"Now, I’m finally giving this to you," Cindy had said back then, placing the crystal globe in my hands. "Because I want you to know that in this lifetime, I’ll give you both a life of wealth and endless love—love that belongs only to you. I’ll stand by you as we take care of your mother. We’ll always be a family, and we’ll never be apart.”
But she didn’t keep her promise.
She fell for Eugene—the clumsy, part-time nanny we’d hired. Even though he repeatedly spilled scalding tea on me or accidentally dropped our daughter, she always defended him.
“Vance, Eugene is still young. He didn’t mean it,” she would say. “Besides, Louise is too delicate. A few knocks will toughen her up.”
“Doesn’t Eugene remind you of yourself when you were younger? Working odd jobs to make ends meet. You’ve been through storms too—don’t be the one to tear someone else’s umbrella.”
...
When we arrived at the funeral home, Cindy barked a few more warnings at me before yanking me inside roughly.
But as soon as I stepped into my daughter’s memorial room, I froze, utterly speechless.
The traditional white mourning banners had all been replaced with festive red decorations—it looked more like a wedding hall than a funeral.
From the speakers blared a cheerful song, A Good Day, drawing confused and disapproving stares from the people nearby.
And there—Eugene was sitting on my daughter’s corpse, giggling as he smeared her tiny face with lipstick, completely disfiguring her appearance.
“What the hell are you doing?!” I snapped.
I kicked over the sound system and rushed at him, yanking him off her body with all the strength I had.
Caught off guard, Eugene twisted his ankle and stumbled backward.
Cindy rushed to catch him, glaring at me with fury in her eyes.
“Vance! Did everything I just said go in one ear and out the other?! How dare you lay a hand on Eugene?! Apologize—now!”
“Are you blind, Cindy? This is Louise’s funeral!” I shouted, my eyes burning with rage. “And you let Eugene turn it into a celebration—defiling her body, playing wedding music, humiliating her! Is he cursing her even in death?!”
Even Cindy seemed momentarily stunned.
But Eugene quickly began to cry, his voice trembling as he spoke, “Mr. Santos, you were always busy with work and barely spent time with Louise. I was the only one who knew she loved the color red... and that song A Good Day. She’d ask me to sing it to her again and again.”
“She also loved playing makeup games with me. I just wanted her to leave this world happy, even if she was a bit spoiled and mischievous when alive. You can’t use your outdated traditions to erase what she loved.”
Cindy turned to me, her voice calm but cold.
“You heard him. Compared to you, a heartless father, Eugene clearly cared more about Louise. And you dare disrespect his kindness? Come on, apologize to him.”
I laughed bitterly, stunned by her audacity. I’m the heartless one? I didn’t care about Louise?
Despite the demands of my job, I’d been there for Louise nearly every step of the way—every school event, every doctor’s appointment, every sleepless night. I’d collapsed from exhaustion more than once trying to juggle the company and raising her.
And what about Cindy? Since the day our daughter was born, she’d always claimed she was too busy with work. She never changed a single diaper—not even once. What right did she have to stand here and judge me?
I pointed at Eugene, my voice shaking with fury.
“You filthy homewrecker, shut your mouth! If you hadn’t stuffed my daughter into that trunk, she wouldn’t have suffocated to death! And now you dare smear her memory, desecrate her body? Aren’t you afraid of karma?!”
The crowd began to swell, people murmuring and exchanging horrified glances.
Eugene curled his lips into a smug smirk.
“Mr. Santos, I was trying to save your dignity, but you just kept slandering me—accusing me of abusing Louise with no proof. Got any evidence?”
That’s right... The evidence. The USB... Cindy had already destroyed it.
Seeing the despair in my expression, Eugene’s smirk deepened. He pulled out his phone with a flourish.
“But I have proof—videos of you ignoring Louise, of her crying herself hoarse because she missed you. Want to take a look?”
