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Chapter Four

Author: Ogaedu
last update Last Updated: 2025-12-29 19:09:59

The charity event was held in a grand hotel downtown.

Crystal lights filled the hall. Soft music played in the background. Guests moved in slow circles, dressed in polished smiles and expensive clothes.

Nathaniel arrived with Grace on his arm.

Cameras flashed immediately.

Grace maintained her calm expression. She had learned how to exist quietly in crowded places. How to be seen without being noticed.

Nathaniel greeted board members and donors with ease. He introduced Grace when necessary, keeping his tone professional.

“My wife.”

That was all he said.

Grace nodded politely each time, offering brief smiles. She spoke only when spoken to. Her answers were measured and respectful.

“She’s very composed,” one investor commented.

“Yes,” Nathaniel replied. “She is.”

They moved deeper into the room. Grace noticed a familiar face near the stage.

Daniel Reed.

Her chest tightened slightly.

He had been there five years ago.

A senior auditor. One of the key witnesses.

He had testified against her.

Daniel noticed her too. His smile faltered for a brief moment before he recovered.

“Mr. Blackwood,” Daniel said, extending his hand. “Congratulations on the marriage.”

Nathaniel shook his hand. “Thank you.”

Daniel turned to Grace. “Mrs. Blackwood. It’s a pleasure.”

Grace met his eyes. “Likewise.”

Her voice was steady. Daniel’s was not.

Nathaniel did not miss it.

After Daniel walked away, Nathaniel glanced at Grace. “Do you know him?”

“No,” she replied calmly.

It was not a lie.

Hannah Cole had known him.

Grace Morgan did not.

As the evening continued, Grace felt the weight of memory pressing closer. Faces from the past blended with the present. People who once looked through her now stood beside her, unaware.

At the podium, a speaker thanked Blackwood International for its generous donation.

Nathaniel listened with half attention.

He was watching Grace.

She stood poised, her posture straight, her eyes observant. There was a distance about her that unsettled him.

“You handle this well,” he said quietly.

“I had practice,” she replied.

“With what?”

“Being invisible.”

Before he could respond, applause broke out.

Later, Grace stepped away toward the balcony for air. The city lights stretched endlessly below.

Footsteps approached behind her.

“I didn’t expect to see you again,” Daniel said.

Grace did not turn. “Neither did I.”

“You shouldn’t be here,” he said softly.

She faced him then. “Why?”

Daniel swallowed. “Some things are better left buried.”

Grace looked at him steadily. “Buried things always surface.”

He studied her face closely, confusion forming. “You look like—”

Grace interrupted gently. “Careful.”

Nathaniel’s voice cut in. “Is there a problem?”

Daniel stepped back immediately. “No. Just congratulating your wife.”

Nathaniel placed himself beside Grace. “We were just leaving.”

In the car, silence filled the space.

“You knew him,” Nathaniel said.

“Yes,” Grace admitted.

“How?”

“From before.”

Nathaniel did not push further, but doubt had already taken root.

That night, Grace sat alone in her room, her hands resting on the sealed folder.

Daniel recognized her.

That meant others would too.

The past was no longer distant.

It was watching.

And it was waiting.

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