Susanna
The hallway felt colder than usual as I made my way to my room. My thoughts were like a stream that was flowing violently, swallowing me in waves of regret and paranoia. How could I have been so reckless?
Liliana had warned me, her voice dripping with that irritating mix of wisdom and condescension she loved to wield. “Don’t confront Abigail while she’s in police custody,” she’d said. “Don’t risk leaving evidence. Be smarter than that.”
But no, I hadn’t listened. I’d let Abigail’s words over the phone ignite a fire in me, one I couldn’t control. And then I had been stupid enough to storm down to the polic
SusannaLiliana didn’t miss a beat. “Stop. Don’t say another word over the phone. Come to my house. Now.”She hung up before I could respond, and I stood there for a moment, staring at the blank screen, her clipped tone replying in my ears. Liliana never panicked, but even she sounded tense, and that only made my anxiety worse.I quickly changed into something casual, a plain dress and flats, and slipped out of the house without a word to anyone. The drive to Liliana’s felt like an eternity as my eyes looked at the road but not really seeing anything. How had Alexander gotten the report? Was there someone else involved? And if he knew… God, if he knew, what would happen to me?
AbigailThe moment my heels touched the pavement, chaos broke out.Shouts. Questions. Camera flashes. A deafening cacophony crashed over me like a tidal wave, swallowing me whole before I could even take a breath to steady myself."Mrs. Remington, is it true you leaked the video yourself?""Abigail , did you know your husband was cheating on you?""Is it true the Remington family is trying to cover this up?""Are you pregnant?!"The last question made me whip my head around to find who was asking it but all I saw was a sea of people yelling and raising cameras. I barely had time to react before the next flash went off, blinding me. The sheer aggression of the reporters was suffocating, their bodies pressing forward, their cameras inches from my face.For a moment, I stood frozen. I hadn't faced this level of scrutiny in years—not since the early days of my marriage, when I was nothing more than the new bride of Conrad Rem
AbigailThe makeup artist’s fingers finally went still, her professional demeanor relaxing. “Alright, Mrs Remington,” she said, offering me a smile. “You’re presentable.”Conrad’s hand landed on my shoulder, a possessive gesture that sent a shiver crawling down my spine. It looked like support, like a husband’s gentle reassurance. But I knew the truth. His fingers dug into my flesh, a silent warning.Don’t you dare, Abigail. Don’t you dare deviate from the script. Don’t you dare shatter this carefully constructed illusion.He escorted me to the stage, his smile perfectly practiced. The cameras flashed in rapid succession. The conference room wasn’t huge, but it felt like a cavern whose walls closing in on me. It was packed with reporters, a sea of faces all turned towards me, their eyes glinting with morbid curiosity. They weren't looking at
Abigail*As we’re driven home from the conference venue in silence, Conrad’s jaw was clenched so tight that a muscle near his temple throbbed. with each passing second. I don’t need to look at him to know that his hands are probably balled into fists as he struggled to keep his temper in check.Maybe his obvious show of irritation is meant to intimidate me, but I couldn't care less. I’ve fulfilled my end of the deal – I’ve cleared his name and painted the perfect picture of our marriage. And now? I just want to go home.Finally, the car slowed to a stop outside my mother’s house but my comfort at seeing it was dulled by Conrad’s unspoken anger. The driver stepped out to open my door, but before I could move, Conrad grabbed her wrist, his grip tighter than a vice.His voice was low, almost a whisper, but it dripped with venom. “You think you’re clever, don’t you?”I turned to him with a calm face but my heart was pounding in her chest. “Let go of me, Conrad.”But he didn’t. His grip t
Abigail*"This isn’t what we agreed on. I said I want to see my mother," I hissed, each word slipping through gritted teeth like venom. The taste of rage was bitter on my tongue, but it was nothing compared to the boiling fury tightening my chest.Conrad didn’t even flinch. His eyes—those emotionless pools—bored into mine. “You already have.”I stared at him, unblinking. “Oh, really?” I spat, letting sarcasm drip from every syllable. “Because last I checked, a video isn’t the same as seeing my mother in person. Or do you need a dictionary for that?”His jaw clenched, that te
Abigail*I stood in front of my closet that morning longer than I should have, my fingers grazing the fabric of my clothes. It was an understatement to say that I was undecided, and it was eating at me. Today wasn’t just any other day. Today was the day I finally got some control in my life, or at least pretended to. After all that had gone down yesterday, I couldn’t afford to appear like the weak, betrayed woman I had been painted to be.Not in front of Conrad, not in front of the company, and certainly not in front of the vultures who called themselves the press, who would be waiting to see if I’d crumble.In the end, I settled on a crisp white blouse tucked into tailored black trousers, the sharp lines giving me an edge I desperately needed. My hair was pulled back into a sleek bun, and I applied just enough makeup to look polished without appearing like I was trying too hard. The reflection staring back at me looked composed, profes
