Chapter 1 - The Fountain and the Secret
The splash echoed through the Vance family’s manicured garden.
Water soaked through my silk dress, pulling me down into the marble basin.
Adrian didn’t even flinch.
He stood at the edge of the fountain, adjusting his custom suit.
Beside him, Celeste offered a perfectly rehearsed gasp, though her eyes danced with amusement.
“Get out of there, Vivian,” Adrian muttered, glancing around at the staring guests. “You’re embarrassing yourself.”
I didn’t scream. I didn’t cry.
I just held the old phone to my ear, listening to the sharp inhale of my father’s attorney.
“There’s something your father preserved about the Vance family that Adrian never knew existed,” Raymond’s voice crackled through the receiver.
Adrian took a step closer, his annoyance shifting into faint confusion.
“Who are you talking to?” he demanded. “Give me that phone.”
“What did my father leave me, Raymond?” I asked, ignoring the man who had just drowned my dignity.
“The deed,” Raymond whispered. “The real one.”
I climbed out of the fountain, the heavy, wet fabric clinging to my legs.
Water pooled at my feet, staining the pristine white stones of the patio.
I walked past Adrian, keeping my eyes fixed on the white urn resting safely on the ledge.
“Vivian, I said stop,” Adrian snapped, grabbing my wrist.
I didn’t pull away. I just looked at his hand, then up into his perfectly hollow eyes.
“Don't touch me,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
He dropped my arm, startled by the utter lack of emotion in my tone.
I picked up Lily’s urn, cradling the warm ceramic against my freezing chest.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Raymond,” I said into the phone, and ended the call.
I walked through the crowd of silent, staring socialites.
May you like
No one offered me a towel. No one asked if I was okay.
They only parted like the Red Sea, letting the ruined wife exit the stage.
