Chapter 2 A Mother's Grief

"Stop right there!" Isla's mother, Elowen York, came storming over. The moment she saw her daughter lying motionless on the ground, her eyes reddened, and she quickly knelt down, pulling Isla's coat closed over her.

She patted Isla's body and gripped her hand, tears spilling down uncontrollably. "My girl, what a cruel death you've met! It's almost New Year's, how are we supposed to celebrate now? You've left us all behind—how are your father and I supposed to live on?"

Her cries struck a chord with the crowd. A few older onlookers began wiping their tears, joining in her grief.

Felix, seeing his mother-in-law on the verge of collapsing, supported her to her feet and pointed at me. "Mom, Faye was the only one at the scene when Isla died—she did it."

"Mrs. Kingsley, I—"

I had barely spoken when Elowen whipped her head around and, without hesitation, slapped me hard. "My daughter always treated you like a sister, Faye, and this is how you repay her?"

I pressed a hand against my burning cheek, forcing down my anger. "I respect you as an elder, so I'll take that slap. But your daughter's death has nothing to do with me."

"Bullshit!" Elowen snapped, trembling with fury. "She was perfectly fine when she left home this morning—happy, loved, with a good family. Who goes walking by the river for no reason? You must've pushed her! You're thirty and still single—you were jealous! Jealous that she had a husband and a child, that she was living a better life than you. You're wicked—no better than an animal!"

Her tirade drew murmurs of disgust from the onlookers. One woman shook her head and said, "People these days are so twisted inside. They take it out on anyone, even people they know. It's terrifying."

"Poor family." Another sighed. "What kind of heartless woman does that? She's pure evil."

"Exactly—a happy New Year's Eve has turned into a day of mourning. The old forced to see their young one buried... It's tragic."

The crowd's pity only fueled Elowen's grief. She lunged at me, but I dodged, and she fell hard onto the ground. Wailing, she beat her fists against the pavement. "You heartless witch! Give me back my daughter! You might as well kill me too, while you're at it!"

Seeing her throw herself into hysterics, I'd had enough. Without thinking, I darted to Isla's side and yanked off her coat. Felix, startled, rushed over to grab it back. When I refused to let go, he suddenly dropped to his knees.

"Please, Faye," he begged, voice trembling. "Isla's gone. Just let her leave with some dignity. Give me her coat so she can go in peace, please? If you're angry, yell at me. Don't take it out on her. I'm the one who turned you down. It's my fault."

'What?!' I stared at him, wide-eyed, stunned that he would dare pull something like that.