Chapter 1 — The Woman Who Wasn’t There
The first thing Elena heard was Marcus begging her to put the glass down.
The second was the sound of her own breathing.
Too fast.
Too shallow.
Almost animalistic.
“Elena.”
Marcus’s voice came again, closer this time.
“Look at me.”
She couldn’t.
Her eyes were fixed on the jagged shard between her fingers.
A thin line of blood traced across her palm.
She stared at it, confused.
She didn’t remember picking up the glass.
She didn’t remember the table breaking.
She didn’t remember falling.
And yet the memory was still inside her head with horrifying clarity.
Victoria standing over her.
Victoria’s hand gripping her shoulder.
Victoria whispering that no one would ever believe her.
Elena squeezed her eyes shut.
The memory remained.
“Put it down,” Marcus whispered.
“I…”
Her throat closed.
“I didn’t do this.”
“I know.”
“No.” Elena shook her head violently. “You don't understand.”
Marcus moved one inch closer.
“I understand enough.”
“She was here.”
His expression changed.
“Who?”
Elena opened her eyes.
“Victoria.”
Silence.
Marcus looked toward the doorway.
Empty.
Then toward the corridor.
Empty.
He looked back at Elena.
“There’s no one here.”
“She was here.”
“Elena…”
“She attacked me.”
Marcus swallowed.
He had seen fear before.
He had seen panic.
He had seen people lying.
But what he saw in Elena’s eyes now was different.
She wasn’t trying to convince him.
She was trying to convince herself.
“I saw her,” Elena whispered.
Marcus slowly reached for her wrist.
“Let me take the glass.”
She resisted.
Not because she wanted to hurt herself.
Because she was terrified that if she released it, something worse would happen.
“What if she comes back?”
“She won't.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I’m here.”
His voice was steady.
Firm.
Almost painfully calm.
“I'm not leaving you.”
Elena stared at him.
For one second, she believed him.
Then another memory flashed through her mind.
Victoria’s face.
Cold.
Smiling.
“You're going to destroy yourself, Elena.”
Elena screamed.
Marcus caught her before she could stumble backward.
The shard fell from her hand.
It struck the marble floor with a tiny metallic crack.
And then everything went black.
When Elena opened her eyes again, she was in the bedroom.
The curtains were drawn.
Rain tapped against the windows.
Marcus sat beside the bed.
His shirt sleeves were rolled to his elbows.
His tie was gone.
His face looked exhausted.
“How long?” Elena whispered.
“Almost three hours.”
She swallowed.
“My baby?”
Marcus immediately reached for her hand.
“The doctor checked you.”
“And?”
“The baby is fine.”
Her eyes closed.
A tear slipped toward her temple.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Elena whispered:
“Did I hurt myself?”
Marcus hesitated.
That hesitation frightened her more than the answer.
“How bad?”
“You cut your palm.”
“That’s all?”
“That’s all physically.”
Elena looked at him.
“And mentally?”
Marcus said nothing.
She pulled her hand away.
“You think I'm crazy.”
“No.”
“You do.”
“I think something is wrong.”
“That isn't the same thing.”
“No.”
His voice hardened.
“It isn't.”
Elena turned toward the window.
The rain blurred the lights of the estate gardens into pale streaks.
“What happened downstairs?”
Marcus leaned forward.
“I need you to tell me exactly what you remember.”
“I already told you.”
“Tell me again.”
She hesitated.
“I was sitting at the table.”
“Alone?”
“I thought so.”
“You thought so?”
Elena frowned.
“I heard footsteps.”
“Whose?”
“Victoria’s.”
Marcus’s jaw tightened.
“What did she say?”
“She said I had no right to be here.”
“That sounds like her.”
“She said this was never supposed to be my home.”
Marcus went still.
Elena continued.
“She said you would eventually choose the family over me.”
Marcus looked away.
“And then?”
“She grabbed me.”
“Did she hit you?”
“No.”
“Push you?”
