Roman's wife, Alexandra, passed away when their daughter, Alice, was only ten years old. She had always been full of life, kind and beautiful, but a long illness had withered her health and ravaged the features of the once-stunning woman.
The news of his wife's passing caught Roman completely off guard. For a long time, he couldn't bring himself to believe she was really gone. He was consumed by grief, dying of loneliness and tormented by a crushing sense of guilt.
When Alexandra passed, Roman wasn't even in town. He had been away on a business trip, and it was something he could never quite forgive himself for.
"Alexandra was a wonderful woman, Roman. But you have to stop blaming yourself and start living again," Sarah, his wife's closest friend, would tell him.
"I know I have to move on. I get it. I just... I can't," Roman would reply, clutching his head in his hands.
"Stop eating yourself alive. Pull yourself together. You have a daughter growing up, and more than anything, she needs you," Sarah insisted.
Two years passed since Alexandra's death. In time, Roman found his footing again, managing the household, throwing himself into work, and looking after Alice as she grew. During a summer vacation at the coast, he met Bridget. Before anyone realized what was happening, the two of them had become inseparable.
"I'd like you to meet someone," Roman told his daughter, bringing a young, attractive woman into the house. "This is Bridget. She's very sweet and kind, and your dad likes her very much."
"You can just call me Bridget," his companion corrected gently.
"I don't want any 'new' people here," Alice said, pouting. "Tell her to leave."
"Honey, that's not nice. You don't even know her yet. She's wonderful. Trust me, you'll like her."
"I want her to go," Alice said, pointing a finger toward the door.
"It's alright, darling, we'll get along just fine. I have a way with children," the young woman said to Roman. Then, leaning down right to the girl's ear, she whispered coldly, "Listen here, you little brat. Whether you like it or not, your father and I are going to live together. So either stay out of my way, or I will make your life a living hell."
After those words, Bridget flashed a sweet, artificial smile, while Alice gasped in terror.
"She's a witch," the girl thought.
***
For several months, Bridget visited regularly. Sometimes she stayed the night. Every time she came, she brought Alice gifts—toys, sweets, clothes. But the girl stubbornly refused to let her into her life.
Roman noticed that all the toys his new girlfriend bought were left sitting in the closet, unopened. It was the same with the candy; Roman ended up eating the treats himself or giving them away to the neighborhood kids.
"How are things, sweetheart?" he asked the girl one day, sitting her down beside him.
"Everything's fine, Dad."
"Honey, you know how much I care about Bridget. I'd really love for the two of you to be friends."
"No, Dad. I don't want to be her friend. She's mean," the girl suddenly cried out, running off to her room.
"Why are you acting like this? She buys you such beautiful things. Isn't that what every little girl wants?" Roman asked, following her into her room.
"I'm not a little girl anymore! And I want Mom to be here. She would have kicked that horrible woman out a long time ago!"
"Sweetie, Mom left us a long time ago. You know that. She can't come back. I wish she were here with us, too."
"Dad, isn't it fine with just the two of us? Why do we need her?" the girl asked, looking into her father's tired eyes.
"Alice, life isn't that simple. I love our time together, but a house needs a woman's touch. Someone to cook nice meals, help you with your hair, help with your homework, and cheer you up when you're sad. She can't replace your mother, I know, but we need her. I need her."
"Well, I don't!" With that, the girl ran out of the house in tears.
Two hours later, Sarah called Roman. She told him that Alice had shown up at her place, sobbing.
"I tried to talk to her, but she won't hear a word about your Bridget. Are you sure you really know this woman? Children are usually more intuitive than we are. Is it possible you've misjudged her?"
"Not you too? Have you and Alice teamed up against me? I love Bridget, and I want her to move in. Period."
"Fine. Just be careful you don't regret it later."
***
A few weeks later, Bridget moved in. She brought so many clothes they couldn't fit into the bedroom closet. She ended up taking over half of Alice's dresser and wardrobe.
"Dad, she took all my space. Where am I supposed to put my things?"
"Don't worry, honey. We'll buy a big new wardrobe soon, and you'll get your space back."
But for some reason, the wardrobe was never bought. Instead, they bought a two-story scratching post with a lounge, a plush cat bed, and a hanging wicker chair for Bridget's Siamese cat. Madelyn was beautiful, but she was vicious and temperamental. She frequently bit and scratched Alice, ruined her toys, and even lunged at her in the middle of the night.
"Dad, that thing isn't a pet, it's a monster."
