All Chapters of You Broke My Heart, Now Watch Me Rise : Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

98 Chapters

Stealing Things

Stealing Things ELENA went to work the next day with a fresh smile on her face for the first time in a really long while. It seemed like most of her problems had already been half solved."Hello Martha... Hi Clinton..." She waved at them as she skipped towards her office.She didn't care about the hushed whispers that her colleague spoke in. She was looking forward to the next day... The first hearing for their divorce case. She was so sure that she would win, and she would be compensated for all her losses in the horrible marriage with him.Just as she was settling down behind her desk, Clinton strolled in calmly."I see you're in a good mood." He began slowly as he took a seat across herElena only raised a brow before speaking. "I am... Is there any problem? Do you have some files that need working on?"Clinton stared at her as if he wanted her to be uncomfortable with it, but Elena matched his stare, and he got uncomfortable instead. He shifted in his seat slightly before clearin

Carefully Planned

Carefully Planned.MARTHA set the package on Elena's desk and walked out before Elena could say anything else, and the door clicked shut behind her. Elena could have gotten angry at Martha's last words, but there was something about the box that had her distracted for a while.It was beautiful, she would give it that. Dark navy wrapping, a cream ribbon, the sort of thing that came from a place that did not need to print its name on the outside because anyone worth impressing already knew. She reached for it slowly.Inside the wrapping was a perfume bottle. Heavy glass, simple lines, and no excessive ornamentation. There was a small card tucked beneath it and she opened the card eagerly. There was also no signature at the bottom, but she recognised Eamon's handwriting right away."You earned this today."Elena sat with the bottle in her hands for a moment. She turned it over once. The scent reached her even before she opened it, something warm filtering through the sealed cap, amber an

Checkmate

CheckmateTHE cameras did not stop, and Elena hurriedly pushed everyone inside the restaurant, shutting the door behind them.The restaurant went quiet, and she realized that Eamon had reserved the entire restaurant for just three of them. She couldn't be more thankful than she was right now, because if more people saw Eamon's episode... It would be much worse than the reporters outside.Eamon stood with his back to the room and Elena stood facing him. Evan stood between them looking up at Eamon with the expression of a scientist who has just observed something genuinely interesting and is reserving judgment."You are okay now," Elena said quietly, trying to calm him.Eamon's jaw was tight. His eyes were still darker than normal but the flooding had receded. His hands were his hands again. He exhaled once, slowly, through his nose."The perfume," he said."Marcus sent it." Elena had put two and two together now."Yes.""It was designed to trigger you.""Whatever is in that bottle is n

73: Satisfaction

Satisfaction ELENA'S phone rang for the first time that morning while she was in the middle of reviewing a document in the office. That was when her phone lit up with the school's number and she did the thing she had trained herself to do since Vera's games began. She looked at it, felt the familiar clench of conditional alarm, and reminded herself of the pattern.School calls meant nothing automatically anymore, Vera had used that scope to prank her in the past. There was no way she would let it affect her again. She let it ring out and went back to the document.The second call came four minutes later still with the same number. She watched it ring, and declined it, getting really annoyed with the call. Why couldn't Vera leave her and her family alone?When the third call came, she almost answered, but the memory of sitting on the floor of her car on the freeway, hands shaking, speeding recklessly toward a hospital where her son was not, believing a voice that had been manufactured

74: Calculated

CalculatedTHE surgical ward waiting area smelled like antiseptic, and Elena sat anxious and waited for the doctor or anyone to update her on her son's condition, but no one appeared.Elena had been in the chair outside the surgical suite for forty minutes when the doctor came out with terrible news. Evan had a fractured collarbone, two broken ribs, and a concussion. The surgery had been to address internal bruising that had concerned them initially. He was currently out of the theatre, stable, and crying for her.Elena stood to follow him, but he stopped her. "Give us twenty minutes to get him settled."She sat back down.Across the waiting room Marcus sat in the chair he had arranged himself in when she arrived, positioned at the angle most visible from the corridor where the press had been permitted to linger. His arm was across his knee, the bandage prominent. His face was arranged in the careful exhaustion of a man who had been holding vigil. He looked terrible.Elena studied hi