“I think…”
Elena stopped.
She pressed her fingers against her forehead.
“I don't know.”
Marcus watched her carefully.
“You don't know?”
“I remember falling.”
“You said she pushed you.”
“I thought she did.”
“Thought?”
Elena looked at him.
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I don't know what happened anymore.”
Marcus immediately softened.
“Okay.”
“I saw her.”
“I believe you saw something.”
“That isn't the same as believing me.”
“I believe you experienced it.”
Elena flinched.
Experienced it.
The words sounded clinical.
Cold.
Like something a doctor would say about a patient who couldn't distinguish reality from imagination.
She whispered:
“You think it was a hallucination.”
Marcus didn't answer.
That was answer enough.
At 2:17 a.m., Marcus left the bedroom.
He closed the door quietly.
Then his expression changed.
The tenderness disappeared.
He walked down the corridor without making a sound.
The estate was sleeping.
Or pretending to.
Marcus descended the main staircase and entered the dining room.
The broken glass was gone.
The marble floor had been cleaned.
The chairs were perfectly aligned.
The long dining table looked untouched.
He stopped.
Something was wrong.
He walked around the table.
No blood.
No broken glass.
No signs of a struggle.
Nothing.
Marcus crouched beside the chair where Elena had collapsed.
He ran his fingers over the floor.
Perfectly clean.
He stood.
Then he noticed the chair.
The one closest to Elena's place.
There was a faint scratch on the marble beneath it.
He crouched again.
The scratch was fresh.
Something heavy had been dragged.
Marcus looked toward the hallway.
Then toward the security camera mounted above the wine cabinet.
His eyes narrowed.
Of course.
The cameras.
He walked into the security room.
The guard on duty stood immediately.
“Mr. Moretti.”
“Show me the dining room footage.”
The guard hesitated.
“Which time?”
“Between eight and nine.”
“Yes, sir.”
The monitor flickered.
Footage appeared.
8:42 p.m.
Elena entered the dining room alone.
She carried a cup of tea.
Marcus watched.
She sat.
Nothing happened.
8:46.
Elena looked toward the doorway.
Her expression changed.
Marcus leaned closer.
8:47.
Elena began speaking.
But no one was there.
Marcus's stomach tightened.
She gestured toward someone standing off-camera.
Then she recoiled.
The guard looked uncomfortable.
“Sir…”
“Keep playing.”
8:49.
Elena suddenly stood.
She backed away.
Then she raised both hands defensively.
Her lips moved.
Marcus couldn't hear the audio.
He watched her face.
Fear.
Pure terror.
8:50.
Elena fell.
The camera angle caught her hand reaching toward the table.
Then she disappeared below the frame.
8:51.
Marcus entered.
The footage showed him running to her.
He watched himself kneel beside Elena.
He watched her holding the glass shard.
But there was something else.
Something he hadn't noticed at the time.
Marcus paused the footage.
“Go back.”
The guard rewound.
“Again.”
The image moved backward.
8:48.
8:47.
8:46.
Marcus stared at the screen.
“Stop.”
The image froze.
Elena was looking toward the doorway.
Her face was terrified.
But the doorway was empty.
Marcus leaned closer.
Then he saw it.
A reflection.
Not in the doorway.
In the polished surface of the wine cabinet.
A dark figure stood behind Elena.
Marcus's heart stopped.
“Enhance that.”
The guard enlarged the frame.
The image became grainy.
The figure remained indistinct.
Tall.
Motionless.
Watching.
Marcus's voice dropped.
“Who is that?”
“I don't know, sir.”
“Run the footage from the corridor.”
The guard opened another camera.
The corridor was empty.
Marcus watched the timestamps.
8:44.
8:45.
8:46.
Nothing.
8:47.
A shadow moved across the far end.
Marcus froze.
“Go back.”
The guard did.
The shadow appeared again.
A person walking toward the dining room.
Marcus stared.
Then the camera angle changed.
