I Died Replacing The Fake Daughter

Summary

Three years into the substitute marriage—the one I took for her—my husband was arrested for murder.

With nowhere else to go, I found myself back at that house.

The fake daughter, Stella Reed, was there, wrapped tight in Mother’s embrace, whispering for attention.

The atmosphere was thick with awkward silence. Nobody quite knew what to do with me, the thorny piece of returned property.

It was my brother, Marcus, who finally broke the tension. He simply pointed toward a small room.

Seeing my lack of protest, he narrowed his eyes, a flicker of genuine surprise there.