldn't
crave her validation this way. Shouldn't feel this rush of pleasure at her acceptance. Yet | did. Dr. Torres detailed
the continuing care routine, medications, specialized skincare, follow-
up appointments. | listened with half an ear, still captivated by the stranger in the mirror who now wore my
expressions.
Later, after Victoria and Dr. Torres had gone, | sat alone in the recovery suite, lights dimmed as evening fell.
Every few minutes, 1
found myself reaching for the small hand mirror beside my bed, checking to see if the face I'd earlier was still
there. Still mine.
seen
Each time, those new eyes looked back at me, harder, sharper, more penetrating than the eyes I'd known all my
life. Eyes that no longer pleaded for love or acceptance. Eyes that demanded respect. As night deepened,
exhaustion finally pulledtoward sleep. But as consciousness faded, images began forming
in the darkness behind my eyelids, Dreams taking shape, vivid and disturbing
| stood on a bridge, rain pouring down around me. Below, dark water churned angrily. Across fromstood
Rose," her perfect face contorted with fear. Between us, a broken railing gaped like an open mouth. "Please,"
Rose begged, backing away from me. "Camille, please, it wasn't supposed to happen like this!"
e until her back
In the dream, | moved toward her, my new face reflected in her terrified eyes. She kept retreating hit the
damaged railing. It creaked ominously.
"You took everything from me," dream-
"I'm sorry!" Rose cried, genuine terror in her voice as the railing began giving way behind her. "I'll fix it! I'll make
it right!"
But it was too late. The railing snapped. Rose screamed as she fell backward, hands grasping empty air. |
watched her plummet toward the dark water below, her scream cutting off as she hit the surface and dis 1
should have felt horror. Should have rushed to the edge, called for help, tried to save her. Instead, dream—
| woke with a gasp, heart racing, sheets tangled around my legs. The dream had felt so real, the rain on my skin,
the sound of the railing breaking, Rose's scream as she fell. But what disturbedmost wasn't | hadn't wanted
to save my sister. | had wanted to watch her drown.
The realization sentstumbling to the bathroom, where splashed cold water on my face, my new face, before
looking up at my reflection in the mirror. In the harsh bathroom light, with water dripping from my
Not just because of the surgical changes, the swelling, the bruises fading to yellow. Something in my eyes had
changed too. Something harder, colder. Something that had watched Rose drown in my dream an
1 backed away from the mirror, suddenly afraid of what | saw there. Not the physical changes, but the
transformation happening
inside. Was this who | was becoming? Someone who could dream of her own sister's death and feel pleasure
rather than horror?
Sleep cludedfor the rest of the night. | sat by the window, watching city lights
glitter in the darkness, trying to untangle the knot of emotions inside me. By dawn, I'd reached no conclusions,
just a dull acceptance that something fundamental was shifting within me. Something that might be Two more
days passed in the recovery suite before Victoria declared it tto return to the mansion. The bruising had
faded enough to be covered by makeup, the swelling reduced to subtle puffiness only | wo
As James drove us
back, Victoria reviewed upcoming appointments on her tablet. "The board wants to officially announce you as my
heir at next quarter's shareholders meeting. We'll need professional portraits before then. Dr. To | nodded, only
half listening, still caught in thoughts of my disturbing dream.
"Your silence suggests either disinterest or distraction," Victoria observed, setting aside her tablet. "Which is it?"
| turned from the window to face her. "I had a dream about Rose. About watching her drown and.. Chaple
| expected judgment, perhaps even concern about my psychological state. Instead, Victoria's expression
remained neutral, assessing
"And this troubles you?"
“Shouldn't it?” | asked. "She's still my sister."
"Is she?" Victoria's question hung in the air between us. "The woman who orchestrated your husband's betrayal?
Who manipulated your parents against you for years? Who celebrated while the world thought y Put that way, it
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmsounded rational, even obvious. But something still twisted uncomfortably in my stomach.
"It's not about forgiveness," | said slowly. "It's about who m becoming. The person in that dream, the one who
smiled while watching her sister drown, | didn't recognize hier
Victoria studiedfor a long moment before responding. "Transformation isn't just physical, Camille. Your face
changes, yes, but so does your heart. Your mind. Your soul, if you believe in such things." She gestured to my
altered features. "What Dr. Torres did was merely the external manifestation of an internal process already
underway. The woman who can dismantle Rose's world cannot be the swoma The car pulled into the
mansion's driveway, gravel crunching beneath the tires, Victoria gathered her things, preparing to exit, but
paused before opening her door.
"Your dream doesn't show corruption," she said, her voice unexpectedly gentle. "It shows preparation. Your mind
is readying itself for what your heart still resists."
With that, she stepped from the car, leavingto follow when ready.
That night, in my suite at the mansion, | stood before the full-
length mirror in my bathroom, lights bright enough to hide nothing. Unwrapped the soft bandage Dr. Torres had
applied for sleeping. Studied every changed angle of my face with critical eyes.
The woman looking back atseemed both familiar and foreign. | recognized the core of my features, the basic
blueprint remained. But the enhancements had transformedinto someone who commanded frame.
Now | would learn the same. But for a different purpose.
Turning away from the mirror, | moved to my desk where files awaited review, Rose's growing fashion business,
Stefan's latest projects, my parents’ social calendar. Information gathered by Victoria's team, deli Rose's designs
were good, better than I'd expected. She had genuine talent beneath the manipulative exterior. Her
business plan showed surprising acumen. The investor meetings lined up for the coming months represented
real opportunity for growth.
All of which would make it more satisfying when | eventually controlled whether she succeeded or failed.
The thought should have disturbed me. A month ago, it would have. Now, it felt like stepping into a role | was
born to play.
| closed the files and returned to the mirror, studying my new face one more time. In the dream, Rose had looked
into these eyes and seen something that terrified her. Soon, that dream would becreality. "We're not erasing
you," Dr. Torres had said. "We're amplifying your power."
She was right. The face looking back atnow wasn't a disguise. It was a revelation. The woman | might have.
becnaturally, if life hadn't beatendown for so many years. If Rose hadn't systematically
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