75: Everything On The Table

Everything On The TableTHE courtroom felt smaller than usual. Elena did not know if it was the case itself that was making her tense, or if it was the fact that the judge seemed more alert than she had been in previous sessions. On the other hand, Coker arranged at the defense table with the quiet confidence of someone holding more cards than she had shown.Kemi had told her that morning: "stay composed today regardless of what surfaces. Whatever comes out, your reaction is evidence too."Elena sat composed.Coker opened the afternoon session unhurriedly, something that told Elena the first thing was not going to be the worst thing. It was going to be the setup for the worst thing."Your Honour," Coker began, "we would like to introduce new evidence pertaining to the character and conduct of a third party whose involvement in this case has been a recurring point of discussion."The judge looked at her. "Proceed.""The defense has obtained documentation showing a pattern of financial

76: The Fight

The FightSHE waited until Evan was asleep. Elena had learned this discipline, the ability to hold a conversation in her chest for hours while performing normal tasks on the surface. Elena made sure she took her time until everything was properly set, near and tidy... Bath time, dinner, the bedtime negotiation about drinking a cup of water, arguing with Evan about putting the lamp at the correct spot. She completed all of it with steadiness, keeping her composure as calm and steady as she could muster. When she made sure that Evan was deeply asleep, she turned off the lamp and came back to the living room.Eamon was standing by the window, staring at her from the distance. He had been expecting her to flare up since the moment she came in after the court session, but she had kept herself occupied with Evan, and now he understood why. She didn't want Evan to see her argue with him. She wanted Evan to grow with a healthy mindset. And he admired that."You paid him," she said, making he

77: Elena's First Move

Elena's First MoveKEMI had advised her not to speak unless spoken to during testimony, but Elena spoke anyway. She could not help it. The question had been put to her directly by the judge and the answer required more than a single sentence because a single sentence would not carry the weight of what she needed the court to understand. A single sentence would leave too much room for Coker to fill with her own interpretation and Elena knew how well Coker twisted facts."Mrs. Valerius—" the judge began."Ms. Brooks," Elena corrected quietly. "For now."The judge made a small note. "Ms. Brooks. Please describe in your own words the relationship between your son Evan and Mr. Valerius."Elena looked at her hands for one second and then she looked up at the judge directly."Evan has a father," she said. "That father has been legally and biologically Marcus Brooks for seven years. In those seven years, Marcus attended four school events out of a documented thirty-two. He missed every single

78: Not Today

Not Today RECESS lasted twenty minutes and Elena spent the first twelve of them sitting completely still in the consultation room while Kemi made three phone calls in quick succession. Eamon sat across from Elena and said nothing, fiddling idly with his phone. This was a silent moment for all three of them.Elena thought about the footage, about the question Coker had planted, careful and deliberately constructed to grow in the minds of everyone in that courtroom long after the session ended. The question did not need to be proven. It only needed to be believed as possible. Doubt was cheaper than proof and far more durable.Eamon leaned forward after a while "The staff footage," he said which caught her attention.She looked at him with confusion etched on her face. "What about it?""I can explain it," he said. "Without reference to anything Marcus is implying." He held her gaze across the table. "Will you trust me for the next session?"She looked at him for a long moment.She thou

79: Evan's Testimony

Evan's Testimony.THE courtroom had never been quieter than when Evan walked in.He was wearing the blue shirt Elena had ironed that morning, the one he called his serious shirt. He held the hand of the court liaison until he reached the witness area and then he let go and climbed into the seat himself.He looked around and his eyes found his mom first, and she smiled at him, which made him straighten his back slightly, pulling his shoulders back the way she had seen him do before school presentations.Kemi approached slowly, stopping a careful distance from the stand."Hi Evan," she greeted."Hi,""Do you know why you are here today?"He nodded seriously. "To talk about my family.""That is right. Is that okay with you?""Yes," he said. "I practiced it."A ripple of something moved through the gallery. The tension in the courtroom softened, and even the judge looked up at him with a kind smile on her face. It was something so soft that she quickly recovered."Tell me about where you

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