Genre Ranking
Get the APP HOT
She Left With Her Child's Ashes
img img She Left With Her Child's Ashes img Chapter 2 Death News and Lies
2 Chapters
Chapter 5 Invasion and Perseverance img
Chapter 6 Breakdown and Downfall img
Chapter 7 A Slim Chance img
Chapter 8 Blood and Kiss img
Chapter 9 Made Public img
Chapter 10 Cufflinks img
Chapter 11 Lumiere Jewelry Design Competition img
Chapter 12 Cornered Fight in the Underground Garage img
Chapter 13 Oath Under Tears and Starlight img
Chapter 14 A Hypocritical Family Under Flashlights img
Chapter 15 Scalding Coffee in the Lounge img
Chapter 16 Even Children Lie img
Chapter 17 Piano Lie img
Chapter 18 Coat and the Flames of Jealousy img
Chapter 19 Bloody Conflict in the Apartment img
Chapter 20 Forced Compromise img
Chapter 21 Malicious Curse Outside the Ward img
Chapter 22 The Bottom Line of Paranoia img
Chapter 23 Stalking in the Dark Night img
Chapter 24 Anesthesia of Alcohol img
Chapter 25 Old Traces of Pain img
Chapter 26 Dawn of the Champion img
Chapter 27 Usurped Glory img
Chapter 28 Proof of Ashes img
Chapter 29 Exquisite Acting img
Chapter 30 The Question in God's Name img
Chapter 31 Humiliating Check img
Chapter 32 Dimensional Reduction Strike of Power img
Chapter 33 The Gentleman's Support img
Chapter 34 Mockery Backstage img
Chapter 35 Redemption of a Million Dollars img
Chapter 36 Confrontation in the Michelin Restaurant img
Chapter 37 Broken Glass img
Chapter 38 Corridor of Mount Sinai img
Chapter 39 Tombstone in the Drizzle img
Chapter 40 Bloody Celebration Banquet img
Chapter 41 Hotel Arrest img
Chapter 42 Prison Disaster img
Chapter 43 Thunder Rescue img
Chapter 44 Derick's Darkness img
Chapter 45 Truth and Imprisonment img
Chapter 46 Old Mansion Cage img
Chapter 47 Old Dreams and New Clues img
Chapter 48 Crisis Public Relations img
Chapter 49 Fundraising and Help Seeking img
Chapter 50 Blood Trap img
Chapter 51 The Bloody Last Words on a Rainy Night img
Chapter 52 Falling in the Rain img
Chapter 53 The Returned Promissory Note img
Chapter 54 Prey and Hunter img
Chapter 55 The Clear Slap img
Chapter 56 The Poisonous Plot by the Pool img
Chapter 57 The Verdict of the Sanatorium img
Chapter 58 Forced Escort img
Chapter 59 Grandmother's Shelter img
Chapter 60 Projection of Evidence img
Chapter 61 Wrath of Thunder img
Chapter 62 Expulsion in the Rainstorm img
Chapter 63 Humiliation at Dawn img
Chapter 64 The Sting of Alcohol img
Chapter 65 Deprivation of Power img
Chapter 66 Retrograde Memories img
Chapter 67 Intrusion in the Mist img
Chapter 68 The Fevered Lie img
Chapter 69 Eavesdropping in the Maze img
Chapter 70 Showdown in the Pantry img
Chapter 71 Michelin Banquet img
Chapter 72 Ghost Message img
Chapter 73 Confession in the Garden img
Chapter 74 Respect in Poisoned Wine img
Chapter 75 Interception in the Night Breeze img
Chapter 76 Ten-Million Hush Money img
Chapter 77 Forced Separation img
Chapter 78 Dust-Laden Album img
Chapter 79 Belated Confession img
Chapter 80 Night Train to the Cemetery img
img
  /  1
img

Chapter 2 Death News and Lies

The penthouse was too quiet.

Derick pushed the heavy oak door open, the stale taste of scotch coating his tongue. He shrugged off his suit jacket and tossed it toward the housekeeper, missing the man's outstretched hands by a foot. He didn't bother to apologize. A smile lingered on his lips-the afterglow of last night's gala, the flash of cameras, the way Kamryn had looked at him.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cluster of metallic silver balloons, the ones he had grabbed from the after-party. They bumped against the ceiling as he walked down the hallway.

"Cece?" he called out, his voice light. "Daddy's home. I brought you something."

