Success changed everything. The smell of cheap coffee in their old, cramped kitchen was a distant memory. Now, the Bel V studio smelled like expensive lilies, fresh paint, and the cold, clean air of a high-rise building.
Isabella and Victoria were rich. They had a penthouse with marble floors, gold-lined invitations to every party, and cars that gleamed like polished glass. To the world, they were best friends winning together. But inside the studio, the air was growing cold.
Victoria couldn't stop thinking about what Ellie had said at the club. The words "She'll leave you behind" felt like a thorn stuck in her skin. Every time a reporter asked Isabella a question and ignored Victoria, that thorn pushed deeper. Victoria began to feel like a ghost in a beautiful suit. She smiled for the cameras, but inside, a dark hunger was growing.
A few weeks later, they sat in the Bel V office. A stack of legal papers lay on a heavy marble table. Isabella looked tired, but her eyes were firm.
"We need to make the company official, Vic," Isabella said softly. "I've been thinking about the shares. I want a 55 percent stake. You take 45."
Snap. The pen in Victoria's hand broke in two. "55? We've always been equal, Bella. I handle the money. I handle the people. Without me, no one would even see your sketches."
"I know that," Isabella said, her voice cracking with emotion. "But I am the one sewing until 4:00 AM. My soul is in these clothes. The design is the heart of Bel V. It deserves more."
Victoria didn't see her best friend anymore. She saw a boss looking down on her. "You think you're better than me," she whispered.
The silence that followed was heavy. From that day on, the studio felt like a battlefield. They stopped sharing jokes. They stopped eating together. Victoria stopped looking at Isabella's sketchbook with love. Now, she looked at it with greed.
Soon after, Isabella finished her masterpiece: a book of one hundred new designs. She was so proud of it. She brought it to Victoria, hoping it would fix their friendship. "Look at these, Vic. We can build our future on this."
But Victoria didn't want to build with Isabella. She wanted to be the only star.
That night, while Isabella was busy, Victoria took the best design in the book—a stunning, crimson gown. She secretly sent a photo of it to Ellie. She told Ellie to use it for the upcoming fashion gala and pretend it was a secret project. Victoria wanted to prove that Isabella wasn't the only "genius."
The night of the gala was a nightmare. Isabella was happy, waiting to see her work, until Ellie walked into the room. She was wearing the crimson gown. The crowd gasped at the beauty of the dress, but Isabella felt like she had been punched in the stomach. She recognized every stitch.
After the gala, the two women went back to the luxury villa. Isabella was shaking with hurt.
"How could you steal from me?" Isabella cried, her eyes red from tears. "I trusted you with my life!"
"I made you!" Victoria screamed back. Her face was twisted with a rage she had hidden for years. "You'd be nothing without me!"
They stood at the top of the grand stone staircase. The argument was jagged and mean. Isabella reached out to grab Victoria's arm, wanting her to just listen, but Victoria lashed out. She pushed Isabella away with all her strength.
Isabella's foot slipped.
She fell backward. It felt like time slowed down. Thud. Thud. Thud. Her body hit the hard steps until she landed at the bottom, perfectly still. A small pool of blood began to spread across the white marble.
Victoria stood at the top, frozen. Her breath came in short, jagged gasps. "Bella?" she whispered into the dark.
Then, she heard a small sound. She turned and saw five-year-old Laura standing in the shadows. The little girl's eyes were wide with terror. She had seen everything.
"Laura, wait!" Victoria stepped toward her, but the child screamed and ran out the front door into the rainy night.
Victoria chased her, panic blinding her. Laura ran toward the road, her small feet splashing in the puddles. Suddenly, a car sped around the corner. There was a sickening screech of tires and a dull thud.
Victoria fell to her knees as she watched the small body go limp. She was sure the girl was dead. Shaking and crying, Victoria did something terrible. She picked up the child and carried her into the deep woods nearby, hiding her under thick bushes. She hoped the forest would hide her sins forever.
The Thompson Family
But Laura wasn't dead.
Nearby, a wealthy family called the Thompsons were camping. Their young son, Noah, heard a soft whimper. He led his parents to the bushes, where they found the bloody, broken girl.
They rushed her to the hospital. When Laura woke up, her mind was a blank slate. The trauma had wiped her memory clean. She didn't know her name. She didn't know she had a sister. The Thompsons were kind people with a lot of money, and they decided to adopt her. They gave her a new name and a new life, far away from the shadows of her past.
Back at the villa, the police called Isabella's death an "accident." Victoria cried fake tears and acted like a grieving sister. She inherited everything—the studio, the money, and the book of one hundred designs.
Victoria became the "Queen of Fashion," using Isabella's stolen ideas to stay famous. She thought she was safe. She thought the past was buried.
She didn't know that soon, Isabella would open her eyes again in a new body. And this time, Isabella wasn't coming back for a partnership. She was coming back for blood.