Chapter 2 2

The rain at the cemetery was relentless. It wasn't a cleansing rain; it was a cold, muddy deluge that turned the ground into a sludge of grey and brown. The sky was the color of a bruise.

Evangeline stood by the open grave. Her black dress was soaked through, plastering to her skin, chilling her to the bone. She didn't have an umbrella. She hadn't thought to bring one, and no one had offered to share theirs.

The priest's voice was a drone against the sound of the falling rain, reciting prayers that felt empty and hollow. Evangeline stared at the mahogany casket being lowered into the wet earth. It was a nice casket-Cedric had paid for the best, throwing money at the problem as he always did-but it didn't change the fact that Nana was in a box, going into the ground.

Cedric stood ten feet away. He was dry. A driver in a uniform held a massive black umbrella over him. Cedric stood with his hands clasped in front of him, his face an impassive mask. He looked like a statue carved from ice.

Evangeline stepped forward as the casket settled. She pulled a single white rose from her pocket. The petals were wet with rain and her own tears.

"Goodbye, Nana," she whispered, her voice cracking. "I love you."

She tossed the rose. It landed softly on the wood with a wet thud.

Just as the priest said the final "Amen," the sound of tires crunching on gravel shattered the solemnity.

A sleek, stretched black limousine pulled up aggressively close to the burial site, its tires splashing mud onto the grass. The engine hummed with an arrogant power before cutting off.

Evangeline wiped the rain from her eyes, squinting. Every muscle in her body tensed.

The rear door opened. A pair of stiletto heels stepped into the mud, followed by legs that were far too exposed for a funeral.

Chloie Serrano emerged.

She was wearing black, technically. But the dress was tight, lace-paneled, and cut low in the front. She wore a fascinator hat with a small veil that did nothing to hide her perfectly made-up face.

Evangeline's hands clenched into fists at her sides. Her nails dug into her palms so hard she felt the skin break.

Chloie walked towards the grave, stepping carefully to avoid sinking into the mud. She held a lace handkerchief to her eyes, dabbing at tears that weren't there. She looked like a tragic heroine from a bad movie.

Cedric moved.

He didn't move to block her. He didn't move to tell her to leave. He stepped away from his driver, took the umbrella, and walked to meet her. He offered Chloie his arm, shielding her from the rain, leaving himself partially exposed.

The betrayal was visceral. It felt like a knife twisting in Evangeline's gut.

Evangeline intercepted them before they could reach the grave. She stepped directly into their path, mud splashing over her ankles.

"Get out," Evangeline said. Her voice was low, shaking with a rage she could no longer contain.

Chloie gasped theatrically, leaning her weight against Cedric. She looked up at him with wide, fearful eyes. "Cedric, I just wanted to pay my respects."

"You killed her," Evangeline accused, stepping closer. "You were there. You stressed her out. Her heart couldn't take it, and you knew that!"

"Evangeline!" Cedric's voice was a sharp bark. He stepped between the two women, using his body as a shield for Chloie. "Stop this. Now."

"She was in the room, Cedric! I smelled her perfume!"

"I... I did visit," Chloie sobbed, burying her face in Cedric's shoulder. "I went to bring her a gift basket. I wanted to make peace for your sake, Cedric. But she was sleeping, so I left it with the nurse and walked out. I didn't do anything!"

"Liar!" Evangeline screamed. She raised her hand, blind instinct taking over, wanting to wipe that fake sorrow off Chloie's face.

Her hand never connected.

Cedric caught her wrist in mid-air. His grip was iron-hard, his fingers digging into her delicate bones. His skin was cold.

He looked down at her, and the disappointment in his eyes was worse than hatred. It was a look reserved for a misbehaving child or a madwoman.

"You are embarrassing yourself," Cedric hissed, his voice low and dangerous. "You are embarrassing the Malone family name. Pull yourself together, or go wait in the car."

Evangeline stared at him. The man she had loved. The man she had tried so hard to please. He was holding her wrist to protect the woman who had tormented her. He cared more about the family name than the fact that his wife was burying her only relative.

"Let go of me," Evangeline whispered.

Cedric released her wrist with a shove, as if touching her was distasteful. Evangeline stumbled back, her heels slipping in the mud. She almost fell, catching her balance at the last second.

The few other mourners-distant relatives, old neighbors-were whispering. They looked at Evangeline with pity and judgment. The unstable wife. The jealous woman making a scene at a funeral.

Chloie peeked out from behind Cedric's shoulder. For a split second, when Cedric turned to glare at the priest to continue, Chloie's lips curled up. A small, subtle smile. A victory lap.

She placed a bouquet of expensive lilies on the grave, right over Evangeline's single rose, crushing it.

Two hours later, the rain had stopped, leaving the world grey and damp. Evangeline stood in the parking lot of the cemetery, leaning against the hood of a police cruiser.

Detective Miller sighed, closing his notebook with a snap. He looked tired.

"Mrs. Malone, I understand you're grieving," he said, his tone patronizingly gentle. "But the autopsy was clear. Cardiac arrest due to advanced age and underlying heart condition. Natural causes."

"It wasn't natural," Evangeline insisted, her arms crossed tightly over her chest to stop the shivering. "Stress can induce a heart attack. If Chloie Serrano went in there and threatened her..."

"Stress isn't a murder weapon in the eyes of the law, ma'am. Unless you have video of her physically attacking your grandmother, there is no crime here."

"Then check the cameras!" Evangeline demanded. "The hospital has security."

"We checked," Miller said, looking away. "The system suffered a power surge yesterday. Wiped the local drive and corrupted the cloud backup for that entire wing. From 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Bad timing."

Evangeline felt the blood drain from her face. Bad timing. Or expensive timing. The kind of coincidence that money could buy.

She looked across the parking lot. Cedric was standing by the open door of his limousine. Chloie was sitting inside, but the door was open. Cedric was handing her a fresh handkerchief, leaning in to say something that looked soft. Tender.

He had never looked at Evangeline like that. Not once in three years.

"So that's it?" Evangeline asked the detective. "She gets away with it because the cameras were conveniently wiped?"

"There's no 'it' to get away with, Mrs. Malone. Go home. Get some rest."

The detective got into his car and drove away.

Evangeline stood alone in the mud. She looked at her hands. They were dirty, trembling, and empty.

She looked at her left hand. The diamond wedding band glinted in the dull light. It felt heavy. It felt like a shackle.

She had tried to be the perfect wife. She had tried to be invisible, supportive, grateful. And it had gotten her nothing but a dead grandmother and a husband who protected her enemy.

The sadness that had been drowning her began to recede, replaced by a cold, hard resolve. It settled in her chest like a stone.

If the law wouldn't help her, if Cedric wouldn't protect her, she had to do it herself.

Evangeline gripped the ring. With a sharp tug, she slid it off her finger. The skin underneath was pale, marked by the years of wearing it.

She shoved the ring into her pocket.

She walked to her own car, her head high. She wasn't Mrs. Malone anymore. She was just Evangeline. And she was going to war.