The next day, Isaac called me to his room and informed me that I was to attend an event with him.
“I don’t want to go,” I said.
Isaac didn’t even look up from the mirror where he was adjusting his tie. “You will. It’s the company’s anniversary, and people already think you’re unstable. Don’t make it worse.”
Unstable. That was his new name for me.
Naomi appeared in the doorway, luminous in a silver silk dress, and looking like the picture of innocence. “Come with us, Cass,” she said sweetly. “Everyone’s forgiven you. It’ll be good for you to see people again.”
Forgiven me. Like I did something wrong in the first place. I didn’t need their forgiveness, they could take it all and shove it down their throats.
And as much as I didn’t want to attend this party, I knew that I had to. I couldn’t let them think I was hiding. If Naomi and Isaac could show their faces even after everything they had done, then I could too.
By the time we arrived, the ballroom glittered with champagne and diamonds. Conversations dropped to murmurs as I walked in behind my husband and my best friend whose hands were entangled like they were a couple. I could feel every stare and every whisper as I walked.
“That’s her, the one who—”
“She actually came?”
“Her poor husband, still standing by her…”
I kept my chin high. I couldn’t let them make me fall.
Naomi glided through the crowd, smiling and collecting sympathy like pearls. When she dragged me over to introduce me to a group of women, she said lightly, “Cassandra’s still adjusting to freedom. You know how hard it must be to start over.”
Laughter followed. I felt my nails cut into my palms. Isaac stood beside her with an expression unreadable, offering me nothing.
One of the women lifted a finger. “Tell me, Cassandra, what was it like in there? It must feel like a breath of fresh air now that you’re not locked up anymore.”
Before I could say anything, Naomi giggled and answered. “Oh do you even have to ask? Look at her! Even though she’s draped in a dress that cost thousands, she still looks like a prisoner!”
The chandelier lights blurred as the entire room laughed. I couldn’t take it anymore, I muttered something about needing air and pushed my way to the restroom.
A lone tear slipped down my cheeks just as I pushed the bathroom door open. It was silent, and the only thing I could hear was the hum of the vents and my own ragged breathing. I gripped the marble sink until my reflection wasn’t blurry anymore. I wouldn’t cry. Not here.
A janitor came out of one of the stalls, reeking of urine. “Ma’am, I’m sorry, but I’ll have to ask you to use one of the bathrooms downstairs. This bathroom is out of order. The pipes are clogged and everything that’s been flushed is coming back up.”
I scrunched my face in disgust. “Oh I’m sorry, I’ll just be a minute. Thank you.”
He nodded and left the bathroom with his cleaning tools, and then I was alone again.
I took a deep breath and dabbed some water on my face. I was fishing for my lipstick in my purse when I heard a rustle from the door. I looked up to see that it was Naomi. I rolled my eyes and ignored her.
She tutted. “Oohhh, poor little Cassandra. Are you crying in the bathroom, it’s like high school all over again.”
“Leave me alone, Naomi.” I sighed, taking my phone out to try and order an uber.
“Anyway,” she continued. “I just came here to show you that you’ve lost Isaac forever.”
She turned her phone screen to me, and on it, was a video of her and Isaac, naked and kissing.
I barely flinched.
“Have you learned your lesson then?” She asked. “He told me he had never experienced a woman like me. He said you were always stiff in bed! Can you see now that you don’t belong here?”
I was tired of her games and I just wanted her to leave me alone. “Yes, Naomi. You win, okay? Take him. Take all my friends, take everything. I already lost the most important thing in my life and I really don’t care what you do anymore.”
She seemed offended and taken aback by my response. Did she really expect me to kneel down and beg her to let me have Isaac?
Her eyes flashed angrily. “You think you’re better than me, don’t you? You’re nothing but a pathetic bitch!”
I opened my mouth to ask her to leave me alone again, but I was interrupted by a loud gurgle from one of the toilets, and I didn’t have to be told what it was. The smell hit both of us at the same time.
“Oh my God, what is that smell?” Naomi asked, gagging and covering her nose. She took a step back and smirked, holding on to the door handle. “I suppose it makes sense for you to be in such a smelly place. It’s exactly the kind of filth you belong in.”
I saw her next course of action in her eyes before she even did it. “Naomi…” I said in a warning voice.
Her smile widened. “Goodnight, Cassandra. I find it hilarious, locking you in here just like I locked your bastard daughter out in the snow. Hopefully, you’ll die just like she did!”
My lipstick fell to the floor that was slowly filling up with urine and brown liquid. “What did you just say?”
Naomi laughed in my face, and before I could take a step to reach the door, she locked it with a click.
“Let me out of here!” I yelled, banging on the door.
She didn’t turn back. I watched in horror as her retreating figure kept laughing at me.
I turned the door handle but it didn’t budge. My shoes were slowly getting submerged in urine now.
I tried to make a call to Anthony, but there was no service in the bathroom.
I was left all alone, with the horrifying confession of how Naomi had killed my daughter. And right there, I vowed to make them all pay.
