Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Rosalind's POV
I lunge at her, get my hands around her throat.
"Help! Holden, help me!" Marlowe screams, thrashing.
Security bursts through the door and kicks me off her.
I slam into the shelves. Something hot fills my mouth. I spit out blood.
Marlowe clutches her neck, tears streaming down her face as she runs out of the freezer.
"Holden! Holden, she tried to kill me!"
Less than a minute later, Holden storms in with more guards.
He looks at me on the ground, then at the angry red marks on Marlowe's neck. His eyes go ice cold.
"Rosalind! You got a death wish?!"
Holden grabs my collar and hauls me up off the floor.
"You're not sorry at all, are you? You're still trying to hurt Mar! You actually want to destroy her! What the hell is wrong with you?!"
"I didn't do anything!" I struggle against his grip. "It was Marlowe! She used my phone to text you! She said my mom—"
"Enough!"
Holden's hand cracks across my face.
"You're still lying! Still trying to blame Mar! Rosalind, I've never met anyone as twisted as you!"
He lets go of me and turns to the guards.
"Take her back to the house. Lock her in the guest room. She doesn't come out until she admits what she did and gets on her knees to apologize to Mar. Then maybe we'll reschedule the wedding."
"Holden!" I throw myself at his feet, grabbing onto his pant leg. "Please! My mom's still in the hospital! Don't cut off her treatment! I'm begging you!"
Holden looks down at me. His eyes are ice.
"Too late."
He kicks my hand away.
"When Mar forgives you, I'll think about letting your mom get her treatment back."
"No! Holden, please!" I reach for him again, sobbing.
Marlowe presses herself against Holden's side, all sweet and pitiful. "Holden, it's okay... let Rosie go see her mom... I'm fine..."
The more she plays the martyr, the more he melts.
He pulls Marlowe closer and snaps at the guards. "Watch her. Don't let her get anywhere near Mar again."
He walks out with Marlowe, doesn't look back once.
The guards drag me to the car and haul me back to the house.
They shove me into a room and lock the door from the outside. I collapse on the floor, every bit of strength gone.
My phone rings.
It's the hospital.
"Ms. Vale, I'm very sorry to inform you that your mother went into cardiac failure. Per the family's request to discontinue treatment, resuscitation was unsuccessful. She passed away today at 3:15 PM. Please come to the hospital as soon as possible to handle the arrangements."
The phone slips from my hand.
I sit there like a hollow shell, feeling everything inside me go cold.
Mom, I'm sorry. But don't worry. I won't let them get away with this.
Over the next few days, I pull together all the evidence I've been collecting. Proof of how Marlowe seduced my boyfriends back in college. The recording from the freezer. The security footage of her bragging to a friend about using her succubus powers to control Holden.
I copy everything onto a flash drive.
Then I leave the USB drive, and a copy of my mother's death certificate on Holden's desk in his study.
When I'm done, I wait until the middle of the night, pry open the window, and climb out. I go to the hospital and pick up my mother's ashes.
Then I leave this godforsaken city behind for good.
A few days pass.
Holden sits in his office, annoyed.
Rosalind's still locked up at the house, and she hasn't shown any sign of wanting to apologize.
All he wants is for her to admit she was wrong and say sorry to Mar. Is that really so hard?
He rubs his temples. The whole thing's getting on his nerves. Finally he tells his assistant to go check on Rosalind at the house and see if she's ready to come to her senses yet.
Not long after, the office door flies open.
His assistant and a couple guards rush in, looking panicked.
"Mr. Kingsley!" The assistant's face is pale, voice shaking.
Holden frowns. "What's with the dramatics?"
"Your wife... she's gone!"
"What?" Holden pauses, then his expression hardens. "She thinks running away means she doesn't have to apologize?"
He lets out a cold laugh, not particularly concerned.
"Fine. She wants to run? Let her. She cares so much about her mom, right? Call the hospital. Cut off her mom's treatment. Text Rosalind and tell her when she comes back, we'll turn it back on."
The assistant goes even paler, voice trembling. "But... Mr. Kingsley, the hospital called. Your wife's mother... she died three days ago."
Holden's pen hits the desk with a sharp crack.
He freezes, mind blank.
The next second he's on his feet, eyes bloodshot, roaring. "That's impossible! What the hell are you talking about?!"
