Page 5 of Nemesis
From the outside looking in, people saw a heartbroken husband mourning his wife, which gave the opportunity to the few hidden cameras to snap a picture.
The manlovedhimself a good photo op.
Victor Morales loved to play the role of the poor widower in mourning as if that might garner enough sympathy to hide his rotten core. However, if you paid closer attention, you'd be able to discern his true colors.
The picture of a man more successful at painting his wife with his anger than honoring his marital vows of protecting her.
I unglued myself from the wet bark, pulling the hood of my coat over my head before walking back to my car, the fallen leaves crunching beneath my shoes. Once in, I flipped the key in the ignition, my car rumbling to life as the sound of the rain pelting against the windows filled the stillness inside.
I waited for my car to warm up, the windows slowly fogging, before I shifted the gear in reverse. Right before I pulled out of my parking spot, my gaze wandered over his figure through the rearview mirror, knowing this wouldn’t be the last time I would see him.
This was just the beginning.
Even if I had to make’til death do us parta reality.
CHAPTER3
SOFIA - FIFTEEN MONTHS LATER
After the candles were blown, I peered up. The smoke vanished and unveiled the people seated around me. We were all settled around a large table covered with white linen, crystal flutes, and white china adorning it, the cling of cutleries scraping against each other echoing around us.
I carefully studied their laughing faces illuminated by the soft lights hanging down from the ceiling of the restaurant where this celebration was taking place.
The man of the hour must’ve said something funny, something I hadn’t caught while lost in thoughts, since more shrieks of laughter filled the otherwise empty restaurant, which had been specifically rented for this event.
Most of the guests present tonight were either non-family members or from Bemes’s most elite. He most likely invited them for the sake of publicity since Victor Morales was an opportunist, taking advantage of any occasion to show he was an exemplary family man.
But in reality, he was a fraud, a man hiding behind a curtain of violence and corruption while portraying the image of a loving husband and morally upstanding citizen.
The princess cut diamond of my new ring glinted off the dim lighting, and I glanced down, my heart squeezing at the sight of wearing someone else’s ring.
A ring that isn’t his.
A champagne flute appeared in my peripheral vision, tearing my eyes away from my hand to look at him as he handed me the glass.
I plastered a smile on my face before taking a small sip of champagne and glancing around the room. Everyone seemed at ease, laughing and smiling as they honored the union of two people joined by commitment, love, and loyalty.
All of themcompletelyclueless that they were celebrating a shimmering illusion that had been carefully curated to present the image of a perfect and loving marriage.
But the most clueless of all was the one standing right next to me. Wearing a perfectly tailored gray suit and his signature deceiving smile for our audience, salt-and-pepper hair impeccably combed back, wasmy dear and beloved husband.
The man who vowed to protect and cherish me was the same man who executed my parents and pulled the trigger on me a little over eight years ago.
He was almost attractive, but I guessed it was fitting for the devil to be in a perfectly suited disguise, lavishing enough to lure away souls.
How could I marry such a man, you ask? Well, the answer was quite easy. I wanted him to feel betrayed by the one person he was supposed to trust the most.
Morales kept his inner circle quite tight, not extending it further than his immediate family and a few close associates. He was a God-fearing man who would only give his trust if a contract was bound by blood or faith.
And since blood wasn’t on my side, I needed his downfall to be crafted around blinded faith.
Bringing down Morales was the only way to bring my family peace. To bringmepeace. So I inserted myself in his life and seduced him into matrimony. Although that part didn't require much convincing.
You see, men weren’t that difficult to discern. They were actually quite simple creatures. Their eyes immediately sparked with interest when they spotted vulnerability.
Show them the possibility of control and they would get down on their knees and beg to be granted an ounce of power.
After the funeral, I’d spent the next few days distancing myself from beingSofia Maria Herreraand becomingOlivia Kane, a twenty-six-year-old widow who had recently lost her husband to a tragic car accident and who had decided to move to the city for a fresh start, giving herself a chance to heal and rediscover herself.