Abigail *I barely had time to blink before Susanna was in front of my desk."What a surprise," she sneered, her arms crossed over her chest as she glared down at me. "I should have known you’d weasel your way in here. Using your connections to get a cushy position in one of the company's departments? Typical."I set my pen down and met her gaze with forced patience. "Of course, that’s what you’d think," I said dryly. "That’s exactly the kind of thing you would do, isn’t it?"Her nostrils flared at my words, but before she could fire back, she switched the conversation, her voice taking on a sharp edge. "You always do this, Abigail. Stirring the pot, causing trouble where there doesn’t need to be any. Why can’t you just leave things alone?"I couldn’t help it. I rolled my eyes. The old me—the one who had still cared what she thought, who had let her words burrow under my skin all that time ago in my home—would have taken the bait. But now? Now her little provocations were nothing mor
Abigail*I took a breath, refusing to let Susanna’s words push me into foolish anger. Without a word, I attempted to step past her, already done with whatever game she was playing. But she moved quickly, blocking my way again. I had known from the moment I saw her come into the office that she had an agenda, but this was ridiculous.Her grip latched onto my arm, her fingers digging in just enough to make faint red marks on my skin. Oh for sure, she was trying to piss me off."You’re truly heartless," she whispered, her voice scathing. "You really don’t care about anything, do you?"I yanked my arm back, but she tightened her hold."After everything you did to Marcy," she continued, eyes flashing with something dangerous, "After pushing her to theft and causing her to lose her job, you just… resume life as usual? Like nothing ever happened?"I clenched my jaw."Meanwhile," she went on, voice risin
AbigailRoxy’s eyes were wide under the hydrating sheet mask she wore and her expression was a mixture of horror and disbelief. I had barely taken a breath in the last ten minutes, recounting everything that had gone down back at the apartment; the tears, the gun, the way even after seeing Susanna’s true nature, Conrad had nothing but excuses for her.I had shown up at her place unannounced, still running on adrenaline and nerves, and though she had clearly been in the middle of a self care night—her hair was up in a towel, her fruit scented candles were burning, her feet soaking in warm water—Roxy hadn’t hesitated to pull me inside and settle on her couch with me.“I really thought I was going to die,” I admitted quietly, leaning into the back of the couch. “Thank God the gun wasn’t loaded."Roxy reached over and pulled my hand into hers without hesitation. Her grip was tight and solid. That one gesture alone told me just how deeply that possibility had shaken her too. And I hated th
AbigailI saw the shift in Susanna’s eyes before she moved.Tears welled up as if on cue, her steps shaking and her voice cracking with practiced fear as she stumbled toward Conrad like a wounded bird. “Conrad… thank God you’re here,” she said. “She’s gone mad… Abigail’s lost her mind… she brought me here to hurt me…”Quietly, I slipped the photo into the pocket of my hoodie, never taking my eyes off her. Whatever game she was playing, I wasn’t about to be caught off guard. Conrad just stood there stunned stupid, his eyes locked on her with an unreadable expression. And then she fell into his arms. That’s when everything went left. One moment she was clinging to him, and the next she spun out of his grasp like some deranged ballerina and turned. My heart shot into my throat as I saw the gun in her hand and her arm aimed straight at me.I didn’t even think before I ducked behind Conrad, using him as a shield. It was an ironic thing to do, hiding behind the very man who had let all of
Susanna“Give it to me!” I screamed again, my voice splitting with raw desperation. But Abigail didn’t even flinch.Instead, she tilted her head to the side, watching me like she was observing some pathetic creature in a zoo enclosure. Her voice came out calm, even almost bored when she answered me. “Why would I, Susanna? You didn't lose your cool until I pulled this out. So why should I let go of the one thing that finally made you crack?”My mouth opened, but nothing came out. Rage and panic all tangled in my chest, choking me. I didn’t even know if the livestream was still going. Had I managed to destroy the camera? Or had it caught every scream and every scrap of panic that had just bled out of me like an open wound? I couldn’t think about that now. I had to take back control. Abigail might have caught me off guard, but she was still… her. The girl who used to look away under my gaze. The woman who couldn’t manage to speak up for herself. That person couldn't just vanish in a f
