NOVEL NEXT Chapter 5: Bad Choices
The message from Ethan looked back at Mia from her phone screen. Her hands hadn't stopped shaking since she saw it, but her mind was crystal clear.
She had seven hours until her meeting with Derek.
Seven hours to plan her revenge.
Seven hours to decide if she was really ready to unbury ten years of lies.
"Focus," she whispered to herself. The purple bridesmaid's dress still lay on her floor like a bad joke. She kicked it aside and opened her laptop.
First step: Gather ammo.
Mia pulled up all her texts with Derek from the past 24 hours. Sweet nothings. Flirty promises. Lies wrapped in charm. She took screenshots of everything, especially his texts about meeting again.
Then she started digging deeper.
Phoenix Investments' website showed dozens of pictures of Derek and Olivia together. Power pair. Success story. Perfect match.
"Let's see how perfect you look when this comes out," Mia muttered, downloading every picture.
Her phone buzzed again. Another word from "Ethan": "Getting warmed up? Don't forget what happened last time you played with fire."
Mia's fingers paused over the reply button. It couldn't really be Ethan. She'd seen the stories. No body found, but enough blood in that basement to...
She shuddered and closed the message.
Focus on Derek first. One monster at a time.
Her doorbell rang again. This time, a different gift - roses. The card read: "Can't stop thinking about last night. - D"
Perfect.
Mia photographed the flowers and card, adding them to her growing collection of proof. Then she dropped the roses in her trash, thorns first.
Her phone pinged with a calendar reminder: "Olivia's Charity Gala - Tonight 7PM"
Mia smiled. Even better than meeting Derek at eight.
She pulled up the gala's event page. Five hundred people. Press attention. The perfect place to reveal everything.
But first, she needed to look the part.
In her closet, behind the box of old photos, hung a red dress she'd been saving for a special event. The kind of dress that made people stop and stare.
The kind of dress that said "revenge."
As she got ready, Mia's mind raced through possibilities. Should she tell Olivia privately? Make a scene in front of everyone? Send a private tip to the press?
Her phone lit up with another text from Derek: "Changed plans again. Skip dinner - come to the party instead. Olivia's dying to see you."
Mia's laugh held no humor. "I bet she is."
She took another screenshot, then opened her old texts from ten years ago. The ones she'd never deleted.
From Olivia (10 years ago): "Please, Mia. Nobody can know what happened."
From Olivia: "Ethan made his choice. We made ours."
From Olivia: "The fire solves everything. Trust me."
Mia had trusted her then. Her best friend. The girl who wore a similar purple bracelet and promised they'd keep each other's secrets forever.
Look how well that turned out.
Her laptop buzzed - an email from an anonymous account: "Looking for this?"
Attached was a movie file. Mia's hands trembled as she pressed play.
Grainy security footage showed a basement. Three teens entering. Only two left.
Smoke filled the screen, then static.
Another email arrived immediately: "There's more where that came from. Choose your next move carefully."
Mia slammed the laptop shut. She knew that footage had been destroyed. The cops said all cameras in the building had malfunctioned that night.
Someone was playing games with her.
Well, she could play too.
She opened her phone's camera and started recording: "Hello, Olivia. Remember when you said the fire solved everything? Let me tell you about last night with your fiancé..."
A knock at her door stopped the recording.
Through the peephole, she saw a package on her porch. Small. Square. Wrapped in purple paper.
Inside was a USB drive and a note: "Want to know what really happened that night? Press play before the dinner. - E"
Mia plugged the drive into her laptop.
The screen filled with a video she'd never seen before. Same basement. Same night. But a different view.
The truth hit her like a physical blow.
"Oh god," she whispered. "That's not what happened. That's not..."
Her phone burst with notifications:
Derek: "Can't wait to see you tonight. Wear something memorable."
Olivia: "My heart is pounding knowing you'll be there. We have so much to talk about."
Unknown: "The truth burns, doesn't it?"
Ethan 🔥: "Ready for your close-up?"
And finally, a word that made her blood freeze: "Check your bedroom."
Mia walked slowly to her bedroom door. It was closed, though she always left it open.
Inside, laid out on her bed, was a familiar purple band - not charred like hers, but pristine. New.
And written on her mirror in red lipstick: "Tonight we all burn."
Mia's image showed a woman on the edge. The red dress fit her curves like armor. Her eyes blazed with ten years of hidden rage.
But now she had a choice to make.
The dinner started in two hours. Olivia would be giving her big speech at eight - right when Derek had planned to meet Mia.
On her phone, the proof waited to be released: texts, photos, video confessions.
In her bag, the USB drive held an even darker truth.
And somewhere out there, someone who should be dead was pulling all their strings.
Mia picked up the purple band from her bed. It felt heavy than it should.
Time to decide: Expose Derek and destroy Olivia's perfect life?
Show the world the video and ruin everyone?
Or play along and find out who was really behind it all?
Her phone buzzed one final time. A word that changed everything: "Choose wisely. Some fires can't be put out."
Attached was a picture that made her heart stop.
The lower door.
It was open.
And the lock was still there, waiting for a key she thought she'd destroyed.
Mia looked at her mirror again, at the woman wearing vengeance like perfume.
"Time to fight fire with fire."
She grabbed her keys, the USB drive, and ten years of hidden secrets.
The party awaited.
And this time, she was ready to watch it all burn.