He stopped outside her bedroom door. It was closed. Unusual. Cece always left it open, the sound of her cartoons drifting into the hall.

He pushed it open.

The bed was made. Pristine. The sheets were tucked tight, the pillows fluffed. The medical equipment-the oxygen tank, the pulse oximeter-was gone. The room smelled of antiseptic and emptiness.

Derick's smile faltered. The balloons drifted down, brushing against his shoulder. He turned and walked toward the living room.

Elinor was sitting on the sofa. She was still wearing the same clothes from yesterday, a rumpled blouse and dark slacks. Her hands were clasped in her lap, fingers locked around a silver locket. She looked up as he entered.

There was no expression on her face. Her eyes were flat, glassy, like the surface of a dead lake.

"Where is she?" Derick asked. He tried to keep his tone casual, but a thread of unease wound through his chest. "Where's Cece?"

Elinor stared at him. She looked at him like he was a stranger who had wandered into the wrong apartment.

"Cece is dead," she said.

The words hung in the air, sharp and brutal.

Derick froze. His fingers loosened. One of the balloons slipped from his grip, drifted toward a side table, and struck a brass lamp. The sharp metal prong of the balloon's ribbon caught the surface.

Pop.

The sound was deafening in the silence. Derick flinched. The remaining balloons drooped in his hand.

"What did you say?" he asked, his voice dropping to a dangerous low.

"You heard me," Elinor said. Her voice was monotone, devoid of the hysteria he expected.

Derick's mind rejected the words. They were impossible. Absurd. This was Elinor playing one of her games, punishing him for staying out, for taking Kamryn to the gala.

"You're lying," he snarled, taking a step toward her. "Are you playing games again? Just like you did five years ago at the fundraiser? You'll do anything for attention, won't you? You're being ridiculous because I didn't answer your calls."

"I'm not lying," Elinor said. A ghost of a smile touched her lips, a terrible, hollow thing. "She died waiting for her daddy to take her to see Mickey."

Derick lunged. He crossed the room in two strides and grabbed Elinor by the shoulders, his fingers digging into her collarbones. He shook her once, hard.

"Stop it!" he yelled. "This is sick, Elinor. Even for you. Where is she? Did you send her to your mother's?"

Elinor didn't fight him. She didn't cry out. She just let him hold her up, her body limp in his grip.

"I want to see her!" Derick released her with one hand, fumbling for his phone. He scrolled to Dr. Cole's number.

"You can't," Elinor said. "She's been cremated."

Derick stopped. He stared at her, the phone forgotten in his hand. "What?"

"The ashes are right here." Elinor lifted the locket. It swung on its chain, catching the morning light.

Derick stared at the small piece of jewelry. A wave of revulsion and disbelief washed over him. This was too far. Even for Elinor, this was a twisted, manipulative lie.

"You're hiding her," he said, his voice trembling with rage. "You're using her to get back at me. You think this is funny?"

Before Elinor could respond, Derick's phone rang. The screen lit up with a photo of Kamryn, her face bright and smiling.

Derick looked at the phone, then at Elinor. Elinor's expression didn't change. She just sat there, holding the locket, that empty look in her eyes.

He answered the call. "Kamryn?"

"Derick," Kamryn sobbed on the other end. "I'm so sorry to bother you, but Kiana has a terrible fever. She's burning up. I don't know what to do. I need you."

Derick looked down at the balloon in his hand, then at the woman sitting on the sofa. The choice was instantaneous. The reality of a sick child versus the theatrical lie of a bitter wife.

"If you're going to keep up this sick joke," Derick said, shoving the phone into his pocket, "I don't have time for it."

He turned on his heel and strode toward the door.

"Divorce papers will be sent to your office," Elinor said to his back.

Derick paused, his hand on the doorknob. He didn't turn around. He wrenched the door open and slammed it behind him, the sound reverberating through the empty apartment.

Elinor sat alone. The silence rushed back in, heavier than before. The numbness that had protected her cracked, and the pain hit her like a tidal wave. She doubled over, a sob tearing from her throat, raw and ugly.

She clutched the locket until the metal edges bit into her palm. She wouldn't break. She couldn't afford to break. Not yet.

She reached for her phone on the coffee table. Her hands shook as she typed into the search bar: Private investigators New York. Medical malpractice.

Previous
            
Next
            
Download Book

COPYRIGHT(©) 2022