Brenda was heartbroken. Her only son, Christopher, had died in a terrible accident at just 27 years old. Since that day, her world had become a dark and lonely place. Grief ate away at her, and eventually, her health got so bad she had to spend a whole year in a clinic to recover.
Now, after that long year, Brenda had made a long journey across the country to visit Christopher’s grave. It was the first time she’d been back since the funeral. With each step she took, her heart felt heavier.
When Brenda stepped out of the metro station in the city where Christopher had lived and died, she felt the sadness creeping in again. But then—something unexpected happened.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone in the crowd.
That face… those eyes… that hair…
It was Harper! Her son’s wife! Brenda had planned to meet her after visiting the cemetery, but what luck—it seemed she had spotted her first.
“Harper! Harper? Wait a second!” Brenda called out, quickly walking up and gently tapping her shoulder.
But the woman turned around sharply and snapped, “I’m not Harper. You’ve got me wrong, lady!” She brushed off Brenda’s hand like it was nothing and rushed off into the crowd.
Brenda stood there, frozen in confusion. No way… That was her! I know what I saw! Her heart pounded. Harper had the same eyes, same voice—everything. But why would she deny knowing her?
Shaken, Brenda took a cab straight to the cemetery. She couldn’t get that strange moment out of her mind the whole way there.
“Ma’am, we’ve arrived,” the driver said, pulling up to the gates.
Brenda stepped out and walked among the silent graves, each one a reminder of someone else’s pain. She finally found her son’s grave and dropped to her knees, tears pouring down her face.
“Oh, Chris…” she whispered, her hands trembling as she touched the cold stone.
But then—something even more shocking.
She looked to the grave right next to Christopher’s… and gasped.
In Loving Memory of Harper S.
January 8, 1995 – December 3, 2020
Forever cherished, Forever missed.
Rest in peace.
Brenda’s mouth fell open. “What?! Harper passed away? Just last week? And nobody told me?”
Her hands covered her mouth. Her knees buckled. If Harper is dead… then who did I just see?
She noticed an old man raking leaves nearby—it was the cemetery’s caretaker.
“Excuse me, sir,” Brenda called, “do you know anything about Harper’s funeral?”
He took a drag from his cigarette and shrugged. “Yeah, it happened last week. Real weird, if you ask me. No family, no friends, no visitors. Just the guys from the funeral home brought the casket, buried it, and left. No ceremony. Nothing.”
“No one’s visited the grave since?” she asked, eyes wide.
“Not a soul,” the man replied. “I live on these grounds. I would’ve seen them.”
Brenda thanked him and walked away slowly, her head spinning. This doesn’t make any sense…
She decided she needed answers. There was only one person who might know something—Christopher’s best friend and business partner, Jake.
She showed up at Jake’s house unannounced. He looked surprised when he opened the door.
“Mrs. Sutton?” he said. “Wow. Uh… come in, please.”
Inside, Brenda quickly noticed something odd. Suitcases. Packed and ready by the door.
“Are you going somewhere?” she asked.
Jake rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah. I’m leaving the state. It’s been rough since Chris died. The company’s gone bankrupt, and I just… I need to get away from all this.”
“What? How could the company go bankrupt?” Brenda’s voice sharpened. “And what happened to Harper? I saw her grave beside my son’s. No one even told me she passed away!”
Jake looked guilty. “Mrs. Sutton, I didn’t want to upset you. You were still recovering… and things were already bad. After Chris died, Harper inherited the company, but she didn’t want to run it. She left it to me.”
He went on, “Business was already in trouble. Harper had an idea—take out loans and look for investors. We were desperate, so we went with it.”
Brenda’s eyes narrowed. “But you said Harper didn’t want anything to do with the business.”
Jake hesitated. “Yeah… well, it was her idea. But just a week ago, she withdrew all the loan money—five million dollars—and disappeared. Then we got news that she died. Her car crashed off a cliff and caught fire.”
Brenda felt her blood run cold.
“A burned car… was she identified?”
Jake nodded. “The cops found her pendant—gold, with the letter ‘H’—and burned money in the car. They said it was her. The case was closed.”
Brenda stared at him, shaking her head. “But the cemetery worker said no one came to her funeral. You just told me many people attended.”
Jake froze for a second. “Oh… well… maybe he missed it. It was early in the morning.”
But Brenda was no fool. She saw the nervous twitch in Jake’s eye. The hurried trip. The fake funeral. Something was off.
“When’s your flight?” she asked.
“Uh… 6 a.m. tomorrow.”
She smiled sweetly. “Would you mind if I stay the night here? I don’t feel safe in a hotel.”
Jake hesitated, then nodded. “Of course.”
That night, Brenda waited until Jake’s lights were off. Then she snuck into the living room and carefully opened his suitcase.
Her hands shook as she found a secret compartment.
Two passports.
One with Harper’s picture—but under a different name: Sarah.
The other had Jake’s face—but his name was John.
“What the hell…” Brenda whispered. “They faked their deaths…”
She also found two plane tickets to London—under those same fake names.
Brenda’s heart raced. They’re alive. They’re running. And they think no one will stop them.
She quickly put everything back and rushed to the nearby pharmacy. She needed sleeping tablets.
The next morning, at 5 a.m., she was in the kitchen, already cooking.
“Good morning, Jake!” she called cheerfully. “Have breakfast before your flight!”
He yawned and smiled. “Thanks, Mrs. Sutton. That’s kind of you.”
She handed him a glass. “Here’s your orange juice.”
He took a sip. “Tastes… uh… nice.”
Twenty minutes later, Jake was knocked out cold on the couch.
Now she just had to wait. Harper—or Sarah—would surely call.
At 5:30, Jake’s phone buzzed.
Caller ID: Sarah.
Brenda didn’t answer.
A message appeared:
“How could you oversleep, idiot? I’m coming to your house right now. Don’t make me late.”
Brenda smirked. “Come on, Harper… I’m waiting.”
Half an hour later, a taxi pulled up outside. Brenda peeked through the peephole and then called the police.
The door creaked open.
“Jake! Are you kidding me? Get up!” Harper shouted as she walked in and saw Jake on the couch.
Then a voice from behind made her freeze.
“ARE YOU LOOKING FOR SOMEONE, HARPER?”
Brenda smashed a vase over her head. Harper dropped to the floor.
Moments later, sirens wailed outside.
The police arrived, and Brenda showed them the fake passports, the tickets, and explained everything.
Jake refused to speak. But Harper, once she heard she might get a lighter sentence for cooperating, confessed it all.
“We bribed someone at the morgue. We took a homeless woman’s body, put my necklace on her, and burned her in my car. Then Jake pushed it off the cliff. It looked like an accident.”
“And the money?” the detective asked.
“We moved it into new bank accounts under fake names… everything was planned. We thought it was perfect. But then… Brenda showed up.”
Harper broke down, crying.
Jake and Harper were arrested and charged with fraud, faking death, and theft. Brenda, though shaken, felt a small sense of justice for her son. She had uncovered the truth—and stopped two liars from running off with stolen money.
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