When you hate soone, you rember them. Not just what they did, but every detail of their face. Every trauma they put you through, every emotion they made you feel.
And Jessa hated that woman—her brother’s woman—so much that she often had nightmares about her. She hated her and Jason so much that she wished for their deaths. And if they died, she knew she would laugh at their graves and celebrate.
They—Jason and Priscilla—took everything from her. Their parents, their ho, her future—her life.
The rage and trauma took a long ti to heal. A very long ti, with the help of a patient man who was Jessa’s only saving grace. Had it not been for Lester, she knew that, if not prison, she would have ended up living a life far different from the one she had before eting Allison. After all, she lost her parents because of her brother and that woman. And she lost her ho because they sold it for their gambling addiction.
That was why Jessa almost couldn’t bring herself to take in the child said to be Priscilla and Jason’s. Because in that mont, it reopened all the scars she had painstakingly concealed. It dragged back all the trauma she had endured for years. Had it not been for Lester’s insistence, she would never have brought Penny ho. She would’ve put her up for adoption instead. But Lester... he wanted to keep the child.
Fortunately, despite the rough start, Penny proved useful. She helped the family, so much so that Jessa almost saw herself in her. It wasn’t love at first sight—far from it. At first, Jessa only saw Penny as a tool, soone who could bring money into the household. But over ti, she began to see that Penny was not Jason. Not Priscilla. And slowly, Jessa opened her heart to the little piglet, who seed happy as long as she was fed.
It took ti, courage, and heart for Jessa to understand that the child was innocent. That Penny did not deserve the anger her parents had caused. That was why she had been able to straighten Nina out—because she had learned from those thirteen years Penny had been under her care.
But... if an innocent child could rip open old wounds simply by existing as Jason and Priscilla’s daughter, what would happen if the very person who had ruined her life suddenly showed up at her doorstep?
---
[Present Ti]
"Priscilla."
A na Jessa never thought she would utter again slipped past her lips. Her eyes widened, pupils contracting as she held her breath in utter shock.
The woman standing before her was tanner than she rembered. Her face was lined with deep wrinkles, aging her beyond her years. And yet, despite the sagging skin, Jessa could still see it—that young, pretty, vicious lying bitch superimposed over Priscilla’s face.
"It’s actually you," she whispered, unable to believe what she was seeing. Priscilla was supposed to be dead. She had died in childbirth.
Priscilla smiled wryly. "Jessica," she murmured. "It’s good to see you again."
Jessa’s breath hitched. Even her voice sounded almost the sa—just raspier, roughened by ti.
Then, it hit her. And her eyes blazed with fury.
"What are you doing here?!" she spat through gritted teeth. "You’re supposed to be dead!"
"Jessa, I know you have a lot of questions—"
"The only question I have right now is where the hell did you get the nerve to show your face in front of ?!" Jessa’s voice rose in a shriek, raw and trembling with rage. "I don’t care how you’re alive when you were supposed to be dead. Knowing what kind of lying whore you are, I’m not even surprised that you’d fake your death just to escape responsibility. But how dare you stand in front of after everything you’ve done?!"
"Jessa, let explain—"
Priscilla reached for her, but Jessa swatted her hand away. No, she did more than that. She shoved her down with all the strength she had.
Priscilla collapsed onto the ground with a grunt.
Jessa glared down at her, her entire body trembling with rage. "Get out of my sight," she seethed, her chest heaving. "Get out of my sight and don’t ever co near again. If I were you, I’d leave before I kill you where you stand."
Priscilla’s lips quivered, but she didn’t move.
"You don’t want to go!?" Jessa snarled, turning back toward her house. If she grabbed sothing—anything—she could end this right now. The longer she looked at Priscilla, the redder her vision beca.
"Fine! You don’t want to go? Then stay right there! I’ll butcher you where you stand!"
Jessa stord inside, but she barely made it a few steps before Priscilla’s voice rang out.
"I know you hate , Jessica," she called out, louder this ti. "But I didn’t lie just to abandon my daughter!"
Jessa froze.
"You have no idea how painful it was for to leave her behind," Priscilla continued, her voice sharper now. "But I’m here to take her back. My Penelope back."
Jessa turned slowly, her neck twisting like rusted tal. Her gaze locked on the open gate, her fingers twitching.
Then, sothing inside her snapped.
"I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!" she shrieked.
Her eyes darted around wildly. She needed sothing—anything. Her hands found the broomstick. Good enough. Without thinking, she lunged.
"CO HERE, YOU BITCH! I’M GOING TO KILL YOU TODAY!"
Priscilla turned and ran.
"GO ON, RUN!" Jessa scread after her, brandishing the broomstick. "CO BACK HERE AGAIN, AND I SWEAR TO GOD I’LL KILL YOU!"
She panted, her chest tight, body trembling from the sheer force of her anger.
Her gaze flicked to the street. A few neighbors were peeking out of their windows and doorways.
Jessa’s lip curled. "WHAT?! YOU WANT A PIECE OF , TOO?!"
The windows slamd shut. Doors clicked closed.
Jessa scoffed. "Hah." She wiped the stray hairs from her sweaty face, eyes still blazing. Then she turned back toward the direction Priscilla had fled, grinding her teeth.
"That bitch..." she growled under her breath. "If she starts bothering Nina... or Penny... I swear, I’ll kill her for real this ti."
She inhaled sharply, then spat on the ground.
"She doesn’t even know her own daughter’s na," she sneered. "That lying vixen. Ugh!"
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