Chapter 3 - Celeste Loses Her Smile
Celeste recovered first.
That was her gift.
Cruelty with polish.
Panic hidden beneath perfume.
She straightened, lifted her chin, and pointed at Mara as if accusation could erase evidence.
“You are exhausted. You don’t remember dates clearly.”
Mara stared at her.
“I remember the day my father stopped speaking.”
Celeste’s hand lowered slightly.
Daniel stepped between them.
“Mara, enough.”
“No.”
The word surprised all three of them.
It came out small but sharp.
Mara had said yes too often since her father died.
Yes to postponing meetings.
Yes to letting Daniel review mail.
Yes to Celeste “helping” with estate calls.
Yes to resting while they handled unpleasant paperwork.
Every yes had moved another door out of reach.
Tonight, Daniel had locked the last one.
Mara reached for the folder.
Daniel slapped his hand over it.
“Don’t.”
Mara looked at his hand.
Then at his face.
“You wanted me to sign without reading.”
“I wanted you to stop sabotaging us.”
Celeste slammed her palm beside the documents.
“You are not some tragic princess, Mara. You are sitting on money this family needs.”
“This family?” Mara asked.
Daniel’s eyes narrowed.
“Our family.”
Mara looked at Celeste.
The sister in the evening gown.
The woman standing in her dining room after midnight.
The woman speaking about Mara’s inheritance as if it were a shared meal.
Mara’s fear became colder.
“My father did not leave you anything.”
Celeste’s nostrils flared.
“He left you too much.”
The sentence hung in the air.
Daniel turned sharply toward her.
Too late.
Mara heard it.
So did the rain.
So did the open microphone on her smartphone, though neither Daniel nor Celeste had noticed when her thumb brushed the screen.
Not calling yet.
Recording.
Mara lowered her eyes to hide the shift.
Daniel grabbed the gold pen again.
“We are done talking.”
Mara looked at the forged page in her hand.
May you like
“No,” she said quietly. “You are.”
Read Chapter 4 👉 Because Celeste finally said what Daniel had been hiding: they did not want Mara’s signature—they wanted her father’s fortune.
