Chapter 2
Rachel went to the police station to ask someone to help take her daughter’s body to the funeral home.
When she walked out, she was holding a small urn in her arms. It had her daughter’s favorite stickers on it.
On the way back to the villa she lived in, her phone buzzed twice on her lap. She checked the screen and saw a new post from a blogger she used to follow closely.
That blogger had always posted updates about Andrew. It was how she had tracked his schedule before.
But now, there was no reason for her to do that anymore.
Just as she was about to unfollow the account, a new post caught her eye. For a second, she hugged the urn tighter.
[Actress Yedda Zorn may have left the spotlight years ago because of an out–of–wedlock child. The father? Andrew Zevon. The two may be getting back together.]
The photo below showed Andrew and Tracy at the kindergarten’s baking event. They were both laughing brightly, while Yedda stood beside them, looking helpless but gentle. She and Andrew looked surprisingly perfect together.
People had always been curious about why Yedda quit acting at the peak of her fame. Now this news pushed her back into the spotlight. Tons of people were shipping her and Andrew.
Rachel remembered how Jennie used to beg Andrew to pick her up from school. He always said he was too busy, which seemed ridiculous now.
Rachel shut her eyes and snapped her phone shut. Seeing things like this only made her sick.
It was late at night when she got home. The moment she stepped in, she felt something was off. And then she saw Andrew sitting on the couch- that confirmed it.
“Where have you been?” His voice was cold, and so were his eyes. “Where’s Jennie? Rachel, you’re her mother. Why are you dragging her into your
mess?”
“I told you. She’s dead.” Rachel looked at him coldly and started walking upstairs.
The next second, Andrew grabbed her and pulled her down hard. His hand wrapped around her neck, squeezing tight. Rachel looked up and saw the hatred in his eyes. It was so ironic.
Soon, her head started spinning. Andrew’s face began to blur. Her breathing grew weak.
“Stop acting crazy,” he said as he finally let go. Rachel fell to the side, coughing hard.
“Where’s Jennie?” Andrew frowned and stared at her with anger in his voice. “If she doesn’t want to see me, then fine. She won’t see me ever again.”
Tears ran down Rachel’s face. She looked at Andrew with both pity and disgust, wishing he would just drop dead.
“You…” She wanted to tell him everything. But before she could, the sound of the door opening cut her off.
“Andrew, are you done?” Yedda’s voice came from the doorway, a little shy. “Tracy was missing you. I couldn’t calm her down, so I had to bring her here.”
Rachel gave a cold, mocking smile.
She slowly got up from the floor, still holding the small urn in her arms. The others finally saw what it was. Before she could fully stand, Tracy bumped into her.
“This sticker is mine!” Tracy shouted, then snatched the urn from Rachel’s hands. When she couldn’t peel off the sticker, she slammed the whole thing to the ground.
“No! Don’t!” Rachel screamed. Her body still hadn’t recovered from everything she’d been through. That bump from Tracy sent her crashing toward the stairs with a loud thud.
She didn’t even have time to get up before she saw the urn smash open–ashes scattered all over the floor.
Time seemed to stop. Rachel crawled forward, trying to gather the ashes with trembling hands. But no matter how tightly she held them, they kept slipping through her fingers.
Thinking of Jennie, tears spilled down her face. Her heart twisted in pain. She hated herself. And she hated Andrew. She wished she could drag all of them down with her.
1/2
“Daddy, that sticker was the one you gave me,” Tracy said, her voice full of fake hurt. “Jennie took it from me. I just wanted it back. I didn’t know there were ashes inside. Please don’t be mad.”
“Andrew, Tracy’s had health issues since she was little,” Yedda added, trying to defend her daughter. “It’s my fault for spoiling her. I’ll buy Jennie a new sticker later, okay? Tell her not to be upset.”
Andrew thought about Tracy’s condition and didn’t scold her. He just said gently, “It’s not Tracy’s fault.”
“It’s because you spoiled Jennie that she turned into a little brat who steals,” Yedda went on. “Tell her to come out and apologize to Tracy.”
Andrew looked down at Rachel, who was still kneeling on the floor. A small pile of ashes had already formed in front of her. He frowned. “Why would you bring something so dirty into the house? You-”
Suddenly, Rachel slapped Tracy across the face. Hard..
Tracy froze for a second, then started wailing. Her cry snapped both Andrew and Yedda out of their daze.
Rachel stood up. Her eyes were bloodshot, like something that had crawled out of hell. “Andrew. I want a divorce,” she said.
Andrew blinked in surprise, then let out a cold laugh.
Rachel didn’t care what he was thinking. She grabbed the broken urn, held it tight, and walked toward the door.
She had planned to pack a few things before leaving. But now, she couldn’t stay one more minute.
She didn’t want anything more to do with Andrew. From today on, they were done. He could live his life, and she’d live hers.
“If you walk out that door, don’t bother coming back!” Andrew’s voice rang out behind her, cold as ice.
Rachel paused for a second but swallowed the bitterness rising in her chest.
Back then, Andrew had been drugged, and Rachel had appeared in his room right when the Zevon family was about to call off their engagement. When they found her, her body still showed signs of what had happened.
Andrew’s grandfather, Richard, made the call–Andrew had to marry her.
In Andrew’s eyes, the whole marriage had been a trap set by Rachel. He didn’t believe she’d actually walk away that easily.
On the third day after Rachel left home, Andrew got a document.
It was the divorce papers, already signed by Rachel.
The moment he read through the terms, his face turned cold. He immediately sent her a message: [Where are you?]
A second later, a red exclamation mark popped up next to the message. Below it was a line that made it clear–Rachel had blocked him.
Andrew was stunned. He had thought she’d calm down after a few days and realize she was in the wrong. But instead, she was going even further.
He was furious. Does she really think I’ll just give in like this?‘
Pushing down his anger, Andrew made a call to find out where Rachel was staying. Then he grabbed his car keys and left the house.
At 10 p.m., Rachel dragged her exhausted body back to the apartment she had rented.
She went upstairs and walked to her door. Just as she reached for her keys, someone grabbed her wrist–hard.
Then came Andrew’s voice, full of anger. “Rachel, how could you block me?”
2/3
She froze, eyes wide, and slowly looked up at the man in front of her like he was a stranger. Her voice was calm. “Let go of me.”
Her reaction made Andrew feel even more irritated. His voice dropped lower, colder. “Are you done making a scene? You and Jennie don’t have to apologize, but you are taking back that divorce paper. And don’t ever bring up divorce again.”
