Chapter 3
She hit play, and Sophie’s crying immediately filled the air:
“Mommy, I want my mommy…”
The screen only faced me, so I could clearly see Lillian slapping Sophie over and over. That’s why my baby was crying for me.]
But Sophie’s wails were loud enough to drown out the sound of the slaps
“Shh, Sophie, sweetie. Mommy’s busy. I made you some yummy mango puree. Come on, let’s eat it all up, okay?”
Soon, Sophie went quiet
I clenched my fists. Lillian knew Sophie was allergic to mangoes!
She didn’t cry–not because she felt better, but because her throat was so swollen from the allergy, she couldn’t make a sound
Lillian pocketed her phone with a smirk. The crowd only heard the audio and turned on me
“Never seen such a heartless mother! Caring more about money than her own kid. Thank God this girl was there, or the poor baby would’ve cried herself sick!“]
“She claims this girl killed her daughter? Bullshit! She probably left the kid in the car herself while chasing some business deal!”]
“This girl isn’t even family but she cared enough to make the kid happy. And this psycho just attacks her? She doesn’t deserve to be a mother!”
These people were already grieving their own grief–now I became their punching bag
They swarmed me.
Slapping, spitting, throwing eggs. Their nails tore bloody scratches down my face.
I looked desperately at Revin. He took a step forward, but Lillian immediately pouted:
“Kevin, you promised you’d always protect me. If you help her now, everyone will think I’m a murderer. My life will be ruined. Don’t break your promise.”
Finally, Kevin looked at me coldly:
“Rachel, you accused Lillian first. Since you won’t apologize, deal with the consequences.”
I don’t know how long they beat me until they got tired and left[]
I crawled to my feet, bloody and broken. Kevin tried to help me:
“Come on, let me help you clean up
I jerked away and slapped him hard:
“Kevin Howard. I’ll divorce you and quit the company. From then on–we’re completely done.“[]
I ignored him, picked up my daughter gently and walked to the crematorium.
Kevin tried to follow. I spun around:
“GET AWAY FROM ME!]
He froze at the strange look in my eyes.]
I sat outside the crematorium all night, listening to the flames, tears streaming:
“Sophie, I’m sorry. Mommy failed to protect you…”
The next day, I left Sophie’s ashes at the funeral home temporarily.[]
Kevin’s no longer someone I can trust. I had to get Mom and Sophie’s ashes out of here. Far away
When I came out, Kevin and Lillian were gone. My phone lay cracked on the ground.
Thirty–six missed calls. All from the nursing home
I called back frantically and the nurse picked up immediately:[]
“Ms. Flores! Where were you? Your mother… she killed herself Her head… oh God…”
I didn’t wait to hear the rest–jumped in a cab and rushed to the nursing home.
10
The nurse stood outside Mom’s room, pale and retching:
“Mr. Flores, it’s really bad in there. Prepare yourself…]]
Blood covered the floor. Mom’s body was kneeling in front of a blown–up microwave, everything above her neck a bloody mess.]
“What the hell happened?!”
“Some guys came last night. Said they were Ms. Valois’s friends, wanted to visit your mom and rejected us wating outside.
her
“Mr. Howard said Ms. Valois’s orders were his orders. We couldn’t refuse. They stayed for hours. This morning I found her with he head in the microwave. I thought she dropped something, then it just… exploded.”
I remembered something and found the tiny camera I’d hidden yesterday.
After Kevin’s threats, I’d asked the nurse to plant it before I left. She owed me a favor and helped, even though she was scared of
Kevin.
I connected it to my phone and pulled up last night’s footage.]
What I saw made my blood boil.
