CHAPTER 13: Celeste Tries to Run
Celeste waited until the house focused on Victoria.
Then she moved.
A woman like Celeste did not survive by being stronger than everyone. She survived by knowing when a room stopped watching. She requested water. She asked to call her attorney. She complained of dizziness. One officer stepped into the hallway for a moment, and Celeste slipped through the side service door in heels still stained with yellow soup.
She made it as far as the garage.
A black SUV was waiting.
Her emergency bag had been hidden behind a stack of linen boxes for months: passport, cash, diamonds, a second phone, and a ticket under another name. Celeste had always believed in escape routes. That was why she thought she would survive this too.
But Naomi knew fear.
She knew how it prepared.
From the library window, she saw the white flash of Celeste’s suit crossing the driveway.
“Adrian,” she said.
He followed her gaze.
Celeste opened the SUV door.
Adrian ran.
Security moved at the same time, but Celeste was already inside, screaming at the driver to go. The engine roared. The SUV lurched forward.
Adrian stepped into the driveway.
The driver slammed the brakes.
Celeste hit the back of the seat and cursed.
Detective Ramirez pulled open the door herself.
“Celeste Blackwood,” she said, “step out of the vehicle.”
Celeste’s eyes locked on Naomi at the window.
For one second, all the elegance fell away.
“You should have stayed gone,” Celeste shouted.
Naomi did not flinch.
She placed one hand on her stomach and watched as Celeste was brought back toward the house she had ruled.
May you like
This time, Celeste entered through the service door.
The same door Naomi had used every morning.
