LOGINAMBERThe morning after the divorce hearing, the headlines were filled with photos of Mark Thorne standing by my side. The Thorne family name was dragging in the mud, and the public was hungry for more. But while the lawyers were busy arguing over bank accounts, I had a much more personal debt to collect. I had not forgotten the woman who helped my husband leave me for dead. I had not forgotten Jade.I sat in the passenger seat of Mark’s SUV as we drove toward the quiet, expensive neighborhood where Jade lived. Behind us was a large white moving truck and a car carrying two private security guards. My heart was steady. I didn't feel the fear that used to choke me. I felt like a judge going to deliver a sentence."Are you sure about this, Amber?" Mark asked, his hands firm on the wheel. "Evelyn will see this as a direct declaration of war.""The war started a long time ago, Mark," I said, looking at the folder in my lap. "She just didn't realize I was a soldier. Besides, I am not doing
AMBERThe courthouse was surrounded by a sea of people. Cameras flashed like lightning, and reporters shouted my name as I stepped out of the car. The world was watching the Thorne family fall apart, and I was the one leading the way. I wore a sharp, charcoal-grey suit and kept my head high. I did not wear a veil or hide behind sunglasses. I wanted everyone to see that I was not afraid. I was not the broken girl they remembered.Inside the courtroom, the air was cold and smelled of old wood and floor wax. Justine was already sitting at the front table. He looked different than he did a week ago. His expensive suit was slightly wrinkled, and there were dark circles under his eyes. He didn't have his usual smug smile. Beside him sat three men in dark suits. They were the most expensive lawyers in the city. Evelyn had clearly spent a fortune to make sure her son did not lose a single penny in this divorce.I walked down the aisle. The sound of my heels on the marble floor was the only no
AMBERThe morning after the arrest was bright and sunny. It was a strange contrast to the dark and rainy night I had just survived. I was sitting in a small hotel room far from the Thorne estate. I did not want to be near that house. I did not want to breathe the same air as Evelyn. I had my laptop open on the small desk. My eyes were tired but my mind was sharp.I watched the news on the television. Evelyn Thorne was standing in front of the police station. She looked perfect in her black suit. She did not look like a woman whose son was in a jail cell. She looked like a queen who was annoyed by a small problem."My son is innocent," Evelyn said to the cameras. "This is a tragic misunderstanding. Amber is a grieving woman who is not thinking clearly. She has created a story out of her pain. We will prove that Justine was never at that lake house and that the video has been edited to hurt our family name."I leaned back in my chair and watched her. She was good. She was very good. She
AMBERThe rain began to fall just as I reached the edge of the town. It was a heavy and cold rain that washed over my windshield. I could barely see the road ahead. My heart was still racing from the events at the lake house. I had left Justine screaming in the dark. I had given Mark the location of the man who betrayed us both. I expected to hear the sound of a gunshot echoing through the trees. I expected to see fire in my rearview mirror. But as I pulled over to the side of the road to breathe, there was only the sound of the storm.I sat there for several minutes. I was waiting for the police or an ambulance to pass me. I was waiting for the world to explode. My phone was still buzzing with notifications from the live stream I had just ended. The internet was on fire. The name Thorne was being dragged through the mud by thousands of strangers. I should have felt happy. I should have felt like I had won everything. But inside, I felt hollow. I was a mother without a child and a w
AMBER I gripped the steering wheel so hard my hands hurt. I kept thinking about Jade’s face when I threw her against that red car. I kept thinking about Evelyn’s shocked expression in the restaurant. I had won those battles, but the war was still happening. My heart felt like a drum beating inside my chest.I looked at the rusty key sitting on the passenger seat. Who sent it? Who knew about the accident? Who knew about the lake house? It felt like someone was watching me from the shadows, playing a game. But I did not care. I needed the truth more than I needed to be safe.The lake house was a place Justine and I bought three years ago. We used to go there to hide from the world. It was supposed to be our happy place. But after the baby died, we never went back. Justine told me he lost the keys. He told me it was too painful to go there because it reminded him of the future we lost."Liar," I whispered to the empty car. "Everything you said was a lie."I turned onto the dirt path th
AMBERThe cold wind hit my face as I drove toward the one place I promised myself I would never go. I did not care about the speed limit. I did not care about the tears blurring my vision. All I could see was the red car parked in the driveway of the woman who stole my life.Her name was Jade. She was my husband’s brother’s wife. She was supposed to be family. Instead, she was the person who watched me bleed on the side of the road and kept driving.I pulled my car behind her red sedan, blocking her in. She was already outside, dressed in a fancy silk dress, holding a designer bag. She looked like she was heading to a party while I was heading to a funeral."Not now, Amber," Jade said as she saw me get out of the car. She rolled her eyes and tried to open her car door. "Can't you see I am in a hurry?""Why?" I asked, walking toward her with heavy steps. "You are off to see Justine again, aren't you? Didn't he leave your bed just now? Oh, you think I do not know? You really cannot get







