Chapter 2: The Woman Who Was Buried Twice
Marcus had never been afraid of water.
He had built the swimming pool himself, choosing every tile, every light, and every detail because Elina had once told him she dreamed of owning a house where their daughter could swim every morning.
Now, standing waist-deep in that same pool, he felt as though the entire house had become a grave.
“Get Lily inside!”” he shouted.
Victoria didn't move.
“Marcus, you're upsetting her.””
“Get. My. Daughter. Inside.””
His voice echoed across the garden.
A housekeeper named Rosa hurried out from the kitchen. She had worked for the family for nearly eight years and had been present on the day Elina disappeared.
“Mr. Hale?””
“Take Lily upstairs. Lock the bedroom door. Don't let anyone in except me.””
Victoria stepped between them.
“That's ridiculous. She's staying with me.””
Marcus looked at her.
“You heard what she said. She saw her mother.””
“She's six years old! Children imagine things.””
Lily clung to Rosa's waist.
“I didn't imagine it,” she sobbed.
“Mommy knocked on the glass.””
Marcus went still.
“What glass, sweetheart?””
Lily pointed toward the pool.
“The little window under the water.””
Marcus followed her finger.
On the far side of the pool, partly hidden behind decorative stonework, was a narrow rectangular panel.
He had never noticed it before.
It looked like a maintenance access window.
“Rosa,” he said, “take her inside.””
Rosa nodded and carried Lily toward the house.
But as they passed Victoria, the little girl suddenly grabbed Rosa's shoulder.
“Don't let Aunt Victoria come into my room.””
Victoria's face hardened.
“Lily, that's enough.””
The little girl buried her face against Rosa's neck.
Marcus watched them disappear through the glass doors.
Then he turned toward Victoria.
“Why is there a window underneath my pool?””
Victoria folded her arms.
“It's an old maintenance feature. The builders installed it.””
“Who asked them to?””
“I don't remember.””
“You organized the renovation.””
“Marcus, we're not doing this.””
He stepped closer.
“Fourteen months ago, you told me Elina drowned during a business trip. You said the authorities recovered her body and that the funeral arrangements were being handled. You even gave me a death certificate.””
“Because that's what happened.””
“Then why can't I remember seeing her body?””
Victoria blinked.
“You were sedated. You weren't well.””
“I attended the memorial.””
“You were barely functioning.””
Marcus stared at her.
He remembered the hospital room. The medication. The white curtains. Victoria holding his hand and telling him that the woman he loved was gone.
He remembered signing papers because he couldn't stop crying long enough to read them.
He remembered a closed coffin.
And he remembered something else.
Elina had hated closed coffins.
She had once joked that if anyone ever buried her without letting her family say goodbye, she would come back and haunt them.
At the time, Marcus had laughed.
Now the memory made his skin crawl.
A siren sounded in the distance.
Victoria looked toward the driveway.
“You called the police?””
“No. Rosa must have.””
“Marcus, listen to me. You need to calm down before you destroy everything.””
“Everything?””
“Our future. Our engagement. Lily's stability.””
He looked at the red velvet box still lying on the patio table.
“I was about to give you my wife's ring.””
Victoria swallowed.
“You said it was a family heirloom.””
“It was Elina's.””
“You told me you had permission to use it.””
Marcus stared at her.
“I never said that.””
Victoria's mouth opened, but no words came out.
A moment later, two police officers entered through the garden gate.
Behind them came a paramedic carrying an emergency bag.
Marcus pointed toward the pool.
“There is a person beneath that drain. I saw a hand. There was a wedding ring.””
The older officer introduced himself as Detective Harris.
“Sir, are you certain?””
“I know what I saw.””
Victoria immediately stepped forward.
“He's been under tremendous stress. His wife died last year, and today has been emotionally difficult.””
Detective Harris glanced at her.
“Ma'am, we'll need you to step back.””
“But—”
“Now, please.””
A maintenance worker arrived with a set of tools. The officers secured the area while Marcus climbed out of the pool.
He wrapped himself in a towel but couldn't stop shaking.
The worker knelt beside the drain and examined the metal cover.
“This isn't a standard pool drain,” he said.
Marcus looked at him.
“What do you mean?””
“There's a secondary chamber underneath. Somebody modified the plumbing.””
“Can you open it?””
The worker nodded.
It took nearly ten minutes.
When the metal cover finally came loose, a foul smell rose from the opening.
One officer covered his nose.
“Good Lord.””
A flashlight was lowered into the narrow chamber.
Then the beam stopped.
Something was attached to the inner wall.
A hospital identification bracelet.
Detective Harris leaned closer.
“Can you read that?””
The officer adjusted the flashlight.
A name appeared on the faded plastic.
ELINA HALE.
Marcus felt the ground disappear beneath him.
He reached for the edge of the pool.
“That’s my wife.””
The detective carefully removed the bracelet.
Then he noticed something else.
A small waterproof pouch had been wedged behind the metal support.
Inside was a folded piece of paper.
The handwriting was unmistakable.
Elina's.
Marcus recognized the way she crossed her letter T's, the way she wrote his name with a tiny heart beside it.
His hands trembled as Detective Harris unfolded the note.
There were only two sentences.
Marcus, if you're reading this, I am still alive.
And the woman you are planning to marry knows exactly where I am.
Marcus slowly lifted his eyes.
Victoria was standing near the garden doors.
She wasn't crying anymore.
She was already walking away.
“Victoria!”” Marcus shouted.
She broke into a run.
An officer caught her before she reached the driveway.
“Ma'am, stop!””
Victoria struggled.
“Get your hands off me! You don't understand!””
Detective Harris turned toward Marcus.
“Sir, I need to ask you something.””
Marcus could barely speak.
“What?””
The detective held up the identification bracelet.
“Your wife's medical records show she was admitted to a private rehabilitation facility six months after her reported death.””
Marcus stared at him.
“That's impossible.””
Harris opened his notebook.
“There's something else. The facility listed an emergency contact.””
He paused.
May you like
Then read the name aloud.
“Victoria Bennett.””
