LuniVeil03
Rule #1: Never willingly put yourself in a cage. Rule #2: Good girls don't bleed-they make sure the other person does.
To the rest of the world, sixteen-year-old Alex is just another quiet orphan being taken in by her estranged father's pristine, wealthy family. Her stepmother, Lilith, expects a grateful, submissive charity case. Her stepsister, Genevieve, expects a pushover to torment.
They have no idea who just moved under their roof.
Trained from childhood in tactical survival and dead-eyed precision, Alex doesn't process fear-she processes variables. Every smile is a distraction, every hallway is an escape route, and every cruel insult from her new family is logged as potential collateral. She isn't here to fit in; she's here to survive, following the strict, brutal code drilled into her head by a mother who disappeared into the shadows.
When Lilith tries to banish her to the cramped storage room, Alex makes her first calculated move: she takes the master guest suite instead. It's a subtle declaration of war, and as the psychological mind games escalate, Lilith and Genevieve realize too late that the quiet girl in their house isn't a victim waiting to be broken.
She's a predator executing a plan-and rule number one is never backing down.