I spent the night in that filthy bathroom, propped up on the sink, so my feet wouldn’t be submerged in the dirty water.
The windows were locked, so I had to inhale the smell all night. I kept checking my phone, but the signal never returned.
At 9am the next morning, the door finally opened, and the janitor from the previous night stared at me open-mouthed.
I was weak and almost passed out from the smell.
“Goodness, ma’am, were you in here all night?”
I nodded weakly.
He helped me out of the bathroom and I had never been more grateful for clean fresh air. I started coughing violently, and it felt like I would throw up at any second.
He helped me over to a chair and made me sit down. “Take a seat, I’ll call an ambulance.”
“No!” I stopped him. “I’m fine. Thank you. I just need to get home.”
“Are you sure? You need to get checked.”
“I’m okay, thank you.”
I didn’t wait for him to argue further. I headed straight for the door. People closed their noses and shook their heads as I passed them, but I couldn’t even be bothered. I had to get home.
When I finally got home, it didn’t even look like anybody had noticed I didn’t come back last night.
Julian was on the couch watching a show when I walked in. He looked up. “Why isn’t there breakfast on the table yet?”
“I’m not your maid, Julian.”
He scrunched his nose. “What is that smell?”
I ignored him and walked past him. I didn’t have time for him. I had bigger fish to fry. I went straight to the bathroom and scrubbed myself clean. Then I simply walked to the kitchen and made myself a cup of coffee.
By the time Isaac came downstairs, coffee was already on the table — and so were the papers.
“Can you sign these?” I asked in a calm voice. “They’re for approval to remake our daughter’s headstone. The old one cracked.”
He barely looked up. “Now? I’m late.”
“It’ll only take a moment.”
He looked like he wanted to disagree, but then his phone lit up with a phone call.
Naomi’s name lit up his screen. Of course.
He answered the call, and his voice softened in a way it never did for me anymore. While he spoke, I slid the pen toward him. He scrawled his signature on every line without reading a word and left mid-conversation, still murmuring to her.
The moment the door shut behind him, I exhaled.
Divorce papers.
He’d just signed away our marriage and my freedom in one distracted moment.
For the first time in months, I almost laughed.
---
The next day was our wedding anniversary.
Isaac hadn’t wanted to acknowledge or celebrate it. “There’s no point pretending like we’re in love,” he’d said.
I’d agreed with him, and then planned a dinner anyway.
“It’s just a small gathering,” I told him. “For appearances.”
He didn’t notice the irony.
By evening the house was filled with guests. Each one of them were part of our social circle. They had been my friends once, but after I got sent to prison, they all abandoned me and took Naomi’s side. It was the perfect audience for my plan.
Naomi arrived with Isaac, draped in gold, glowing under the chandelier like a saint. She leaned close to him when he took the stage, resting her hand possessively on his arm. You would think it was their anniversary. In the past, I would have cried for days because of this, but now, revenge was the only thing on my mind.
Instead, I calmly took my glass and walked up to the stage too to give our speech.
Isaac spoke first. “You know, the past year has been extremely hard on me, losing my daughter and all that…”
I flinched at the mention of my daughter. I could see her beautiful face in my mind. I wondered what she would have looked like now.
Isaac cleared his throat and continued. “But through all those hardships, there has been one person who has been a constant source of strength and support for me… Naomi Thorne.” He kissed her cheek. “This woman has been there through the darkest days of my life, and even though it’s my anniversary today, I think the real person we should be celebrating is Naomi.”
The crowd cheered, and Naomi stepped into the spotlight, saying her ’thank yous’ like a celebrity. When she was done, she turned to me and smirked, like she had won.
I smiled and took the microphone from Isaac. “My husband is right. Naomi really is the star of the night, and as such, I would like to play you all a little something.”
Everyone started murmuring as the screen behind us crackled to life. Naomi turned to me wide eyed, whispering. “What the hell are you doing now?”
“You’ll see,” I said.
The video started.
Naomi appeared on it, standing in the bathroom from last night. I had turned on my camera after failing to find an Uber last night. I had held the phone in my hand, angled at her so she wouldn’t suspect a thing.
Her words from last night were loud enough for everyone to hear.
“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!”
A wave of gasps rolled through the hall.
Naomi stumbled back. “Th- that’s not real! That’s been edited!”
Isaac turned to me with fire in his eyes. “Stop this madness right now!”
I didn’t listen to him. The video kept playing on a loop as I spoke. “As you can see, the truth is finally out for all to see. Naomi Thorne killed my daughter! I took her in as a friend, and she destroyed my life. And my dear husband and brother took her side. I spent months and months being taunted by them. I could barely breathe in my own home. The two people that I called my family turned on me. My husband didn’t even hide the fact that he was sleeping with my best friend anymore. They paraded proudly in front of me, knowing that I was helpless. They took my child and then threw me in jail for almost a year! But I won’t be silenced anymore.”