The person disappeared behind a column.
He waited.
They should have emerged into the dining room.
They never did.
Marcus stood.
“Check every camera.”
The guard did.
The result was the same.
No one entered.
No one left.
Except Elena.
And Marcus.
Marcus stared at the screen.
His mind fought against the obvious conclusion.
If no one had entered the room…
then who had been standing behind Elena?
At 3:06 a.m., Marcus returned upstairs.
Elena was awake.
She was sitting against the headboard.
“You were gone.”
“I needed to check something.”
“What?”
He sat beside her.
“Do you remember what you drank tonight?”
Elena frowned.
“Tea.”
“Who made it?”
“I don't know.”
“Victoria?”
“I think so.”
“You think?”
“She always sends tea upstairs.”
Marcus stared at her.
“Always?”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
Elena considered.
“Months.”
Marcus's fingers tightened around his knee.
“Months?”
“Why?”
“Nothing.”
She studied his face.
“You found something.”
Marcus didn't answer.
“Marcus.”
He looked at her.
“I found something strange on the security footage.”
Her expression changed.
“What?”
“There was a figure.”
Elena went pale.
“Victoria?”
“I don't know.”
“You said no one was there.”
“No one was visible.”
“Then what did you see?”
“A reflection.”
Silence.
Elena looked toward the bedroom door.
“She's still here.”
Marcus took her hand.
“Don't jump to conclusions.”
“She wants me gone.”
“I know she doesn't like you.”
“She doesn't just dislike me.”
Elena's voice trembled.
“She hates me.”
Marcus looked down.
There was something he hadn't told her.
Something he had discovered three months earlier.
Victoria had attempted to change Elena's place setting at family dinners.
She had tried to convince Marcus that Elena was unstable.
She had even contacted a private attorney about the possibility of declaring Elena medically incompetent.
But none of that was enough to explain tonight.
Marcus reached for his phone.
“I'm going to have the tea tested.”
Elena stared at him.
“What?”
“The tea.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to know exactly what you've been drinking.”
She slowly nodded.
Then she whispered:
“What if something is in it?”
Marcus looked directly into her eyes.
“Then I'll find it.”
By morning, the estate had become unnaturally quiet.
Victoria appeared at breakfast at precisely nine.
She wore a crimson velvet dress.
The same dress Elena had seen the night before.
Elena's spoon slipped from her fingers.
It struck the porcelain plate.
Victoria looked up.
“Are you all right, dear?”
Elena couldn't speak.
Marcus noticed.
His gaze moved to Victoria's dress.
Then back to Elena.
Victoria smiled.
“You look pale.”
Elena stared at her.
“You were wearing that last night.”
Victoria's expression remained calm.
“I wasn't in the dining room last night.”
“Yes, you were.”
“No.”
Victoria took a sip of coffee.
“I went to bed at eight.”
Elena's breathing quickened.
“You came into the dining room.”
Victoria tilted her head.
“Did I?”
Marcus's eyes narrowed.
“Mother.”
Victoria looked at him.
“I've been in this house for thirty years. I think I know where I was last night.”
Elena pushed her chair back.
“You touched me.”
Victoria laughed softly.
Not loudly.
Not cruelly.
Almost sympathetically.
“Oh, Elena.”
She looked at Marcus.
“You really need to help her.”
Marcus's jaw tightened.
Victoria continued:
“She needs rest.”
Elena stood.
“You poisoned me.”
The room went silent.
Victoria's smile disappeared.
Marcus looked at Elena.
“What?”
Victoria's eyes hardened.
“That's an outrageous accusation.”
“You put something in my tea.”
“I would never.”
“You've been doing it for months.”
“Based on what?”
Elena opened her mouth.
Nothing came out.
Because she didn't know.
She had no proof.
Only a feeling.
Victoria stood slowly.
“Marcus, I think we both know what's happening.”
“Don't.”
His voice was quiet.
Dangerously quiet.
Victoria ignored him.
