Chapter 15
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She took a shower. The wound around her waist still ached faintly. When she looked at it in the mirror, all she could see was the scene of Noah calling Clarissa “Mom“.
That one scene drained every bit of strength from her body. She dragged herself to the bedroom, collapsed on the bed, and before long, fell into a deep sleep.
By the time Evelyn woke up, it was completely dark outside. She got up, ready to grab something to eat, but the moment she opened the door, a wave of stench hit her straight in the face.
She covered her mouth and nose, frowning as she stepped out. Her foot immediately landed on something sticky.
She looked down. She wasn’t sure if it was feces or the rotting carcass of an animal. Feeling a wave of nausea, she bolted down the stairs.
On her front door, someone had spray–painted nasty slurs in red, calling her a whore. A hideous mask hung from the peephole.
Just then, a neighbor came up the stairs. Catching sight of it all, the man walked fast past Evelyn with a disgusted look.
Evelyn didn’t even have to guess who did it. Clarissa, with her sweet voice and innocent eyes, might fool everyone else, but Evelyn’s gut said otherwise. That woman was rotten to the core.
After all, a decent woman didn’t wreck someone’s marriage, pretended she was just trying to help patch things up. Her fake, doe–eyed act made Evelyn want to gag.
Holding her breath, Evelyn took pictures of the mess and sent them straight to Carson.
She went back inside, opened all the windows, and tried to air out the awful stench that had crept into the
apartment.
She pulled up the security footage from outside her door and forwarded that to Carson too.
She texted him: [Mr. Garner, please help me look into this. I don’t care if it’s my ex–husband or the mistress. I want whoever did this to be held responsible.]
At that moment, Carson was out having drinks with Nathan. He looked down at his phone, then handed it to Nathan.
Carson teased, “When did you start being into this kind of woman? So many hot girls lining up for you, and you go for someone’s wife.”
Nathan rolled his eyes. His handsome face darkened with quiet anger.
Carson instantly zipped his lips. Then, he spoke up, “But seriously, that ex and his side piece are terrible. Evelyn has already left, and they still go out of their way to disturb her.”
19:21 Wed, Sep 3
Chapter 13
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“Speed it up.” Nathan said coldly, standing up and walking out without another word.
Carson watched him leave with an understanding smile. He tossed back the rest of his drink and muttered to himself, “Wow, interesting.”
Evelyn hired a cleaning crew. It took them hours to scrub everything down. Even then, there was still a faint stink in the air.
She paid them, then finally lay down to rest.
The next morning, after breakfast, Evelyn headed out for work. She had just stepped out of the apartment building when her instincts kicked in. She picked up her pace, walking several steps forward.
A nasty smell drifted in the air again. She looked up just in time to see someone on the fifth floor slam a window shut and duck out of sight.
She flashed a cold smile. Her eyes were icy sharp.
She thought to herself, ‘I’ve been through worse than this. You think I’m scared of cowards hiding behind
curtains?‘
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At the company, she ran into Carson while waiting for the elevator.
“That whole mess yesterday was Clarissa’s idea,” Carson told her.
Evelyn nodded, not feeling surprised to hear that name.
She replied, “Thanks a lot.”
The elevator doors opened. Evelyn headed to her department, where Joey greeted her. After a quick round of introductions with the team, she was shown to her workstation.
Just as she sat down, her phone buzzed. It was a message from Helena.
Helena: [Evie, did you check the class group chat? Mr. Brennan’s birthday is tomorrow. Everyone’s throwing a party for him at Starlight Hotel. I heard Adrian and Clarissa are going too. You coming?
Evelyn hadn’t expected them to get so shameless, not even pretending anymore. They even planned to embarrass her face in front of everyone,
She typed back: [Why not?]
19:21 Wed, Sep 3
Chapter 16
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
