I remembered how, after my death, Elinor had shredded my wedding photos. How she had dumped my ashes down a drain. And how, in the end, she finally spoke the truth.
"Annes, you really were pathetic in this life. While you were pregnant, excited for your baby, your husband was in my bed every single night, unable to get enough of me.”
“The 500,000 you gave him? He handed it straight to me as an engagement gift. He promised me that if I gave him three years, he’d be rich enough to marry me instead.”
“You’re pitiful, really. You spent your whole life trusting the wrong man. Lost everything—your money, your life, even your child.”
That was when I finally understood. From the very beginning, they had planned everything. They had always intended to drain my family dry and leave me with nothing.
“Cousin? Do you really think I don’t know the truth?” I scoffed, my voice cold. “David, do yourself a favor and drop the act. If you keep scheming for things that don’t belong to you, don’t come crying to me when you end up losing everything.”
***
For days, David kept showing up outside my parents’ house, insisting on taking me back.