SusannaAbigail hit me in the side of the head again, even harder this time, and I almost blacked out. As I struggled to stay upright, I was vaguely aware of her dragging me, and tightening something around my wrist. By the time I got my bearings, she had knotted a rope around my wrists, and tied one end to somewhere behind the couch she had dragged me to.She slammed a stack of documents on the small table in front of me, and the moment she did, something in my chest twisted. She gestured for me to pick them. I tried not to flinch and tried to play it cool, but my fingers felt a little numb as I reached for them. It was difficult with the way she had tied my wrists together, but I managed it. She was too calm, too damn confident, even in the way she held herself and I didn’t like it, not one bit. And the way she just stood there in that shapeless h
SusannaI was still lost in my daydreams of what I would do to the server when the car slowed to a stop and the driver glanced back at me. “We’re here, ma’am.”I looked up from my laps and looked out the window. A multi-storey building rose before me, all chipped paint and faded brick, like it had been built decades ago and then forgotten by time. No shine, no polish, no class. I sneered. So this is where he lives?What an absolute joke. The sheer nerve of that man to lay a hand on me, when the ring on my finger could pay his rent for five years and furnish the entire building. Yet he’d acted like a vigilante, like he had the right to involve himself in a matter that didn’t concern him. Like I wasn’t the Susanna Remington.
SusannaI leaned back in the plush reclining chair, sighing as the warm water bubbled around my feet. The spa always smelled like lavender and citrus, and that familiarity made it soothing. A soft towel was draped over my legs, and the nail technician was diligently filing the nails on my left hand while my right held my phone just above the water. I was watching a video of some influencer's vacation in the Maldives, my eyes half-lidded in relaxation.Then my phone vibrated in my hand. It was a call from an unsaved number. I didn't recognize it, and I didn’t care to. Without hesitation, I hit decline and went back to the video, rolling my eyes.The phone buzzed again almost immediately; it was the same unsaved number. I frowned.Twice in a row? What kind of idiot… My finger hovered over the decline button again when a thought struck me. Was it Harry’s father?He used to do this sometimes, calling me from random numbers, burner phones, maybe. He hadn’t done it in a while, but I also ha
Liliana I stared down at my lunch, the delicate aroma rising from the bowl doing nothing to stir my appetite. It was my favorite meal, carefully prepared and beautifully plated but today it tasted like nothing more than ash in my mouth, bitter and dry. I set my spoon down with a loud clatter, the sharp sound slicing through the silence of the room. Harry was out playing baseball with his friends, so I was all at home today, which made my annoyance even worse. My chest felt tight, suffocated by a fury I was barely managing to keep contained. How could I eat happily? How could I pretend everything was fine when it wasn’t? I let out a harsh loud breath, pushing my plate aside so forcefully it nearly toppled over the edge of the table. Enough. It had been months of enduring this slow descent into chaos. I had been an angel to tolerate it for this long. What other woman could have withstood the humiliation and the pressure of everything that had been thrown my way lately? First, ther
AbigailI meant to wait until later to tell Alexander about the meeting. I had every intention of acting cool, composed, someone who didn’t need to rush and blurt everything out like an overeager intern.But the second I promised to see Mr. Hayes back at the office and stepped into the elevator and the doors slid shut behind me, all my resolve crumbled. My fingers itched for my phone, and before I knew it, I was pulling it out of my pocket, rapidly typing out a message. I crushed it, I wrote, my heart beating a little too fast. Conrad’s project is dead. You should have seen his face, Alexander. It was glorious.I stared at the screen, grinning like a fool. And then, reality caught up with me.I was being ridiculous. Maybe even downright immature. This wasn’t the dynamic we had. I was supposed to be professional and reliable, not someone who acted like they were texting a secret crush after acing a test. Groaning quietly under my breath, I erased the entire message and typed a much s
AbigailI froze mid-sentence, lifting my head slowly to look at him. He was still at the front of the room, but now his arms were crossed loosely over his chest, a mocking smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.“And here I thought,” he added, dripping with false politeness, “that only those formally invited had something to contribute.”A few people shifted in their seats. A few glanced at me. I could feel the weight of their eyes, the tension coiling in the air.Conrad was trying to embarrass me and put me back in my place.I leaned forward, pressing the button on the microphone in front of me. My voice was cool. “I have nothing to say to you, Mr. Remington.”I started t