PART 1
“As soon as your father hands over the ten million dollars, I am leaving Audrey and coming with you,” my husband said into a phone he did not realize was still active. That was the very first thing I heard when my husband, Mark, called me by mistake and forgot to end the connection before he began his private conversation.
I was standing in the kitchen of our beautiful home in Charlotte, quietly putting away the groceries while I still wore my favorite cooking apron. My cell phone started vibrating against the granite counter and the screen displayed the name of the man I had loved for nearly a decade. I answered the call immediately, but there was no greeting and no sound of his voice directed toward me.
At first I assumed it was a simple pocket call because I could hear the muffled sounds of the busy street and a distant car horn. I was just about to press the red button to hang up when I heard a familiar laughter that made my blood turn into ice. I recognized that specific sound instantly because it belonged to Lydia, who had been my closest friend since our first year of college.
