Chapter 2

Cecily McNeil POV:

The ninety-ninth handbag, the Himalayan Hermès Kelly, joined its brethren in the walk-in closet. I placed it on its designated shelf, a silent tombstone for another piece of my broken marriage. Each bag, a monument to Harris's infidelity, a glittering trophy of my own emotional defeat. Ninety-nine times, he had bought his way out of trouble, and ninety-nine times, I had accepted the offering, hoping each time would be the last.

I ran my hand over the smooth leather of the adjacent bags. A collection built on lies and guilt. The sheer volume of them, the exorbitant value, mocked me. They were supposed to make me feel cherished, protected, but all they did was remind me of the hollow nature of our life together. They were proof that he valued appearances and material possessions more than my feelings, more than our vows.

I remembered the very first one. A classic Chanel flap bag. It was early in our marriage, after a particularly late night "business dinner" that stretched into the dawn. He' d presented it with a sheepish grin, claiming it was a spontaneous gift, a token of his love. "You looked so stunning at the gala last night, darling," he' d cooed, "I just thought you deserved something beautiful to match." I had beamed, naive and utterly infatuated, believing his words, his gestures. I had thought it was a symbol of his affection, not a cover-up.

But then the pattern began. First, it was a few times a year. Then, with increasing frequency, the bags appeared. The excuses became flimsier, the apologies more rehearsed. The gifts escalated in rarity and price, as if the cost directly correlated to the depth of his transgression. The initial joy I felt with the first bag had long since curdled into a bitter indifference. Now, looking at the entire collection, it was less about luxury and more about an emotional tally.

Ninety-nine. A number that screamed failure, a decade of my life reduced to a glittering display of purchased forgiveness. A quiet, firm resolve settled deep within me. This was the last one. The hundredth bag, when it inevitably came, would mark the end. The final straw. The line in the sand I should have drawn years ago.

My phone buzzed, pulling me from my morbid introspection. The monitoring app. An audio transmission. My heart hammered against my ribs, a sudden, frantic drum. I tapped the screen.

Jessica' s voice, a little too saccharine, a little too loud, filled the silent room. "Oh, Harris, darling, I hope Cecily isn't giving you too much trouble. She can be so... demanding."

My jaw tightened. Demanding. Was that what he told her? That his wife, after years of silent suffering, was demanding for simply expecting basic respect?

"She's fine, Jess," Harris's voice, weary but tinged with that familiar, indulgent tone. "Just a little under the weather. Nothing to worry about." He sounded like he was trying to reassure a child. They were in a car. I could hear the faint hum of the engine, the distant city sounds. He was indeed in Miami. The app confirmed his location.

"Under the weather?" Jessica scoffed lightly. "Well, I certainly hope you're not 'under the weather' tonight, my love. I've got a surprise for you." Her voice dropped an octave, laced with a suggestive purr. "How are you feeling, really? After... you know."

"I'm fine, Jess. Just tired. It's been a long day." Harris's voice was a little strained now.

"Oh, poor baby," she cooed. "You hate flying, don't you? But it was worth it, wasn't it? Our little getaway. Just like old times." There was a pause, filled with rustling sounds, a soft giggle. "Still, she really did a number on you, didn't she? Those bags, all those years. I mean, who needs that many handbags? It' s just... gauche, darling. Really."

My blood ran cold. She was talking about my bags. The ninety-nine bags he' d given me. And she was mocking them, mocking me. The sheer audacity.

"Don't, Jess," Harris said, a hint of steel in his voice. "Cecily is still my wife. And those bags... they're just a way to keep things civil." A way to keep things civil. Not love. Not apology. Just civility. My stomach clenched.

"Civil," Jessica repeated, her tone dripping with fake sympathy. "Of course. Well, I'm glad we don't have to be 'civil,' aren't you?" Another pause, a soft sigh, followed by a suggestive gasp. "Mmm, you always were the best at that, my love."

A wave of nausea hit me, stronger than before. The sound of their intimate conversation, the soft moans, the hushed words of affection, painted a vivid, sickening picture in my mind. He was with her. Again. While I was home, alone, picking up the pieces of my shattered life, he was indulging in their sordid affair. My hands clenched, my knuckles white.

The sounds faded into a prolonged silence, punctuated only by the occasional rustle. It felt like an eternity, but I couldn't bring myself to turn it off. I needed to hear every last detail, to know the full extent of his betrayal, to burn it into my memory so there would be no going back.

Finally, the rustling resumed, followed by Jessica's voice, a little breathless. "Harris, darling, you promised, didn' t you? About... Buttons."

Harris sighed, a long, drawn-out sound. "Jess, we talked about this. It's... delicate."

"But you promised!" Her voice took on a whiny, petulant edge. "You said you'd make sure Buttons had the best resting place. Somewhere special. Somewhere that symbolized... our love."

Buttons. The name sent a chill down my spine. Buttons was her deceased cat. The one she' d flaunted all over Instagram, the one she' d claimed was her soulmate, the one she' d cried over for weeks. And now, this. A special resting place. What could possibly be so delicate?

"I know, I know," Harris conceded, his voice softer now, appeasing. "And I will. Just... not there. Anywhere but there."

"But why not?" Jessica whined. "It's perfect! Right next to Cecily's mother. They can keep each other company. And it would really show her who's boss, wouldn't it? A little reminder. A sign of our... permanence." Her words, light and airy, carried a chilling undertone. A sign of their permanence. A direct psychological attack.

"Jess, that's incredibly insensitive," Harris said, his voice laced with exasperation. "It's my father-in-law's plot. It's reserved for Arvel. Cecily would kill me." He sounded annoyed, but not entirely against the idea. Just the location.

"Oh, Arvel's so old, he won't even notice," Jessica giggled. "And it's not like he's going anywhere soon, is he? Besides, it would be so romantic. Our little Buttons, forever nestled with her mom. And it's such a beautiful, private spot. No one would ever know."

My breath hitched. My father's plot. The spot reserved for Arvel McNeil, my beloved father, next to my mother, Eleanor. A sacred place, a symbol of our family' s history, our enduring love. And she wanted to bury her cat there? To assert her dominance, to desecrate my family's legacy? The audacity, the malice of it was astounding.

"Fine, Jess, fine," Harris eventually said, his voice clipped, resigned. It was the sound of a man giving in, again. "But you have to promise me, no one can ever find out. Especially Cecily. She'd divorce me."

"Oh, she'd divorce you anyway, darling," Jessica purred. "You know how she is. All those bags, and still so dramatic." Then she laughed, a triumphant, mocking sound that echoed in the silent room. "But don't worry, my love. Our secret. Just between us."

The audio then cut out abruptly. He must have entered a private area, a bathroom perhaps, where he wouldn't risk being overheard or monitored. The silence that followed was deafening, a thick blanket of despair. My heart raced, a frantic bird trapped in a cage. My father's plot. My mother's side. The sheer, unadulterated disrespect.

Sleep was impossible. The image of Jessica, smirking, burying her cat in my family's sacred ground, next to my mother, next to my living father's reserved spot, played on an endless loop in my mind. It was a calculated act of malice, a declaration of war. And I, Cecily McNeil, was ready to fight.