Chapter 16

SARAH

I stared at her, confused and taken aback. “What do you mean, replacement for a ghost?” I managed to ask, my voice shaky.

She smirked, taking a step closer to me. “Oh, you don’t know, do you?” She relished the moment, enjoying my discomfort. “Noelle was Marco’s… special friend, let’s say. She had everything—beauty, class, and sophistication. Everything you lack.”

My heart pounded in my chest. I felt a mix of confusion and anger boiling up inside me. “Noelle? “Special friend?” I repeated, my voice trembling. “What are you talking about?”

She chuckled, a cold, mocking sound. “You really are clueless, aren’t you? Noelle was the one who mattered, the one who—”

“Isabella!” Marco’s voice cut through the air like a knife, sharp and unyielding.

She spun around, her demeanor changing in an instant. She threw herself at Marco, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Marco, darling, I was just having a little chat with your… new addition,” she said, her voice dripping with sweetness.

Marco bar