"Stop it, Alice. Madelyn just isn't used to you yet. Once she gets to know you, she'll be a sweet little house cat," Roman reassured her.
Perhaps that would have been true if Madelyn were actually a "good" cat. She didn't just ruin furniture; she frequently shredded the young girl's notebooks and textbooks. It was as if Madelyn were hunting her. She would ambush the girl when she walked down the hallway or jump onto her bed at night. Alice lived in a constant state of fear.
One afternoon, the girl was walking from the kitchen when the cat cornered her in the living room. As she stepped closer, the animal lunged at her legs, biting hard.
"Ow! Stop it!" Alice scrambled back, accidentally knocking into a large floor vase. It wobbled, tipped over, and shattered into pieces against the hardwood floor.
"What happened?" Bridget came running at the sound of the crash. "Oh, my God! Don't tell me, you little brat, that you broke my favorite vase. Your father and I brought that back from Greece! I knew it. You did this on purpose, you little wretch!"
"I didn't mean to! It was the cat! She attacked me!" Alice tried to defend herself.
"Madelyn? How dare a nasty thing like you blame her for your own clumsiness? Get to your room. Right now! And you're going without dinner."
"But I'm hungry!"
"Out of my sight!"
Alice went to her room, hurt and angry. She sat on her bed and told Sarah everything over the phone. Meanwhile, Bridget complained to Roman about his daughter's "disobedience," pouting her lips in a show of hurt.
"If it happened the way you said, I'll talk to her. But I'm sure she didn't break it on purpose. Don't worry, we'll buy you a new one."
"She hates me. That's why she does these things. You saw it—she's hated me from the first minute. And here I am, trying to love her like my own daughter."
"Don't be silly. Everyone loves you," Roman comforted her.
***
This wasn't the only time Bridget twisted the facts. She constantly scolded Alice, grew angry over nothing, and made her look bad in front of her father.
"Dad, I need a fall jacket. Last year's is too small," Alice told him one evening.
"Wait, didn't you and Bridget go shopping? Why didn't you get one?"
"Oh, you know how kids are. 'I want this, no I don't.' She drove me absolutely crazy. You have such a difficult child, Roman. She really needs some discipline and manners," Bridget interjected, covering for herself.
"Dad, she's lying! I told her what I needed, but she wouldn't listen. She said we had to buy her things first, and if there was money left, we'd get mine. But there wasn't any left!"
"Stop lying! Roman, do something, your daughter has become such a little liar. Why would I not buy a child clothes if she needed them? That's ridiculous!"
"I don't know who's telling the truth here," Roman sighed. "But I'm tired of the constant fighting. Find a way to get along. Alice, listen to Bridget. And Bridget, don't forget about my daughter. I make the money, and you manage it fairly—not at the expense of other family members."
"Of course, honey. I agree completely."
It always ended the same way: Bridget would smile sweetly at Roman, and as soon as he was gone, she would take her anger out on Alice. The heartbroken girl spent her nights crying into her pillow and her days escaping to Sarah's house.
"Bridget is a witch. She's mean to me all the time. She says no to everything and never buys me what I need. But when Dad's around, she's so 'kind' and 'sweet,'" Alice lamented.
"She sounds very clever and manipulative. You need to be careful around her," Sarah warned.
"Why did Dad pick her? Why didn't he pick you? You're so kind and beautiful. He's known you forever," Alice said, patting Sarah's hand.
"Sweetie, adult life is complicated," Sarah replied with a sad smile.
***
And so they lived, constantly at odds when Roman was away and pretending to be a family when he was home. One day, Alice came home from school early and overheard her stepmother on the phone. Bridget was sitting with her back to the door, talking excitedly. Alice crept up and hid around the corner to listen.
"No, no, Liz, I'm not in love. The big idiot is head over heels for me, though. You know me—I know how to make an impression. He's got money, and he asked me to move in almost immediately. You wouldn't believe this house; it's huge. I'll have to have you over sometime. I just need to get him to marry me, and then I can take a huge chunk of this place in the divorce. I've already got it all figured out."
Alice covered her mouth to keep from gasping in outrage. Suddenly, Madelyn appeared from another room. The cat lunged at the girl's leg, causing her to jump back and knock a heavy book off the coffee table.
"Oh, Liz, someone's here. I'll call you back." Bridget hung up, peered around the corner, and saw Alice.
"Oh... it's you! I didn't know you were home. Go change, wash your hands, and I'll whip something up for you to eat."
"Thanks, but I'm not hungry," the girl lied, slipping into her room like a ghost.
