Chapter 5 - The Snake in the Grass
The evening of the party arrived. Harper had hired a cheap catering company, though I knew she would bill my accounts for top-tier service. The coastal condo, with its floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Pacific, was filled with my former colleagues from the attorney general’s office, my neighbors, and a few of Harper's socialite friends she wanted to impress.
I was seated in a plush velvet armchair by the terrace doors, dressed in a sharp navy blazer, leaning on a silver-handled cane. I looked frail, but my eyes were sharp.
Harper floated around the room, clutching a glass of champagne, soaking up the sympathy.
"It's just so heartbreaking," I heard her tell my former boss, Richard. "She barely recognizes me half the time. But I’m doing everything I can to make her comfortable in her final years."
Richard, who was fully briefed on the sting operation, nodded gravely. "You are a saint, Harper."
An hour into the party, Harper walked over to me. She crouched down, pasting on a bright, camera-ready smile as one of her friends snapped a photo for Instagram.
Then, she leaned into my ear. The sugary facade melted away, leaving only the cold, calculating grifter underneath.
"The nursing home van arrives tomorrow at 8:00 AM," she whispered, her fingers digging painfully into my shoulder. "Everything is finalized. Don't make this difficult in front of your friends, or I'll put you in a state facility that smells like bleach and despair."
May you like
She pulled back, kissed my cheek for the cameras, and stood up.
It was time.
