Chapter 1
My younger sister, Sofia Yarrow, and I both married into wealthy families and became rich wives. She grew up with Alexander Bennett, and their marriage had always seemed harmonious and respectful.
But three years after her wedding, she got drunk and came to me in tears.
"Charlotte, he has someone else. He even has an illegitimate daughter.
"She's been around longer than our marriage. He's been lying to me all these years. I've been living like a complete joke."
My eyes turned red as tears welled up.
"Actually, James Rowan has the other woman too. He even spent a fortune buying her a luxury car."
Sofia and I cried the entire night, and in the end, we reached an agreement without hesitation.
Sofia said, "Charlotte, I don't want that disgusting man anymore."
I replied, "It's okay, Sofia. If you're leaving him, I'm leaving too. I don't want that man either."
After a long discussion, we came to a conclusion.
If living like this didn't work, then we would fake our deaths and disappear.
*****
"So, what reason should we use for the fake deaths?"
Sofia, whose mind was not particularly sharp, couldn't come up with a good idea no matter how long she thought.
I shook my head and pulled out the itinerary that James' assistant had sent me.
James really knew how to please women.
Right after we got married, he insisted that his assistant send me his schedule for the following week every single week.
Back then, he would act spoiled in front of me, calling me "honey" over and over, his eyes practically sparkling.
He said he needed to be tied down by me so he would feel secure.
And just like that, I was completely wrapped around his finger, and we were deeply in love.
But now, all those sweet-talking skills he used to charm women were probably being used on the other woman instead.
Still, that worked out perfectly for us, since it made planning our fake deaths much easier.
"James is going to Athelstan on a business trip next week. It happens to be a project with Bennett Group, so Alexander should be there too.
"It's peak travel season right now, so we can say we want a beach vacation. When the time comes, we'll pretend we were swept away by the waves."
Sofia nodded eagerly beside me.
"Charlotte, you always have the best ideas.
"Once it's done, we can just travel wherever we want. Those two jerks don't care about us anyway, so we might as well enjoy ourselves."
She had said exactly what I was thinking.
After settling the remaining details, Sofia and I put our plan into motion.
The night before we left, I called James.
"Hey, honey. I'm planning to go to the beach with Sofia tomorrow, so you and Alexander can focus on your trip."
I had practiced the line several times, and my tone sounded completely natural. There was no way he would suspect anything.
There was a brief pause on the other end, then a familiar woman's voice came through.
"Is this Charlotte? Mr. Rowan is in the bathroom right now."
Before she could finish, I hung up.
It was Vivienne Grant, who had just returned from abroad. She had been James' childhood neighbor and now led a project team at Rowan Group.
I had seen her a few times at the company, and each time I could feel an unexplainable hostility from her.
Not to mention that James had bought her a luxury car.
I already knew he was cheating, but facing it so directly still hurt.
It only confirmed that leaving him was the right choice.
Early the next morning, Sofia and I boarded a flight to the island.
On the beach, before James and the others had started work, I deliberately called him on video and pointed the camera at Sofia, who was out surfing.
"Honey, Alexander is with you, right? Get him to look at Sofia."
The moment I said her name, Alexander moved into view.
He was usually stern, but whenever he looked at Sofia, his eyes softened without him realizing it, as if they had melted into water.
I wondered who he thought he was putting on a show for. I kept the thought to myself and maintained a bright smile.
Then his expression suddenly changed.
Out on the water, Sofia had been waving toward us from her surfboard, but she lost her balance and was swallowed by a huge wave.
"Sofia!"
As Alexander cried out in agony, I had already dropped my phone and rushed straight into the sea.
On the other end of the call, James immediately understood what I was about to do, but all he could do was shout "Charlotte" into the screen.
No one would ever answer them again.
The last thing they saw was nothing but a stretch of blue sky.