When Roman got home, Alice went straight to him. She told him everything she had heard.
"What are you talking about?"
"I'm telling you exactly what I heard her say!"
At that moment, Bridget joined them.
"Can you explain what's going on? What is all this?" Roman asked her.
"What's what? Your daughter completely misunderstood a private conversation. Besides, she hates me and is desperate to break us up. She's just making things up again."
"I am telling the truth!"
"Bridget, I'm waiting for an explanation."
"I already told you, she's confused. I didn't say anything like that. Oh... oh dear. My head is spinning. I shouldn't be getting this upset right now." Roman rushed to Bridget and caught her in his arms.
"What is it, honey?"
"I took a test today. Roman... I'm pregnant. We're going to have a baby."
"That's wonderful news! Of course, you shouldn't be stressed. Sit down, darling. From now on, no more housework. Don't overexert yourself. I'll hire a housekeeper."
Bridget smiled triumphantly and looked at the girl with pure contempt.
"Dad, are you going to make her leave now?" Alice asked, her voice full of hope.
"Don't be ridiculous, Alice. Very soon, we're going to be a real family. You're going to have a little brother or sister."
"Why won't you believe me, Dad?" Tears welled in the girl's eyes as she retreated to her room.
***
The next day, Alice barely left her room and refused to speak to anyone. Roman kept his word, and a housekeeper named Eileen arrived. Bridget spent the whole day busy with her and ignored the girl completely. When Alice got hungry, she went to the kitchen to put the kettle on the stove. They had an electric kettle, but she wasn't allowed to use it.
"You drink far too much tea. Look at how much the electric bill was this month. We need to be more frugal. Use the stovetop kettle. It's always right there," Bridget had told her.
After putting the kettle on, Alice went back to her room. Bridget was out in the garden with Eileen.
"Let's see what my homework is," Alice muttered. She opened her planner, sat in the living room, and started reading. Then she took out her notebooks and began working.
After a while, she got distracted by a game on her phone. She got so absorbed in it that she didn't realize she was nodding off. She woke up to Bridget's screaming.
"What is wrong with you, you stupid girl?! How could you be so careless? You almost burned the house down!"
Alice snapped her eyes open. Bridget was standing over her. It turned out she had completely forgotten about the kettle. The water had boiled dry, and the heat had scorched the kettle until the bottom, handle, and lid were covered in thick, black soot.
"Do you know this was a gift from my mother? It was precious to me, and you ruined it! Get to your room! I don't want to look at you!"
This time, Bridget outdid herself. She had never yelled so loudly or been so vicious. Alice was terrified. What hurt most was that the woman cared more about a ruined kettle than the fact that Alice could have choked on the smoke. Caught in a whirlwind of emotion, Alice threw a few things into a backpack, grabbed her favorite teddy bear, and slipped out of the house unnoticed.
"I can't stay in the same house as that witch," she thought.
Her feet moved on their own. She walked without looking at anyone, wanting only to get as far away as possible. She didn't even realize how far she'd gone until she looked around and saw unfamiliar houses and streets.
"Where am I?"
Alice found herself in a small park. She sat on a bench and began to cry. In her rush, she hadn't even brought her phone. It was getting colder, and she wrapped her thin windbreaker tighter around her. An elderly woman walking a dog approached her.
"Are you alright, dear? Where are your parents?"
Alice poured her heart out, telling her how her stepmother had screamed at her and how she had run away but was now lost.
The woman turned out to be incredibly kind. She fed the girl some snacks she had with her and then took her to the local police station. Sarah was the first to arrive.
"Oh my God, sweetie! You gave your dad and me such a scare. He's been out of his mind," Sarah said, pulling Alice into a tight hug and kissing the top of her head.
"Is Dad coming?"
"He's on his way. He'll be here any second."
"Is Bridget coming, too?"
"I talked to your father, Alice. He didn't believe us at first, but then he did some checking. It turns out Bridget is a fraud. That isn't even her real name. She has a lot of questions to answer now—to the police." Sarah stroked the girl's hair and smiled.
Roman appeared at the doorway of the station. He immediately scooped the girl up into his arms and swung her around.
"My sweet girl, you terrified me. Don't ever do that again, okay?" He looked at his daughter, then turned his gaze to Sarah.
"And thank you. You didn't give up on her. I was so wrong... and you both were right. But everything is going to be okay now." Roman reached out and squeezed Sarah's shoulder.
Alice turned and smiled. Finally, she was surrounded by the people she actually loved.
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