Chapter 3 - THE UNINVITED GUESTThe Vance estate in Beverly Hills looked exactly the same,
a gilded cage of white stone and arrogance.
I walked up the driveway,
not as a trembling wife,
but as a woman coming to collect a debt.
The security guards tried to stop me,
but I held up a legal injunction that my lawyer had prepared overnight.
"I am here to see Julian Vance,"
I said,
my voice projecting the authority of a queen.
"Tell him his wife has returned from the dead."
The doors opened,
and I found the whole family gathered in the drawing room.
Chloe,
the woman in the emerald dress,
was there,
looking older and tired.
Beside her sat a five-year-old girl who looked nothing like Julian.
Victoria was standing by the fireplace,
a glass of scotch in her hand.
"You have a lot of nerve coming here,"
Victoria said,
her voice trembling with rage.
"I have more than nerve,
Victoria,"
I replied,
walking into the center of the room.
"I have DNA results from my son."
"And I have a recorded confession from Dr. Thorne."
The lie worked beautifully.
Victoria’s glass shattered on the hearth.
Julian stood up,
his eyes red-rimmed as if he hadn't slept in days.
"Evelyn,
I've filed for a DNA test for the girl,"
he said,
gesturing toward Chloe's daughter.
"She isn't mine."
"Chloe confessed last night."
"My mother knew all along."
I felt a pang of pity for the child,
but none for the adults.
"So,"
I said,
turning to Victoria,
"you threw out your actual grandson to protect a lie?"
"You faked my death because you couldn't handle the fact that I was the one who could give him an heir?"
Victoria stepped forward,
her face contorted.
"You were a peasant!"
she screamed.
"You were a distraction!"
"Julian needed a woman of stature,
not a girl who smelled of cheap flour and hope!"
"I did what was necessary for the family!"
"Is that what you call attempted murder?"
I asked,
pulling a small digital recorder from my pocket.
I hadn't actually talked to Dr. Thorne yet,
but I knew she would crumble if she thought the walls were closing in.
"I was the one who found the nurse from the hospital,"
I lied,
stepping closer to her.
"The one you tried to bribe to keep my pregnancy a secret."
"The one who watched you sign the papers to declare me a Jane Doe."
Julian turned to his mother,
his expression one of total horror.
"You tried to kill her?"
"You told me she was found dead by the police!"
"You gave me a lock of hair and told me it was all that was left!"
The betrayal was so deep it seemed to swallow the room.
I watched as the Vance empire began to crack from the inside.
May you like
It wasn't enough to just leave anymore.
I wanted them to feel the cold rain I had felt.
