Planting Evidence

ADELINE

“Have you seen the news, Miss Williams?” One of the many ladies sucking up to me because of my new status quickly rushed to me.

Shock was written all over her face as she passed her phone to me.

I gently took it, maintaining the sweet smile on my face. No matter what, I had to maintain my image.

The bold words written on the phone made me gasp, practiced and well-executed.

“HEIRESS’ BODY BURNT BEYOND RECOGNITION IN HER APARTMENT.”

“Your sister…” The lady gasped, her eyes showing pity. “She burnt to death.”

My hands shook, the phone falling from my hands. My face mirrored grief, and then a staggering figure that was quickly caught in her arms.

“Oh no…” I held my belly, forcing tears out of my eyes. After years of acting and practicing, the tears came out in a second.

“Miss Williams, the baby.” The ladies surrounded me. “Quick, let’s get her to her car. She is weak…”

I let them lead me straight to my car, just what I wanted. After such huge news, I couldn't go on with the party. It was not the news I was expecting. I wanted Davina back, back under my feet, not dead.

But was I sad for her death? No. I was just sad that my laborer was gone. My sacrificial lamb.

“Baby…” Semion’s heavy voice brought me out of my thoughts as I reached the Miles mansion. I rushed into his open arms, and the tears that dried up in the car flowed again.

“It's all my fault. I shouldn't have let her go that night…” My head was buried in his chest, as he carried me princess-style straight to Davina’s bedroom which had been transformed into mine. Bigger and better.

“Did I do wrong?” I asked, clutching my heart. “Is it a crime to love you? Why did she have to punish me this way? I would forever live with this guilt…”

“Maybe we are not meant to be together, Semion.” I pushed him as he brought me down. I settled on the wall, my body slowly slipping down.

“Don’t say that, Adeline.” Semion looked distressed knowing he couldn't let me go and a flash of guilt crossed his eyes. “It's all my fault. I should have seen you before I saw her. Your kind heart only fell for me when I needed a companion.”

“You saved me. Davina’s death is all her doing. You would never hurt her intentionally.”

“Really?” I looked up at him but inside me, I was all smiles. It was better if he blamed himself. If he saw me as the savior.

“Yes, you don’t need to worry.” He promised, carrying me to the bed. “I will take care of everything. No one would point at you for anything. After all, they saw the good you have done for her.”

Of course, they should. Did Davina think she could reap everything that should have been mine because she was adopted legally? She was one with no family, a pauper who only received grace she should pay for. They should thank me for my benevolence in calling her sister.

“I trust you…” I put the reins in Semion’s hands, just enough for him to feel that he was in charge as if I depended on him.

As the door clicked behind him, the grief disappeared and my heart stilled in turmoil. There was a problem. I only wanted to scare her, to remind her of her place but those men certainly went too far.

They burned her to death.

I quickly got off the bed to find my phone. Multiple calls to the three men and their boss to whom I had sent a huge sum of money.

However, my calls went straight to voicemail.

“That bitch!” I cursed, slamming my phone straight at the wall and it shattered. That was a slight break in my perfect personality. Something I would erase before Semion got here.

But why couldn't Davina erase herself quietly without dragging me down with her? She could never do something right.

What if the police got involved and finally traced her death back to me? My perfect world would crumble. The elites who were at my feet and Semion who I had molded to cater to me would be gone in the blink of an eye. That spineless man wouldn't hesitate to leave.

“I need to do something…” I whispered. Different thoughts, and carefully thought out crafts I had mastered all over the years immediately came in handy.

I roamed the bedroom, taking out the stash of Davina’s belongings I kept away from everyone. I accessed her phone which she never hid from me and then a fresh dairy I stained intentionally with dirt to alter its age.

I started, taking the position of a depressed and deranged Davina. Hours of learning to forge her writing came in handy again. I wrote about how she detested life, how she detested family, and how she thought she deserved more.

I portrayed her as the greedy heiress who was angry she couldn't get more because she was adopted and when she couldn't take it anymore, she decided to either kill herself or destroy her family.

I sat in my bedroom, and popped an expensive wine into a crystal glass, savoring the taste and the result of my carefully crafted handiwork.

“DAVINA THE HEIRESS WAS A DERANGED INDIVIDUAL WHO ENVIED HER BELOVED SISTER.”

Those words sent a cackle off my throat and for a split second I saw my ugly expression on the crystal glass. Something only I could see, no one else.

That night, I made sure I finished a full bottle of alcohol, portraying the grief-stricken sister. Semion comforted me all night and days passed when the police came knocking along with my parents.

“We are finding trouble identifying her body due to the degree of burn. However, residents of the apartment building claim to have seen her entering.”

“Sister…” I broke down, making Semion catch me in his arms.

“The cause of the fire is unknown. Thankfully, the fire didn't affect the other parts of the building.”

“Please, detective, let’s do all we can to bring her killer to book. She couldn't have started the fire, right?” This time Semion spoke, wanting to be in control while I was locked away in his arms.

“We understand your grief, but we will continue our investigations. We have the remains of Davina’s belongings, her phone and we will identify the cause of the fire soon.” They assured us.

Watching the cops walk away, my heart settled. I knew what they were going to find already. Those men were nowhere to be found, they should be sensible enough to hide themselves. The only thing left would be Davina’s deranged thoughts.

More days passed, and I watched my parents sink into grief. Hypocrites who pushed her into doing what they wanted. They never cared about her and yet they wanted to find the cause of her death just to save face. No push or pull, just enough for the detectives to do a surface-level check.

But I was right there, to act out the part of the grieving sister who was also available to comfort her parents.

“Mom, you don’t have to worry. We will hear the results of the investigations today.”

She held me, silently pushing down the guilt she felt for pushing Davina to her grave. “No matter what, we shouldn't let her death affect the family.”

When we sat before the detectives, they had one last question for my parents.

“How would you access Davina’s mental health? Was she troubled?” They said, their scrutinizing gazes resting on us.

Mother looked from me to my father with a wary expression as if she was holding back some sort of knowledge. “I am sorry, we wouldn't want to taint our daughter’s image.”

“Mrs. Williams, rest assured, the details of the investigation will be kept private. We need your testimonies to conclude our investigations.” Their words gave my mother the resolve to push further.

“I failed as a mother…” She whispered, dramatic tears flowing from her eyes but ones the detectives believed. “We thought we did everything for her…we took her as our own. But it was never enough.”

“She was unstable, wanting everything we got and even her sister gave her everything. She blamed us all for her unexpected failing health and we never could satisfy her. If I had known this would happen, I would have given her everything…”

Loud sobs echoed in the office and that made champagne pop in my mind. Like mother like daughter. How did she know what I needed her to say?

“Thank you, Mrs. Williams.” The detectives sighed.

“Davina Williams's death has been ruled as a case of suicide. The investigations have been completed.”