Chapter 3

James dragged Colette to the dining table and forced her to take a seat before returning to Sophie's side. Colette looked up. She watched him comforting Sophie. When he sensed her gaze, he shot her a warning glance. Colette tried to ignore the bitterness rising within her as she forced herself to finish dinner through the pain. Tears dropped onto her plate. Every time she took a bite, she felt a burning sensation spreading through her esophagus. Her food tasted salty from the tears. For a moment, she struggled to tell if her heart or her stomach was in more pain. She finally finished dinner in silence as she watched James and Sophie being lovebirds. She heard the sound of car engines on the porch just when she put down her utensils. Sophie chuckled when she heard the sounds outside. "Oh, my stuff has arrived." After Sophie jogged to the door, James turned to Colette. "Sophie will move in with us starting today." He fixed his eyes on Colette as though he wanted to detect any hint of opposition. He seemed to be anticipating her throwing a tantrum to stop Sophie from moving in. After crying in the washroom just now, Colette had gathered herself. She nodded calmly. "Got it." James was taken aback at Colette's calm demeanor. Something felt off. Sophie came up to him and took his arms at that moment. "James, where's my room?" James shook off the weird feeling and flashed Sophie a doting smile. "I'll give you a tour. You can have your pick." The three of them went to the second floor for Sophie to pick a room. After she confirmed the location of James' bedroom, she immediately made her way to the adjoining bedroom. Colette had a bad feeling when she saw Sophie wandering in that direction. She ran after Sophie and found the latter approaching the closet after scanning the room. Sophie announced, "James, this room is fine. I'll pick this one." Colette rushed over to stop Sophie, who had placed her hands on the closet handles by now. She said to Sophie, "Stop! This is my room. You can't have it." James' brows furrowed at Colette's huge reaction. He scolded her, "Just look at you! Get a grip! If Sophie likes this room, it won't hurt to let her have it. The maid will get another bedroom ready for you." Even after he dressed down Colette, she pressed her back hard against the closet doors and refused to cave in. He tried to control his temper in the face of her stubbornness. "You're getting ridiculous because I doted on you!" Finally, Sophie stepped in to end the stalemate. "James, that's enough. I'll choose another room if Colette doesn't want to give up hers." James laughed in anger when he saw Colette standing defiantly before the closet. He said on purpose, "Fine. Since she isn't backing down, you shall share a room with me." Sophie shyly buried her face in his chest. He led her out of Colette's room after that. When they exited, Colette saw Sophie checking her own hand. Sophie asked curiously, "This is weird. Why do I have blood on my hand? I wasn't injured…" After the couple left Colette's room, James instructed the maids to move Sophie's belongings into his room. The maids busied themselves with moving the luggage. Colette couldn't care less about the move. With trembling fingers, she shut the closet doors tightly right away. Only she knew the source of the blood on Sophie's fingers—Sophie had touched the closet, in which Colette's body was hidden. Colette made sure the closet doors were closed before she taped the doors up. According to the Grim Reaper, she would vanish from the world if someone discovered her body. Once she was done, she went to the living room for a glass of water. Feeling relieved, she walked past James' room, only to see him and Sophie making out through the slightly ajar door. She closed her eyes and looked away. Then, she walked over to the calendar and tore another page off.