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Before the Meeting
publish date:
2026-06-18 17:26:00
Latest chapter
SHATTERED BY CHOICE The Morning After Truth
Anthony's POVI didn't sleep. I lay in bed staring at the ceiling and replaying Mirabel's voice over and over in my head. By the time the sun came up, I had listened to the recording at least twenty times, and each time it made me angrier.At six in the morning I called my brother Reuben."Do you know what time it is?" he asked, his voice thick with sleep."I need you to do something for me.""Anthony, it's six in the morning.""I know. And I need you to listen." I sat up and swung my legs out of bed. "I'm sending you an audio file. I need you to listen to it and tell me if it can be used in court."There was rustling on the other end, like he was sitting up too. "In court? What are you talking about?""Just listen to it. Please. And then call me back."I sent the file and hung up. Then I got dressed and made coffee I didn't want. My phone rang fifteen minutes later."Where did you get this?" Reuben's voice was sh
SHATTERED BY CHOICE What the Recording Said
Evelyn's POVWe sat in Anthony's car in the parking lot and listened to the audio file three times. Mirabel's voice came through the speaker, slurred and thick with tears, but clear enough that there was no mistaking what she was saying."I didn't think it would hurt anyone this much. Samuel said it was just business. He said Anthony would get over Sylvia eventually and everything would work out. But I saw what it did to him. I saw what it did to you. And I've been carrying it ever since."Sylvia's voice came next, calm and cold. "You destroyed my relationship. You used your sister. And now you want forgiveness?""I don't know what I want. I just needed to tell someone. I needed someone to know I didn't mean for it to be this bad.""But it is this bad, Mirabel. And no amount of apologizing will fix it."The recording ended. I sat there staring at the phone in Anthony's hand, my sister's voice still ringing in my ears."She knew,
SHATTERED BY CHOICE The Voice in the Dark
Anthony's POVThe boat dock was old and half-rotted, the kind of place the city had been meaning to fix for years but never got around to. The wood creaked under our feet as we walked out onto it, and the water below was black and still.There was no one here. Just Evelyn and me and the sound of the wind moving through the trees behind us."Maybe they're not coming," Evelyn said quietly."It's only five past ten. Give it a few more minutes."We stood at the end of the dock and waited. I kept my phone in my hand, ready to call for help if I needed to. Evelyn had her arms crossed tight against the cold.Then a voice came from behind us."I wasn't sure you'd actually show up."We both turned. A woman stepped out from the shadow of the trees, her hands in her pockets, her face partially hidden by the hood of her coat. She walked toward us slowly, her steps careful on the uneven ground.When she got close enough, she pulled
SHATTERED BY CHOICE Before the Meeting
Evelyn's POVI picked Luca up from school at three and took him for ice cream. He talked the whole way about a science project he was working on and how his friend Marcus had accidentally spilled glue all over the table and the teacher had not even gotten mad. I listened and nodded and tried to focus on his words instead of the meeting that was coming tonight."Mom, you're not listening."I looked at him. He was staring at me with his big brown eyes, the ones he got from Anthony, and his mouth was turned down in a small frown."I'm sorry, baby. I'm listening now.""You look worried.""I'm not worried.""Yes you are. You do that thing with your mouth when you're worried." He pointed at my face. "Right there. The corner goes down."I tried to smile. "I have a lot on my mind, that's all.""Is it about Dad?""Why would you think that?""Because you guys are divorced now and that's a big deal." He spooned ice crea
SHATTERED BY CHOICE The Weight of Evidence
Anthony's POVI was in the middle of a conference call when my assistant knocked on the door. I held up one finger to tell her to wait, but she shook her head and mouthed the words, "It's important."I muted the call. "What is it?""Evelyn Cole is here. She says she needs to speak with you right now. She has a box with her and she looks... upset."I unmuted the call and told the clients I had an emergency. I would reschedule. Then I ended the call and stood up.Evelyn was in the waiting area outside my office, sitting in one of the leather chairs with a green metal box on her lap. She looked up when I came out, and her eyes were red like she had been crying or trying very hard not to."Come in," I said.She followed me into the office. I closed the door and turned to face her."What happened?"She set the box on my desk. "I went to my mother's house. I found this in the attic.""What is it?""Open it and see."I sat down and pulled the box toward me. The lock was already open. I lifte
SHATTERED BY CHOICE The Hidden File
Evelyn's POVThe family house was quiet when I pulled into the driveway. Francis's car was not there, and neither was Mirabel's. I had my own key, the one I had kept even after I moved out years ago, and I used it now to let myself in through the side door.The kitchen smelled like old coffee and the faint perfume my mother always wore. I stood in the doorway for a moment, listening. The house creaked the way old houses do, but there were no voices, no footsteps. I was alone.I pulled out my phone and read the message again. "There's a file. Hidden in her house."Where would my mother hide something she didn't want found?I started in her bedroom. The closet was full of clothes arranged by color, shoes lined up in neat rows, boxes stacked on the top shelf. I pulled down each box and opened it. Old photos. Letters from my father before he died. Tax documents. Nothing that looked like a secret.I checked under the bed. Nothing. I checked the drawe
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