The little boy, barely ten years old, exuded an air of obnoxious arrogance. "Are you the bad woman who stole my Uncle Leo? What do you want?"
He curled his lip at me disdainfully, his eyes lighting up when he spotted the urn in my arms. "Is this my birthday present?"
Before I could respond, he reached out to snatch it. The moment I saw his bright, watery eyes, the same eyes that once belonged to Josephine, my anger flared up. I dodged to the side and Henry, completely unprepared, fell to the ground with a loud thud. He immediately burst into tears. "Uncle Leo! Mom! This bad woman is bullying me!"
Seeing Henry crying so miserably, Leo's heart ached. He quickly scooped the boy into his arms, comforting him while glaring at me. "Evelyn! Today is Henry's birthday. What the hell are you doing? Apologize to him. Now!"
Did he ask me to apologize to the very person responsible for Josephine's death? Leo Laughlin, you truly have no heart! I was about to argue with him when Evangeline, in her high heels, stepped between us. "It's okay, Leo. He's just a kid throwing a tantrum. You can't expect Evelyn to apologize."
She put on a kind and understanding act, pulling me aside. But the moment we were out of earshot, her face twisted into something cruel. "Evelyn, your daughter is dead and you're nothing but a broken freak now. If I were you, I'd just stay home and never show my face again. You saw how passionate Leo is when he's with me, right? He was never like that with you. He told me that being with you was just a chore, a duty to fulfill. Only I can truly excite him."
"Come to think of it, I should really thank you and your daughter. One donated her corneas to my son and the other gave me a pair of new breasts. Did you know? When your daughter died, her body was so mangled, it was nightmare-inducing just to look at her."
My chest heaved violently. I couldn't take it anymore. I slapped Evangeline across the face. Leo stormed forward, grabbing my wrist and shoving me to the ground. "Evelyn! You crazy bitch! Who said you could lay a hand on Evie?"
I ignored his shouting, my eyes locked onto the urn that had fallen to the floor. My heart shattered into a million pieces. I lifted my head, my eyes bloodshot and grabbed Leo by the collar, my voice trembling with rage. "Leo! Do you even know what's in this box?"
Leo glanced at the scattered ashes, confused. "Whatever it is, apologize to Evie first!"
I gave a cold laugh. "Do you even remember what day it is? It's our daughter's seventh-day memorial! And you're here celebrating someone else's child's birthday? What kind of father are you?"
Leo looked slightly guilty. "Evelyn, I know you're grieving for Josephine, but life goes on. I've been to her grave, prayed for her and brought her favorite snacks. You can't just wallow in your grief and expect everyone else to be miserable with you."
I couldn't bear to look at his hypocritical face any longer. "My daughter is dead and you murderers are celebrating! Do you have any conscience at all?"
Leo's expression darkened. "What nonsense are you talking about? Who are you calling murderers? The kidnappers have been punished by law. What more do you want?"
I pointed at the ashes scattered across the floor and let out a bitter laugh. "Leo, then why don't you say it to Josephine's ashes? Tell her why she was kidnapped. Why did she suddenly go blind? Tell me, was my breast really removed because of medical complications?"
Leo's brows furrowed even tighter as her lips trembled in disbelief. "Are you saying what's inside this box is Josephine? Evelyn! Are you insane? How come you dug up our daughter's grave?"
Standing nearby, Evangeline covered her face as if something had suddenly clicked in her mind. She immediately stepped forward, pulling Leo aside to calm her down. "All right, Leo, Evelyn is just overwhelmed with grief. I can understand her. Let's talk about this later. Come on, Henry still hasn't blown out his birthday candles!"
Leo snorted coldly and followed Evangeline out of the room. I crouched down, carefully gathering up Josephine's ashes, tears streaming down uncontrollably. After leaving the hotel, I drove straight to the harbor and boarded a cruise ship heading toward international waters. Leo, the next time we meet will be the day you die!
