ログインWhew… what a chapter, right? This story has taken us through pain, betrayal, survival, and revenge… but we’re only just getting started. Camilla’s world is layered with secrets… every choice she makes is a step closer to either justice… or destruction. If you’ve made it this far, I want to say THANK YOU for reading. Truly. Your support keeps this story breathing, and your reactions help me pour even more emotion into every chapter. So please, take a second to leave a comment. I want to know what you’re feeling, who you’re rooting for, who made you scream, or gasp. Your thoughts mean everything to me. And if the story has gripped your heart in any way, don’t forget to leave a review. It helps more readers find their way here. With love and plot twists, [Tee Growrich]
Richard’s POVJust like that I was thrown back to a time I swore to forget. It was after Tessa had died. Drowned. After I went and saw her pale face at the morgue. Grief ate at me. Even Stacy was there but that didn’t mean I didn’t miss Tessa. I knew I had to get away before everything ate me up. I told no one. Not even Eric. However, we hadn’t gotten that close then. I snuck out, even though Stacy tried to console me, but I knew it was all my fault. I did that to Tessa. The trip was just to clear my head. Nothing more. In fact, Thailand had never meant anything to me before that trip. Just another country. It would be another business meeting. Another expensive hotel room with cold air conditioning and fake smiles. I wanted that rather than my reality. At least, that was what I told myself back then.I told business associates that I needed space for work negotiations overseas, and because I was Richard, nobody questioned me. Well except my mother. But she would be the last pet t
Richard’s POVMy entire body stiffened instantly. What? She stood there in a dark coat, rain dripping down her hair slowly. Beautiful. Cold. Dangerous. And suddenly, I realized something. She had been the woman staring at me all night. I was made to run inside but two huge men stood in front of me. They led me across where Sophia was. Sophia smiled faintly when our eyes met. “Hello, Richard.”I walked toward her slowly, fury already rising inside me. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in prison?”“Checking on you. Did you miss me?” she smiled.“Stop following me,” I warned. “Have you not gotten the memo yet? I love my wife very much. She is my family. I don’t want you” Her expression darkened slightly. “Your family?”I let out a sharp breath. “Not tonight, Sophia.”“Oh, I think tonight is perfect.”I shook my head and started to walk away, but her next words stopped me immediately.“You should divorce your wife.”I laughed bitterly. “Still obsessed with that? I thought we we
Richard’s POV “What?” I took a step back like I had been smacked in the face.“You heard me well Richard” she put her hands on her waist and looked away. I grabbed her by the hand. “Look at me, Tessa.” She tried to yank her hands away from me but I held her. “Tell me you mean this” Tessa could not look at me.“All I know is that you are causing me pain and I don’t want that” she mumbled. Her voice was breaking. “Tessa please don’t do this, we can talk about this” I begged but all my pleas fell on deaf ears. She kept shaking her head and wouldn’t talk or look at me. ***************************************************************************************************The word divorce followed me out of the bedroom like a gunshot. Even after I slammed the door behind me, I could still hear Tessa crying upstairs. I had never made her cry after Stacy. Now look what I have done. I walked downstairs slowly, tension burning through my chest. I hoped Zane was nowhere close. I let out a breat
Tessa’s POVI swallowed and nodded for her to continue. “Madam Clarisse continued. “ I tried calling out to Rachel but she ran and disappeared…” she said slowly, “I think she got into a taxi.”My breath caught instantly. “What?” A cold feeling spread through my chest. If she had been in the house that time, how come she said she was kidnapped? I glanced at Madam Clarisse and thought of Rachel. Which one of them was telling the truth?No, that didn’t mean anything. Rachel would never lie about something as serious as a kidnapping. Why? I shook my head. It couldn’t.Right?Madam Clarisse reached over and touched my hand gently. “I’m not telling you this to hurt you, Tessa.” Then her voice lowered slightly. “I’m telling you because sometimes the women closest to us become the ones we fail to see clearly.”The room suddenly felt too warm. Too small. And for the first time since all of this started…I realized I was becoming afraid to go home.******************************By the time I r
Rain tapped softly against the windshield as I pulled into Madam Clarisse’s driveway. My hands still trembled slightly on the steering wheel for two reasons. Number one, since the shooting we haven’t been here. And now I feel guilty for not visiting. Number two, because of what she had told me on the phone. Part of me didn’t even want to come here. I mean what she could have known about Rachel. I sank deeper into the car.” Gush!!!!” Gosh, I wish I could disappear. Any criticism of my sister? I don’t want to hear it. But another part of me desperately needed someone older, wiser… someone who could tell me I wasn’t losing my mind.Finally, I got myself together and exited the car. The front door opened before I could knock. Madam Clarisse stood there in an elegant cream-colored robe, her sharp eyes immediately softening when she saw me. She was no longer on crutches,s and the heavy bandage on her ankle was long gone. “Oh, Tessa,” she murmured gently. “Come inside. “That gentleness a
Tessa’s POV The warm water from the bathroom tap steamed softly against my skin as I washed my face. I stood still, letting the water cascade down my body. My eyes still burned from crying earlier, and no matter how many times I splashed water against my cheeks, I still looked exhausted.Broken, even. It really hurt watching my mother’s pieces getting destroyed—the last thing of hers. I grabbed a towel and stepped out of the bathroom slowly, only to stop when I saw Richard sitting on the edge of the bed waiting for me. I rolled my eyes. What did he want now? I was tired of listening to him talk. He was partly at fault for all this. His expression softened immediately.“Tess,” he said quietly. “Come here.” He patted the bed. I already knew what he wanted. Comfort. Forgiveness. Normalcy. But things can never be the same because he was hiding something from me. Richard stood and walked toward me slowly, his hands reaching for my waist. The second his fingers touched me, my body stiff
Camilla’s POV The door clicked softly behind Richard as he stepped out, his usual scent woodsy, expensive, frustratingly familiar still hanging faintly in the air. The space grew quiet again, except for the low hum of the AC and the sound of Zane’s soft breathing fr
Camilla’s POVI wrapped the silk robe tighter around me as I stepped out into the quiet living room, my bare feet brushing against the soft rug beneath me. The scent of fresh jasmine floated through the open window, dancing with the early afternoon breeze. I hadn’t set an alarm. No email
Richard's POV I was flipping through the structural renderings on my desk, scanning through elevations and floor loads that somehow felt less important now than they used to. My mind had been trailing behind all morning stuck somewhere between the sharp edges of Camilla’s smile
Richard's POVIt started with a small smile.The first time Zane walked into my office, he barely looked up from the stuffed dino he had tucked under his arm. But by the third visit, he was already tugging at the corner of my suit jacket, asking if I had any more of “those minty







