Page 103 of Till Death Do Us Part

“Vera?” she said, and I only barely managed to nod. “What happened?”

“She wants me to go,” I whispered. “Away. Somewhere safe.” I opened my hand to show her the wedding band, sitting in my palm next to where I was still wearing mine, and wasn’t that symbolic?

“Oh, no.” She clasped my hand in between hers. “That stupid, stubborn wife of yours.”

I shook my head. I’m not going to cry again. I’d already cried enough. “She’s not really my wife, you know. It was just…”

“You’re in love and you got married. And I also know too many details, so let’s just say, yeah, she is.” She squeezed my hand. “Even when she’s pulling something like this.”

“I’m just a burden in the end. Just people trying to move me out of the way, get rid of me so they can do the real work… and I should just give them what they need and then stand aside.”

Just like Mom. She never loved me. She never wanted me around. She just wanted the idea of me, the image of me. And she wanted what I could do for her.

Then once I was done giving her the money, she would get rid of me. That was how it always happened.

“You know that’s not true,” Caitlyn said. “You brought this whole family together. If it weren’t for you doing what you do, they would have killed you and me both, Glenn would have killed Vera and Petra, Yulia would have never been involved…”

“But now that it’s done, I’m not supposed to be here anymore.” I buried my face in my hands, tugging away from Caitlyn and feeling the cold metal of Vera’s ring against my face as I cried. “I hate the South Yard. I hate my granduncle I never knew who left this with me even knowing what it would do to me. I hate the Blackbirds, I hate the Whitecliffs, I hate everything about this city.”

“Elaine.” Caitlyn reached for me as I stood up, but I didn’t look back, just kept running until I was back in the bedroom, looking forlornly at my and Vera’s things. Our things that were about to split into her things and my things.

I was already at my lowest point, picking through the small essentials we’d grabbed from the manor before we fled here, trying to pick out the even smaller essentials for what I needed once I was gone, when I got a phone call that made my blood curdle.

Mom.

My stomach was uneasy as I picked up, heart slamming against my ribs. I wanted to be able to ignore it, but I couldn’t. I saw her name and I picked up automatically, ready to help.

“Hello?” I said.

“Elaine?” Her voice was small and weak, and I felt tears sting at my eyes. “Where are you?”

“I’m… I’m staying with Vera right now.”

“Please tell me you’re still in Merona.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m… sick, Elaine. I’m very, very sick. It’s taken all my energy… just to make this call.”

I flew to my feet, my heart pounding. “You’re sick? What… what with?”

“I… I don’t know, dear. At first I thought it was food poisoning. It started after I went out for lunch yesterday. But it’s gotten so much worse, I’ve been throwing up, and I’m so pale, it’s like I can see right through my hands… like I’m fading away.”

No. Did they poison her? Who? And why?

I gripped my phone tighter, tears biting my eyes. “You need to get to the hospital, Mom. This is serious.”

“I already called the doctor. He said to just rest on it. But I feel so faint…”

Dammit. I gritted my teeth, my chest heaving. “I… I’ll be right there. Please try to just stay awake a little longer.”

“Oh, thank you, Elaine. Thank you. Please hurry. I don’t know how much longer I… oh…”

“I’m coming, just—”

The call ended. I threw the phone down into bed.

“Dammit!”