Soon, she’d be a legal member of the family. She’d have a seat at the firm, and eventually, she’d outshine David. She was smarter than him, more ruthless. She just needed the legal standing to start making her moves.
Meanwhile, David’s SUV pulled into a small, dusty town in rural Pennsylvania. They found the address—a small, weathered house on the edge of town. One half of the duplex was renovated with new siding, but the other half—the one belonging to Olivia’s mother—was a faded, peeling blue.
The yard was small but meticulously kept. Despite the poverty of the building, the flower beds were bursting with color. Roses of every variety lined the walkway. Nancy noted the irony immediately—Olivia had claimed to hate gardening.
“Hello?” Nancy called out as a woman in her late fifties stepped onto the porch. She looked tired, her hands stained with soil, but her eyes were kind.
“Can I help you?” the woman asked, her voice trembling slightly. “I’m David, Olivia’s fiancé,” David said, stepping forward. “And this is my mother, Nancy.”
The woman turned pale, clutching the porch railing. “Is Olivia okay? Has something happened?”
“She’s fine, Martha. We just… we wanted to meet you. We’re getting married in a few weeks, and we felt it was wrong that you weren’t involved.”
Martha invited them inside. The house was tiny and the furniture was decades old, but it was spotless. “This was Olivia’s room,” Martha said, showing them a small space that looked out of place. It had been updated with modern wallpaper and a nice desk. “I wanted her to have a nice place to study.”
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