“She is pregnant. She's under enormous pressure. She's seeing things.”
Elena stared at her.
Victoria stepped closer.
“You should get help before you hurt yourself again.”
Elena froze.
Marcus moved between them.
“Enough.”
Victoria smiled.
“I'm only trying to help.”
She walked away.
At the doorway, she stopped.
Without turning around, she said:
“Some women should never marry into families they don't understand.”
Then she disappeared.
Elena's hands trembled.
Marcus watched the doorway.
His phone vibrated.
A message.
Unknown number.
He opened it.
There was only one sentence.
STOP TESTING THE TEA.
Marcus's blood turned cold.
A second message appeared.
SHE IS NOT THE ONE YOU SHOULD BE WATCHING.
Marcus looked slowly toward Elena.
Then toward the empty doorway.
Someone knew.
Someone had been watching.
And whoever it was knew exactly what he had planned to do.
At 11:30 that morning, the laboratory technician called.
Marcus answered in his office.
“Yes?”
“Mr. Moretti, we received the sample.”
“And?”
A pause.
The technician's voice became careful.
“Where did you get this?”
“My wife's tea.”
Another pause.
“Sir, you need to come here.”
“Why?”
“We found something unusual.”
“What?”
“We're not authorized to discuss the compound over the phone.”
Marcus stood.
“Tell me.”
The technician lowered his voice.
“The sample contains a combination of prenatal supplements.”
Marcus frowned.
“Supplements?”
“Yes.”
“That doesn't sound dangerous.”
“Not individually.”
Marcus waited.
“But there are three compounds in here that should never be combined.”
His expression hardened.
“What do they do?”
“They can cause severe neurological side effects.”
Marcus's grip tightened around the phone.
“Hallucinations?”
Silence.
Then:
“Yes.”
Marcus closed his eyes.
“How long would someone need to take them?”
“Repeated exposure could cause symptoms over time.”
“How long?”
“Several weeks.”
Marcus looked through the glass wall of his office.
Across the estate grounds, Elena stood alone beside the greenhouse.
Several weeks.
Months.
The technician continued.
“And Mr. Moretti?”
“Yes?”
“This formulation isn't commercially available.”
Marcus's eyes opened.
“What does that mean?”
“It means someone had to obtain the individual compounds separately…”
The technician paused.
“…or manufacture the mixture themselves.”
Marcus hung up.
For several seconds, he stood completely still.
Then he looked toward the estate.
Victoria had been sending Elena tea for months.
Victoria had known Elena was pregnant.
Victoria had repeatedly called Elena unstable.
And now Elena was hallucinating Victoria attacking her.
Marcus's phone vibrated again.
Another message.
This time there was a photograph.
Marcus opened it.
His blood ran cold.
It was a photograph of Elena sleeping.
Taken inside their bedroom.
Taken the previous night.
Beneath the photograph was a single sentence:
YOU'RE LOOKING IN THE WRONG ROOM.
Marcus slowly lowered the phone.
Then he heard a soft knock behind him.
He turned.
The office door was open.
No one stood there.
But on his desk, where there had been nothing a moment before, sat a small white envelope.
Marcus approached it.
He didn't touch it immediately.
His instincts screamed at him not to.
Finally, he opened it.
Inside was a single prenatal vitamin capsule.
And a handwritten note.
Ask Elena what happened three months before the hallucinations began.
Marcus stared at the capsule.
Three months.
His mind raced.
That was when Elena had first started complaining about dizziness.
That was when she had begun having nightmares.
That was when Victoria had suddenly become unusually attentive.
And that was also the month Elena had lost something she had never told Marcus about.
A pregnancy test.
One she had hidden.
One she had never explained.
Marcus looked toward the bedroom.
For the first time, a horrifying possibility entered his mind.
Maybe Victoria wasn't the only person hiding something.
May you like
Maybe Elena had been keeping a secret too.
And whoever was behind the messages knew exactly what that secret was.
