Chapter 5

Celia’s eyes welled up with tears. She threw the bank card at me as she said furiously, “So, that’s what it was. I wondered why he had been randomly slapping himself out of nowhere. It turns out you’ve been bullying him behind my back this whole time.”

I did not bother to explain or argue with her.

I just picked up the bank card from the floor and walked away without looking back.

Celia raised an eyebrow and wanted to chase after me.

Just then, Mason coughed up blood and acted tough, saying, “Celia, I’m just a lowly bodyguard. Don’t let me come between you and your husband. You should just fire me.”

Celia’s eyes welled up. She gave him a soft, exasperated punch on his shoulder.

“Don’t be ridiculous. You saved my life. If I fired you now, everyone would call me heartless and ungrateful.

“Don’t overthink it. Let me get you patched up first.

“Don’t worry about Ethan. He’s easy to smooth things over with.”

I did not stay to listen to the rest.

Instead, I went to the bank and checked it. There was indeed not a single cent left on the card.

Mason had expected me to tell Celia about the money, so he could stage another round of his pitiful act.

How pathetic.

I did not give him what he wanted. I went straight to the police station and submitted the evidence.

But I still could not pay for Cyrus’ medical bills.

Just as I was worrying, my salary and commission came through. A total of thirteen thousand dollars came through. My part-time job employer heard about what happened to Cyrus. He paid us a week’s wages early and added an extra five hundred dollars as condolences.

I choked back tears and thanked my employer repeatedly.

I then took the money and paid the mortician to restore the body.

Money was tight, so I just did a small, simple service. Cyrus’ school friends pitched in too. They got a flower spray to show their respects and came with me for the cremation.

Three days passed, and Celia finally remembered to text me.

[Ethan, how’s that wound on your head?]

I ignored her text.

She sent another message with an address to a restaurant.

[I know I got a little carried away before. I’m sorry. I booked that steakhouse Cyrus always talked about. Let’s bring him over for a meal.]

I deleted her messages and blocked her. Then, I held Cyrus’ urn and took the train back to our hometown.

There was no one left back home, but I still wanted to take him home. Laid to rest beside our parents, he would no longer be alone.

...

Back in the private dining room, Mason stood behind Celia.

“When Mr. Grant gets here, I’ll go ahead and apologize first.”

Celia waved her hand and said calmly, “Don’t bother. I’ll just get him a gift, and he’ll get over it. You don’t need to swallow your pride for me.”

Mason was about to say something else when someone knocked on the door.

Celia smiled and said, “See? I just texted him, and he’s already here. I told you there was nothing to worry about.”

She and Mason went to get the door.

Standing at the entrance were several police officers. The one in front held up his badge and said sternly, “Mason Johnston, you are under arrest for soliciting a hit-and-run that resulted in the death of a high school student named Cyrus Grant. That makes you a suspect in a premeditated homicide. You need to come with us.”

Celia’s eyes widened in shock. “What? Ethan’s brother is dead? When did that happen?”

In shock, she tried to text me, but I had not replied to her previous messages.

When she hit send, the message never went through. She only saw a single gray check mark.